With high-risk sex being so frequent among this group, health concerns are typical. Sexually transmitted diseases range from those that are readily treatable to those that are deadly. The risk of receiving a disease is added to by the risk of transmission to others. In some cases, the disease may be transmitted to sex industry workers but many cases it is transmitted to the non-sex addicted spouse. Family life is frequently disrupted due to abandonment of the wife and children or severe friction if the family stays physically intact.
Arrest is always a threat and also destabilizes the family.
Suicide is not infrequent. The consequences and the pain caused by this disorder are severe and yet the addict does not stop. This is an indication of the strength of the pull. The life of the sex addict is filled with pain and shame as the downward spiral takes hold. Substance abuse is common with alcohol, marijuana and cocaine being the most often drugs of choice of the sex addict.