Sex addiction is a topic that is not yet openly discussed in the international community here in China. This can be attributed to low awareness, and lack of support, which has in turn led to those who struggle with sex addiction finding it even harder to recover. In order to improve mental health in this domain, in 2023, CandleX initiated Sex Addiction Recovery Project, supported by our partners including Date Night China, Youman Potential, BARE, Fun Beijing, Men are Humans Too, and Hopelessly Tatiana. The project has three elements: survey and understanding of the needs in China, psychoeducation and psychosocial support. In Jan 2023, this month, we have received dozens of responses to our survey from people who opened up to us about their sex addiction, and we will share the result in the upcoming weeks.
As of now, we are inviting you to join the Sex Addiction Recovery Group, that will run for 6 weeks starting in mid-February 2023 online for people who are currently struggling with sex addiction. Check out our last article on: what is sex addiction?
What is a recovery group?
CandleX Sex Addiction Recovery Group will be facilitated by Xiaojie Qin, a psychotherapist and director of CandleX. Through psychoeducation, and facilitated peer support, the group will go through a process of learning, reflection, discussion on sex addiction, your own story sharing and learning of self-management tools to start or continue the recovery.
Please note that the relationship between you and the facilitator does not constitute a therapy relationship. The facilitator provides psychoeducation and facilitate the process to ensure group rules are followed and dynamics are managed so the process is non-judgmental, safe, confidential and equal to all members.
What will be covered in the 6-week?
During six weeks, you will
Get to know each other, and develop authentic connections with others
Deepen your understanding of what is sex addiction. We will use a sex addiction self-screening tool, and you can track your progress along the way.
Share personal stories. look at your experiences in relation to others, what’s the same and what’s different. Understand what format of addiction yours takes place, its frequency and severity. review how it has changed your relationships with yourself, family and friends, and your intimate relationships. Review the onset of addiction, and its progression, barriers to recover in the past and relapses. Develop an awareness of your desires, motivation. Most importantly, identify your own resources and strengths.
Learn to regulate emotions through building up emotional tolerance and behavioral changes. You will learn tools that used in psychotherapy, drawing from cognitive behavior therapy, EMDR, Art therapy, Narrative therapy.
Develop further steps for recovery and gain access to local resources for your continued healing.
There might be homework between sessions as reading chapters of a book, or journaling.
All of what will be covered is subjective to change depending on the progress of learning and recovery as well as group preferences.
Key Information
Participants: adults (18+) who are currently struggling with sex addiction.
Gender: mixed group including men and women (see FAQ section for other possibilities)
Date: every Wednesday evening, 15th, 22nd Feb, 1st 8th, 15th, 22nd 29th Mar 2023
Time : 19:30-21:00
Via online platform Voov (腾讯会议)
Language: English
Max number: 8 people each session
Fee: 900rmb (6 sessions, no refund)
Registration: add summer on Wechat
Recovery Group coordinator will reach out via private message to confirm your registration.
Group Principles
We shall not be held responsible for group member’s safety. If you are experiencing mental illness and are engaging in self-harm or experiencing suicidal ideations, you need to seek clinical mental health treatment. You will find useful information on our crisis page
All information shared with the group is confidential. Other rules and key information will be listed in the consent form, which requires your signature as a perquisition to participate.
If you have any concerns or feedback of the support group, we welcome you to let us know by emailing it to xiaojie.qin@candlex.cn .
About the Facilitator
Frequently Asked Questions
I cannot attend this time. Will there be another round?
We are not sure given that this is a semi-pro bono service from Xiaojie. We strongly encourage you to make time for this one as we cannot guarantee if the next one will be available or if the fee will stay the same.
I don’t feel comfortable being in a mix group. Should I still apply?
Although both men and women are encouraged to apply, there is a chance that it turns out to be a single gender group. We encourage you to apply, and you can withdraw from it if it turns out to be a mixed gender group.
I am worried that the group will be dominated by other people, or others will enforce their ideas and opinions on me. Am I too worried?
These are possible when the group is not facilitated well. The facilitator Xiaojie has over a decade of experiences with group work. She’s a positive parenting trainer, facilitated CandleX’s peer support group for 5 years, developed trainings and provide them to facilitators of different levels, and she provided group therapy to abusive relationship recovery groups. Xiaojie would manage any situations that could harm the group to ensure safety, confidentiality and emotional wellbeing of the members. If you have any concerns or feedback during the process, you can also email her directly at: xiaojie.qin@candlex.cn
CandleX’s other resources
One on One Support with a mental health professional: if you are looking for information about mental health treatments or have a close friend or family member who is living with a mental health condition like depression or anxiety and you want to support them, our Pre-treatment Guidance Program is perfect for that.
Mental Health Peer Support Group: it’s an open generic group for people with different mental health issues to attend at any time.
Sex Addiction Recovery Project is supported by our awareness raising partners: Date Night China, Youman Potential, BARE, Fun Beijing, Men are Humans Too, and Hopelessly Tatiana.
