TzedekChaim wrote on 05 Mar 2017 18:15:
5) This is more of a question. I know that many have and continue to say on this forum about how marriage does not solve this problem and may in fact even make it worse. (now that is a bit scary, but also realistic, and I get where it is coming from) However, in 'the fight' shiurim by rabbi shafier he talks about how before marriage one must fight the fight in the smartest way possible using the best tools available, but that until one is married it is impossible to totally win the fight. Obviously, marriage does help in some fashion. (in the shiur he explains some of the manners in which it helps) I was wondering if anyone more wise/married had any positive aspects of marriage that contribute in good ways to this fight? (I feel like the other approach is too focused on negatives, albeit not unrealistic. I just feel that it is difficult enough as it is to not think that I'm entering a new and only more difficult fighting ring. To me now it feels a bit like shooting myself in the foot so to speak getting married.) Any good things gained from getting married in this area of potential and growth?

Disclaimer: I didn't like "'the fight' shiurim by rabbi shafier".
That said, I think marriage can help and hurt. I think one of the misconceptions is that acting out is about taivah and hormones. Therefore, if a person has an outlet, he will not have a problem.
That may be true to a certain degree, but certainly for someone who is addicted, it can make things worse. He can view his wife as an object to satisfy his desires. (This is a sliding scale by the way, and I think we all do it to one degree or another.) He can then pressure her etc. She is turned off and it can make intimacy a source of tension instead of ... well intimacy

.
Addiction is about escape. I know for myself, and I think many others here will agree, the biggest trigger I have is being in a fight with my wife. (That trigger doesn't exist for singles

). The fact that addiction has much more to do with emotional state etc. means that marraige can be good or bad. A good marriage can uplift a person etc.. A bad marriage can be toxic.
Even in a good marriage, there are bumps along the way. Getting married is stressful. As much as you think you love your kallah, and nothing will ever go wrong... the reality is much different.
I wouldn't stress aobut it too much. Just realize, that your emotional state is probably more important than your physical satisfaction.
Just do your best to be a good husband. To appreciate your wife as a person, and not pressure her to satisfy you. (That is not so say that she should not satisfy you, just that you should not be obsessed with her satisfying you in specific ways.) It is a learning process for both of you. Be open and honest and IY"H things will be good.
Please keep us posted.