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Exercise 2: The impact of collecting on my life

Let us take a look at what effect collecting is having on your life, using Exercise 2.

Answer the following questions.

When do I do most of my collecting?

  1. What time of the day?
  2. Is it when other people are around or when I am on my own, or both?
  3. Do I create opportunities to be away from people so that I can concentrate on my collecting?
  4. How much time do I spend per week on my collection?
  5. How much time do I spend searching for material for my collection? How much time do I spend gathering the material? How much time do I spend organizing my collection?

Am I missing out on anything?

  1. Do I ever turn people down or say no to a social gathering so that I can spend time collecting?
  2. Do I ever avoid picking up the phone or answering my emails so that I don’t have to speak to someone and can concentrate on my collecting?
  3. Have I ever forgotten someone’s birthday or another special occasion because my mind was on collecting?
  4. Am I avoiding developing a new relationship by collecting?
  5. Is it easier to just concentrate on collecting?
  6. Are my loved ones beginning to get agitated or annoyed with me?

Am I impacting on my life financially?

  1. Am I finding it difficult to commit to my job or other responsibilities because of my collecting?
  2. Am I struggling to pay my bills because I have lost a job due to collecting?
  3. Do I have debts due to money spent on my collection?

Not everybody seen as a ‘problematic collector’ will find that their behaviour negatively affects all areas of their life. It might just be that it affects one area. By understanding why you collect and how it impacts on your life, you will recognize if it is something that you need to address.

Why collect sexual images of minors?

Of all the things you could collect, why collect sexual images of children?
Some people who collect sexual images of children say that it is the collecting which is really important for them, that it’s not really a sexual thing at all.

If that is true of you, ask yourself the question: ‘why am I collecting sexual images and not stamps, for example?’
We do everything for a reason. The reason that we do each thing is to serve some sort of function.

  • You eat because you are hungry and it keeps you alive.
  • You find a job, so that you can earn money to buy something.
  • You join a club because you want to make friends and build new relationships.
  • You decide to walk home instead of drive, to get some exercise as you have been sitting at a desk all day.

Every choice you make serves a function. So what function does collecting sexual images of children serve for you?

Use Exercises 3A and 3B to help you explore this.