Necrophilia: characteristics, causes and treatment

All the whys and wherefores of this sexual disorder.

The necrophilia is one of the sexual disorders that causes the greatest rejection in society.Few people can understand that there are individuals who are sexually aroused by the presence of corpses.

But what exactly is this disorder? What are its symptoms and treatment? In today's article we will answer these questions. However, to understand what necrophilia is, we will first explain what paraphilias are, a category that includes necrophilia.

Necrophilia, one of the most studied paraphilias

Sexual disorders are divided into three main categories: paraphilias, sexual dysfunctions and sexual identity disorders. The word paraphilia has its origin in the Greek language. In Greek, "para" means next to, and "filein" is synonymous with the verb "to love".

Paraphilias are mental disorders characterized by intense and repeated sexual fantasies, sexual impulses towards children or non-consenting persons, or towards non-human objects or situations such as self-suffering or humiliation.sexual impulses towards children or non-consenting persons, or towards non-human objects or situations such as suffering or self-abasement. Therefore, paraphilias such as necrophilia negatively affect the quality of life of one or more persons. Some of the best known are: exhibitionism, voyeurism, fetishism or paedophilia.

You can learn more about these paraphilias in our article: " The main sexual and psychosexual disorders".

According to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM), these sexual fantasies or sexual urges occur over a significant period of time (at least 6 months) and interfere with the person's normal functioning or sexual satisfaction in relationships.

Behavioral characteristics of the person with paraphilia

Although paraphilias are often seen as bizarre and extreme behaviors, they are easier to understand if one thinks about those behaviors that, in less extreme cases, are quite common. For example, for one person, sexting may provoke arousal. Now, when an individual only becomes aroused through sexting, then it would be considered a paraphiliabecause they have a way of satisfying their sexual desires that has a negative impact on their well-being.

Recommended article: "Sexting: the risky practice of sending naughty pictures to each other through cell phones".

In summary, the behavior of people with paraphilia is characterized by:

• Paraphilia is a disorder of sexual desire that lasts at least six months. Therefore, it must have been sustained over time.
• It includes abnormal behavior, arousal, fantasy or pain.
• There are many types of paraphilias in which the sufferer has fantasies, desires or even maintains relationships with objects or people without their consent.
• Psychotherapy or anti-androgens are beneficial for patients to control their abnormal sexual behavior.

Necrophilia: a strange disorder

Among the paraphilias, necrophilia is, together with pedophilia, the most common. pedophilia, one of the paraphilias that causes the greatest social rejection.. Few individuals can imagine a person having intimate relations with a dead person. But the truth is that, despite its strangeness, over the years there have been cases such as that of Carl Tanzler, who has become famous for his macabre story: he exhumed the corpse of an ex-patient of his in order to have intimate relations with her.

Necrophiliacs are aroused by corpses.This pathology leads the necrophiliac to a feeling of apathy with those around them, turning their life to this type of acts. This pathology leads the necrophiliac to a feeling of apathy with those around them, turning their life to this type of acts.

Social pressure against necrophilia

Some patients with necrophilia have had a life in common with the deceased and, after their death, wish to continue copulating with the deceased. In other cases, necrophiliacs may have sexual relations with several victims, as in the case of Kenneth Douglas, a necrophiliac from Hamilton County, Ohio (USA), who had sexual relations with more than 100 corpses. had sex with more than 100 female corpses while working as a morgue attendant at a morgue in that region.. In this case, the necrophiliac was able to direct his life in such a way that he was able to carry out these acts, so that social censure would not affect him.

But necrophilia not only brings with it social or personal consequences, but also legal ones, since the desecration of graves and the retention of a lifeless body is criminalized in most countries. Therefore, many necrophiliacs end up many necrophiliacs end up in custody and in severe trouble with the law..

Possible treatments

Various techniques can be used to treat necrophilia, usually from cognitive behavioral therapy. cognitive behavioral therapy. Psychotherapy (both individual and group) is the mainstay in the treatment of these patients and is often part of the treatment of necrophiliacs. and, in addition, it is often part of a multimodal treatment, which may include social skills training, drug administration and hormonal treatment.

The administration of anti-androgen drugs such as medroxyprogesterone acetate (in the United States) or cyproterone acetate (in Europe) is the treatment of choice for this disorder. Treatment is long-term, because deviant sexual arousal patterns may re-occur soon after testosterone levels return to normal.

The administration of Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors (SSRIs) such as fluoxetine or Fluvoxamine may also be helpful.

Carl Tanzler: one of the most famous cases of Necrophilia

One of the most famous cases of necrophilia is that of Carl Tanzler, a man who, astonishingly! was able to exhume the corpse of Maria Elena Milagro de Hoyos, the woman he considered the woman of his life, in order to continue having sexual relations with her..

Tanzler managed to glue the bones of his deceased loved one with hangers and wires, put glass eyes in her eye sockets, and replaced her rotting flesh with silk cloth treated with wax and white plaster, as the body was in a considerable state of putrefaction and so he could keep it visible longer.

Learn more about this case in our article, "Carl Tanzler's famous and macabre case of necrophilia." Bibliographical references:

• Aggrawal, Anil (2008). Forensic and Medico-legal Aspects of Sexual Crimes and Unusual Sexual Practices. CRC Press. p. 296.
• Masters, Brian (1985). Killing For Company. Arrow. ISBN 978-0099552611.
• Aggrawal, Anil (2010). Necrophilia: Forensic and Medico-legal Aspects. CRC Press. pp. 6-7. The primary source is Histories, Book V, 92.