In recent months, OnlyFans has welcomed a wave of new creators seeking ways to make money from the comfort of home.

Although the site has proven itself to be extremely lucrative, providing many with the means of working in their own time on their own terms, it cannot be overstated that OnlyFans isn’t for everyone. 

In this article, I’ve shared six signs sex work may not be for you.

It is not my intention to put anyone off pursuing something that could work well for them, but to help vulnerable individuals identify any issues that may arise or be 

exacerbated by existing the adult entertainment industry.

I know how exciting OnlyFans is in early days but it’s for the best to remove the idea of rewards in order to carefully consider and reduce any risks that could arise.

Best case scenario, you become financially free and your well being, personal and professional life remain in tact.

Worst case, you make less than minimum wage from your page, everyone finds out, your children are expelled from school, your boss fires you, your boyfriend breaks up with you, your parents disown you, you’re scammed, your content is leaked and you relapse into an addiction.

Just to be clear, that’s a hypothetical situation based on a collection of true stories. 

It’s highly unlikely you’ll experience all of that at once but why not prepare for the worst?

Hope this helps! 

Family, religion & relationships

Where you are in the world, your religious upbringing, family expectations and relationship dynamics will all play a role in your overall experience on OnlyFans.

Of course, that’s not to say you should allow current community and relationship dynamics to dictate how you continue to live you life, just know that pursuing adult work will challenge the status quo in most cases.

Life can feel like it’s been flipped upside down if you come to realise those closest to you love you conditionally.

One creator was outed by the toxic side of her family and was cut off by her parents for a short while before being accepted again.

A mother of three was targeted by a clan of Karens after their husbands discovered her on r/prettywives, resulting in her boys being expelled from school.

There are countless other stories creators have shared where subscribers have turned out to be nothing other than anonymous trolls from their personal life.

Sadly, some who see you succeed want to drag you back down to where you were before things started looking up.

There are those who don’t understand exhibitionism and slut shame, and partners who pretend they don’t watch porn and act as if posting nudes somehow equates to infidelity.

They sexually satisfy themselves to other people and have a huff over their girlfriend wanting to become financially free when it’s nothing to do with sexual gratification.

Unfortunately, the majority are too close minded to see OnlyFans as an entrepreneurial endeavour and wish to conserve the status quo.

If there’s a high chance of your community casting you aside for becoming a creator, consider this carefully.

You could always remain anonymous until you have the means to sustain yourself.

Once you’re earning enough, you could come out about your income but its not necessary. Nobody needs to know if you don’t want them to.   

If, however, you can’t bare the idea of keeping secrets from close ones, maybe reconsider.

Validation

If you’re under the impression gaining sexual attention online will be the self esteem boost you’ve needed this whole time, you’d be sorely mistaken.

Self acceptance comes from within and cannot be obtained externally. 

Even if you do attract an endearing audience, any deep routed psychological issues will not be overcome by attempting to appeal to others.

In an interview with the BBC, Mia Khalifa shared how she lost weight and received sudden male attention, which she sought to maintain. 

However, the attention was never enough and it became a numbers game.

If OnlyFans is something you’re sure about starting, refrain from convincing yourself that you’ll be happy and consider yourself successful when you have x amount of fans.

More than likely, once you reach that arbitrary number, you’ll end up doubling it to achieve the same goal.

It’s worth knowing that numbers on OnlyFans don’t come close to the numbers other social media profiles reach unless your account is free.

With premium profiles, it’s perfectly normal to see subscribers drop off every month. This happens with most monthly subscription services.

It’s common for creators to have less than 100 subscribers so don’t be shocked if you only reach 40 or 50. This is usually enough to cover basic bills.

Measure your success by how satisfied your subscribers are. Engage with your audience and continue to improve your content and marketing methods.

Don’t become distracted by how well others are doing. Instead, aim to continually improve. 

Most importantly, don’t fall into believing the numbers are a reflection of your value. Your value is not and never will be determined by numbers on a screen. 

Desperation

Doing anything out of desperation can feel degrading. 

When I first considered setting up a subscription service, I was unemployed without a penny to my name.

I had been on a mental health waiting list for over a year and my living conditions were less than ideal to say the least.

The idea of starting OnlyFans in this state only worsened my self esteem as I began to worry about what others might think and say, as if somehow they’d sense I was in a desperate situation.

Strangely, those who are anti-sex work are often sympathetic towards workers who didn’t have any other options.

As tempting as it may be to tell yourself that this is temporary and done out of necessity, it’s still something you’re going to have to live with for a long time.

Forever, actually.

If you insist on entering the industry despite it being a last resort, I highly recommend adjusting your attitude before beginning.

Learn to see sex work in a different light.

Shedding internalised stigma can be difficult when it’s deeply ingrained but it is something you can overcome if you avoid disassociating from it.

Too often, ex creators talk about their regret in such as stigmatising way. 

They’re quick to throw other creators under the bus, claiming they’re not like that, whatever that means.

Others insist it was ‘only an experiment’ to escape societal judgement, but in doing so, they stigmatise sex workers and alienate themselves from their own actions.

Regardless of whether this is a last resort or not, aim to make OnlyFans an enjoyable experience for both you and your fans.

It’s not something that should feel heavy and weigh you down. It’s not something you ought to attempt to disassociate from.

If you’re going to do this, own it. 

You can try to convince others that you’re not like ‘that’ but you cannot hide from yourself.

Regret

In a recent Tik Tok, former porn star Mia Khalifa spoke out about her regrettable porn industry experience:

‘That hourly dissociative attack from remembering hundreds of millions of people’s only impression of you is solely based on the lowest, most toxic, most uncharacteristic 3 months of your life when you were 21.’

The ex porn star claims the industry can be devastating to mental health and future opportunities.

Although it’s unlikely you’ll be seen by hundreds of millions of viewers as Mia was, you may still come to regret uploading explicit content later down the line if you care about the opinions of others.

Mischaracterisation is unavoidable in this industry.

Then again, this isn’t too different to how your identity already operates.

Others will always boil your being down to something too simplistic to encompass your humanity.

To the strangers on the other side of the screen, you’re often only a 2D sexual object.

To the snooping subscribers from your personal life, you’re a shameless slut.

To your fans, you’re the object of admiration.

You’re always going to be something you’re not in the eyes of the other. 

You are not the same person to your mother as you are to your partner. You are not the same person to your boss as you are to your college lecturers. 

You exist as a customer when you’re shopping, a bad driver to the car beeping behind you, a kind stranger to the old lady you just helped, a care giver to your furry friends.

What does it matter who you are in the eyes of the other? 

It says little about you and much more about them. 

If you cannot see yourself overcoming societal stigma, this industry is not for you.

There is no way to convince the world that sex work is work, that you’re human, or that it makes you happy.

The ugly ignorance in others always finds ways to project itself onto something or someone. 

With that said, much of Mia’s regret stemmed from working with main stream porn producers.

She had little say in the direction of the shoots, was underpaid and did not own the content so could not remove it.

Fortunately, OnlyFans creators are independents. There is no contract.

What you post to your profile is entirely up to you and you can remove it at any point.

If you’re going to go for this, let them say what they’ll say. Let them think what they want to think, as ignorant as it may be.

The truth is, we’ll never be seen for who we actually are.

Everyone is mischaracterised, sex worker or not.

There is no avoiding it.

You think it’s easy money

If you’re only in this for the money and nothing about sex work particularly excites you, success is still possible but it’ll probably be a drag.

Although it seems easy on the surface, there’s more to it than meets the eye.

Creating and maintaining a profitable profile is a one (wo)man show. You’ll be the model, set designer, photographer, editor, marketer and customer care. 

Don’t expect it to be as simple as snapping a few scantily clad selfies to sell to internet strangers. 

Content creation is only part of the process.

Most of your time will be spent attracting an audience on public platforms, marketing your profile to your free followers and interacting with your paying subscribers.

Top creators are known to spend up to ten hours a day on their phones running their profiles.

Although ten hours a day isn’t necessary, it helps to dedicate at least two to three hours per day to your fans.

Even if you’re willing to put the time and effort in, there’s always the chance your efforts won’t pay off.

Again, risks aren’t always rewarded in this industry. 

Content must be created and distributed with deliberation to achieve your desired outcome.

If you’ve been considering becoming an OnlyFans creator because it seems like quick cash, you’re in the wrong business.

Sensitivity

If you’re proud of the photos you post, criticism will be a breeze.

If, however, you’re prone to perfectionism and picking yourself apart, you may want to consider how insensitive remarks made by that little devil on your shoulder may impact you.

Sometimes it’s not a devil on your shoulder, but a mean Reddit rat who sniffed out your insecurities and decided to draw attention to them.

Not too long ago I stumbled upon a post on Reddit shared by a creator with scarred thighs.

The comments towards her were just awful.

Some users called her disgusting, others said she shouldn’t post photos with them in, that she should cover them or edit them out.

There’s no knowing how she dealt with those remarks.

Hopefully she just took them on the chin and moved on with her day, but there’s always the chance it upset her and resulted in more scars.

It isn’t uncommon for creators to receive harsh comments about their weight or appearance, just take a look at the comments sections in the videos below. 

I should stress I’m not saying sensitive people shouldn’t sign up, just that your sensitivities are something worth taking into account.

You can always work on overcoming sensitivities but if you’re in a vulnerable state right now, it may be for the best to hold off until you’re in a better place.

Vulnerability

If you’re currently in a state of healing, OnlyFans could make or break you.

When I first considered signing up, I wasn’t in the best mental state so waited a while as 

I knew it wasn’t worth risking receiving any awful comments when I was at rock bottom. 

Rather than starting an account spontaneously because I couldn’t afford coffee, I waited until my health improved so I wasn’t so vulnerable. 

While I waited, I saved for lingerie, wigs and makeup so I’d feel comfortable and confident.

I had by no means escaped my sticky situation, I was still broke and broken, but I was in a better place mentally.

Now, creating content feels more like amateur boudoir than selling my soul, which is how it felt when I was desperate.

Waiting until the time was right also gave me the chance to consider the direction of my content.

I didn’t upload anything for quick cash and stuck with what I was comfortable showing, which is considerably safe than bypassing personal boundaries.

Conclusion

Resilience really is required in this industry.

Sex work is still stigmatised by some in society, so much so that they’re willing to lash out at internet strangers or even estrange family members.

The love you assumed to be unconditional from close ones may reveal itself to be conditional.

Your boss could fire you, your boyfriend could break up with you.

There’s no knowing what kind of community your content will attract or how you will cope if your attempts to become financially free backfire. 

Ultimately, all you can do is hope for the best and prepare for the worst.

Consider starting slowly if you do decide this is for you. Remaining anonymous to fly under the radar may also be a good idea at first as it’ll allow you to build resilience. 

Of course, I cannot tell you what to do, I don’t even know what you personal circumstances are. 

I just hope you carefully consider your best interests and reduce as many risks as possible.