Thoughts on dopamine detox and shit like that?

[Ivakadge]

I'm not talking about no fap only. Talking about anything really that leads to dopamine being released.

What I think is that it's great and yall should give it a try. It helps with motivation, concentration, time management, productivity and so on.
If anyone is interested I can drop some tips later on just ping or something idk.
I'm currently doing some form of nightmare mode. Here's what I've stopped doing
- fappin obviously
- no social media (except IG because I'm trying to grow a business on there)
- simplified diet (no sugar, no fancy food just sticking to plain and simple stuff)
- no alcohol and any other garbage (includes cigs, weed and etc... I've never smoked but still)
- no going out (exception here is to train)
- no phone usage
- no gaming
- limit youtube to only whatever is useful to me
This has helped me drastically. I find myself with more free time than ever which means I can focus on myself more and on work. Lately because of this I've been spending almost my whole day coding which before was impossible because after like 30 mins I'd get a notification or something and that would ruin my flow for the rest of the day. I've managed to complete the projects I've been postponing for so long, finish the documentations and my portfolio and so on.

[Gaydow]

I can tell you that it works. Add caffeine to your list and it's golden.

[JeanDeArc]

Any tips for someone with lots of time and has nothing to do exceptional?

[Gaydow]

Any tips for someone with lots of time and has nothing to do exceptional?

Depends on what drives you.

What do you want from life?

[Bernard]

Yes, a dopamine detox is probably a good idea every now and then. Mostly cause you have to realize that our brains, our emotions, our thoughts, etc. are all affected by our brain chemistry. It feels good to release dopamine, but of course if you deplete it, you're going to feel like shit. Kind of like how drinking makes you feel good, but you may have a hangover after.

On the other hand, lmao fuck that noise. As long as your pleasure seeking habits don't become problematic, do whatever the fuck you want. Bust as many nuts as you want, smoke as much weed as you want. I believe the point of being alive is the pursuit of pleasure and well-being. And before you think, oh that's just some degenerate hedonism bs, it goes further beyond that. Some people pursue a deeper purpose because it brings them pleasure. A heroin addict gets high to feel pleasure. A politician may be running for office because their sense of righteousnous or hunger for power brings them pleasure. To me, it's all the same. Everything you do, it's probably in pursuit of pleasure now or pleasure later. What does this have to do with dopamine? Dopamine makes you feel pleasure. Bernard out.

Sidenote: It's 5 AM. I've been watching a bunch of Westworld. I'm very tired. Guess I'm more nihilistic now.

[DragonyCat]

Yes, a dopamine detox is probably a good idea every now and then. Mostly cause you have to realize that our brains, our emotions, our thoughts, etc. are all affected by our brain chemistry. It feels good to release dopamine, but of course if you deplete it, you're going to feel like shit. Kind of like how drinking makes you feel good, but you may have a hangover after.

On the other hand, lmao fuck that noise. As long as your pleasure seeking habits don't become problematic, do whatever the fuck you want. Bust as many nuts as you want, smoke as much weed as you want. I believe the point of being alive is the pursuit of pleasure and well-being. And before you think, oh that's just some degenerate hedonism bs, it goes further beyond that. Some people pursue a deeper purpose because it brings them pleasure. A heroin addict gets high to feel pleasure. A politician may be running for office because their sense of righteousnous or hunger for power brings them pleasure. To me, it's all the same. Everything you do, it's probably in pursuit of pleasure now or pleasure later. What does this have to do with dopamine? Dopamine makes you feel pleasure. Bernard out.

Sidenote: It's 5 AM. I've been watching a bunch of Westworld. I'm very tired. Guess I'm more nihilistic now.

I like how you showed 2 sides of the matter. I kinda agree with them both. You don't want to overuse dopamine, or like take it for granted. But on the other hand, it's your life, let's do whatever you, I, someone else want(s). But (2nd but lol), OP's idea is amazing as well. I like how it gives them time for important things. Less social media would help so many people out there, looking at their phones 24/7. It's absurd.

[Ivakadge]

I can tell you that it works. Add caffeine to your list and it's golden.

Been thinking about it for a while. You are probably right I should quit it.

Any tips for someone with lots of time and has nothing to do exceptional?

The whole point of this is to free yourself from unnecessary distractions so you can do what you love doing. I'd suggest starting with that, find what you like to do and move on from there. The biggest tip for dopamine detox I can give you is if you are going to do something "small" know it won't be small. Small things always cause an avalanche effect and will lead to other bad stuff. I'll give you an example. You are hungry and go grab something to eat, notice there's a small amount of ice-cream left in your freezer from a few weeks ago and you decide to enjoy it. While eating you open youtube and start binging. Suddenly it's 10 pm you didn't cook dinner, you didn't exercise, you didn't do anything productive and your whole day has gone to shit. So again avoiding anything that you think will lead to other bad stuff.

[Bernard]

I like how you showed 2 sides of the matter. I kinda agree with them both. You don't want to overuse dopamine, or like take it for granted. But on the other hand, it's your life, let's do whatever you, I, someone else want(s). But (2nd but lol), OP's idea is amazing as well. I like how it gives them time for important things. Less social media would help so many people out there, looking at their phones 24/7. It's absurd.

Social media is great in that it connects the world but its designed to be addicting and you're not getting anything out of it. After using social media, especially Instagram, you prob just feel like shit because you just see pictures of the great part of peoples' lives. Where's the pleasure in that? I say it's an addiction with no pleasure derived out of it. It's self-torture.

Reddit is also a massive time dump, but it's not as bad for your mental health as Instagram imo. Personally, when I went on Reddit, I would end up being sucked in for up to 2 hours scrolling through random shit and then at the end of it feel like I just wasted a bunch of time. Decided to uninstall the app from my phone. I will say it IS a good place to find niche communities with similar interests.

[[MPGH]Dave84311]

Eventually you will go back to your dopamine craving ways

Kinda pointless IMO

What you need is self control and to be driven. Get the useless shit out of your life and stay focused.

[Ivakadge]

Eventually you will go back to your dopamine craving ways

Kinda pointless IMO

What you need is self control and to be driven. Get the useless shit out of your life and stay focused.

That's what I've been doing and it's what I do. None of the things I mention are "useful" nor do they bring happiness into my life. The only thing I'll go back to after time will be going out. The rest would be better out of my life.

[RespectNF]

I believe that some sort of dopamine detox is beneficial,like you listed blocking/not using social media,youtube,gaming etc. I may give a try to something similar. I think that limiting youtube is a big one. Even if i go just to listen to music i usually see a recommended video,get distracted and keep watching that. I've been trying to use Spotify for music for now.

[[MPGH]Dave84311]

That's what I've been doing and it's what I do. None of the things I mention are "useful" nor do they bring happiness into my life. The only thing I'll go back to after time will be going out. The rest would be better out of my life.

What it sounds like you need to spend some time getting bored. Just do nothing for a weekend until you feel bored. It really helps with the motivation part. I need to it myself TBH.

[Ivakadge]

I believe that some sort of dopamine detox is beneficial,like you listed blocking/not using social media,youtube,gaming etc. I may give a try to something similar. I think that limiting youtube is a big one. Even if i go just to listen to music i usually see a recommended video,get distracted and keep watching that. I've been trying to use Spotify for music for now.

Youtube is also a big one for me. Really struggling and I will try to follow Dave's advice on just being bored for a week. My average used to be 40+ hours a week now I'm getting around 20-25 which means I've cut in half. Still way too much time but like any other addiction it takes time and effort to break it.

[Crypto]

Eventually you will go back to your dopamine craving ways

Kinda pointless IMO

What you need is self control and to be driven. Get the useless shit out of your life and stay focused.

I'd say that its more about a sustainable lifestyle like u said. Cut out the bad habits and create a life for yourself that you love getting after every day