Dopamine Reset
Modified 2023-07-09
- at least 2 weeks
- no substances
- no bad technology (social media, video games, content aggregation site)
- no porn, or unhealthy sex
- no unhealthy food (examples: pizza, ice cream)
- no shopping, or gambling
- no thrill seeking, especially for people with ADHD
What to expect?
- boredom
the kind of itchy boredom, where you wanna use your phone ever the moment you feel bored
- negative emotions
dopamine numbs the emotional circuitry, so more emotions will come bubbling up
- developing other coping mechanisms
taking away one coping mechanism, develops another one, notice if it's harmful to you or not.
How to structure a dopamine detox?
- connect with nature
looking at horizons reduces stress, plants have beneficial effects on anxiety and depression
first 72 are the hardest, just set it down and come back later
board games, escape rooms, ...
might as well, I guess
use grey-scale, turn off notifications, keep phone physically away
tell people what you are doing
Urge Surfing
- entertain the urge, but don't give in
- fully give the urge your attention, and notice if it grows, or if it dwindles
- try to ride it out, procrastinate the urge
- the mind will get bored of it's urge, and it will go away eventually