How Dopamine is ruining our lives and How to do a Dopamine Detox
How I did a dopamine detox and took back control over my life and how you could do the same
Dopamine is essential for our body, but too much of it can be dangerous and cause so much damage to our behavior and, therefore, our life.
In this article, I'm going to explain how Dopamine is destroying our generation, and I'm going to show you how to do a detox that worked for me and made me take back control of my life, and I hope you will do the same.
Dopamine?
Simply put, it's a neurotransmitter that's responsible for pleasure, happiness, and feeling of reward.
Ever wondered why it feels good to listen to music or after a good meal? The reason for that feeling is Dopamine. In other words, it's the brain's reward system.
Why Too much Dopamine is lethal:
From scrolling through social media and playing a video game to eating a piece of chocolate, these activities trigger your brain to release Dopamine.
At first, it doesn't seem so bad to have some of this feel-good neurotransmitter, and that's true, but over time your brain will stimulate the cravings for the activities that bring you pleasure. Inevitably, you get hooked and keep doing these activities over and over again, and that's what we call Addiction. This is how people become drug addicts and alcoholics or porn addicts.
How Dopamine is destroying us:
We spend hours a day scrolling through social media or binging on our favorite TV shows.
According to the A.C. Nielsen Co., the average American watches more than 4 hours of TV each day (or 28 hours/week, or two months of nonstop TV-watching per year).
59% of the world's population uses social media. The average daily usage is 2 hours and 29 minutes (July 2022).
That's 6 hours and 30 minutes we sacrifice every day in the pursuit of that daily "dopamine rush" that will make us feel good. This feeling is addictive and temporary, so we ultimately end up in the addiction circle.
After a while, in this routine, you become a prisoner to the devices you use to access the internet. The Dopamine rushes will take control over your action and keep you wanting more and more of the content that makes you feel good.
The effects of Dopamine rushes:
This destructive routine of seeking that daily dopamine rushes will make you:
· Always tired (lack of energy)
· Feeling off and lose of focus
· Depression
· Addiction
· Losing control over your life
· Stress and Anxiety
· Sleep troubles
And the list goes on.
Why do you have to do a Dopamine detox?
A dopamine detox will allow you to be more focused in your life and you will take back control over your actions, and you will be more energetic, get more work done, and it allows you to stop for a while and block the constant noise of the world to reflect on your own life and see where you at in life and how to become a better version of yourself.
Other benefits of this detox:
· The ability to control your desires
· Increase in productivity and energy
· Boost your confidence
· Healthier Body
· Ability to make a better decision
How to do a Dopamine detox?
The first thing you have to do is to set a duration for your detox. I recommend 7 to 10 days.
Here's a dopamine detox checklist:
Quit social media/video games /TV shows:
For the duration of the detox, you'll have to stop using any social media platform (if you can't start by minimizing the use time to the minimum), stop playing video games, and stop watching any TV shows or movies. This will decrease stress and anxiety levels, and no distractions during the day, which will allow you to focus on your work.
Exercise:
Start exercising regularly. You can not believe the impact of 30 minutes run doing a few dozen push-ups, sit-ups, and squats. If you're consistent, a simple workout like this one will literally change your life. You'll be more energetic, feel good and confident in your body, sleep soundly at night, and have countless other benefits.
Eat healthily:
Start a healthy diet plan with no more sugar, junk, soda, alcohol, and no caffeine (after 1 pm).
A healthy, well-balanced diet will make your body function properly and gives you the nutrients your body needs without spiking dopamine levels.
Sleep schedule:
You need to get 8 hours of sleep every night, so you have to take your sleep seriously and make a sleep schedule to maintain that 8 hours of uninterrupted sleep.
We are living in a dangerous era. We're constantly surrounded by distractions that can shift our focus from our reality to dive into illusions and consume the life we want to live instead of shaping our life to be the life we dream about.
