Don't skip this. Read it if you're interested in impulse control. So recently, I experienced a very drastic transformation, going from a lazy guy who couldn't start lifting, wouldn't eat right, couldn't concentrate when I studied, had no impulse control and procrastinated everything to a very disciplined person that is currently working on improving myself in all areas, with a degree of self-control that I could have never imagined. Because I'm not person of influence and I have nowhere to share the method I used, I'll just make a somewhat lengthy post about it here on Blind, because I know many of you guys struggle with these things, and then I'll move on. If it helps someone like it helped me, so be it. Let's start. ::: The Principles and Theory ::: I'm not going to post a bunch of scientific articles here, because none of you will read them, and I don’t want this post to be some tl;dr nonsense. All you have to know is that, in the simplest terms, every habit you have is related to the reward system of your brain, a system that releases neurotransmitters according to the cues you give it. The process is complex, not entirely clear and way beyond my grasp, but I do enjoy reading studies related to this, because that’s the sort of thing you do when you’re a procrastinator like I was. For our purposes here, all we have to know that countless different studies have linked the reward circuitry of the brain to virtually every impulse you can imagine: fear, anxiety, laziness, food addiction, social necessities, social detachment, sadness, intrusive thoughts, etc. Your inability to control any type of impulse has its roots in the neurochemistry of this wide and complex system. To give you an example, studies have shown that both obese people and drug addicts have DA D2 receptors in certain brain areas different to those of regular people, and that similar areas receive activation when your brain receives the feedback of drug cues or food cues. Another example, people who experienced something called “Social Defeat,” particularly in formative years, have shown changes in these same receptors and higher neurological response to social stress. Reading these studies, even as a layman, made me realize the obvious: your brain is wired to create patterns and loops, and it physiologically modifies itself to adapt to these patterns, allocating neurotransmitters to those ends. When people (or rats in these experiments) experienced social defeat and exclusion repeatedly, their reward system were wired in a way that they did not receive a positive impulse for social stimulus like normal people did, and it was wired to perceive people as a threat. Hence why the bullied kid grew up to become the quiet guy who is terrified of people. It’s not just psychological conditioning, it’s neurochemistry. I saw studies making similar conclusions with EVERYTHING. Food, music, people, trauma, video games, porn, everything. Once your brain is wired to certain cues a certain way, it’s over, it becomes design. This is why it’s hard to quit bad things and start good ones, and why people go their entire lives planning to change habits and never doing it. Our neurochemistry is limited and already allocated and striving for consistency. But what studies focused on overcoming addiction, in rehabilitation and resocialization show again and again is that once your brain no longer receives a certain cue, it will stop allocating those neurotransmitters for that end. And that once your brain picks up on a different stimulus from an old cue (like positive experience from a source that was deemed negative), it is completely modified to now have different responses. For example, even the mice that went through “social defeat” lost most of the symptoms once they were re-introduced to a new house with friendly mice. The reason for that was the reward system re-shaping itself according to new stimuli. Being the non-scientist that I am, I stretched this into a conclusion that now probably seems somewhat obvious: Your brain has been wired a certain way given the feedback and cues it received throughout your entire life, and that’s where impulses and “old habits” come from, but it can be reset. The purpose of this method is to understand the value of this reset, and to achieve it. Part 2 - https://www.teamblind.com/post/7zwJPTcw
Really cool!
I believe in taking care of myself and a balanced diet and rigorous exercise routine. In the morning if my face is a little puffy I'll put on an ice pack while doing stomach crunches. I can do 1000 now. After I remove the ice pack I use a deep pore cleanser lotion. In the shower I use a water activated gel cleanser, then a honey almond body scrub, and on the face an exfoliating gel scrub. Then I apply an herb-mint facial mask which I leave on for 10 minutes while I prepare the rest of my routine. I always use an after shave lotion with little or no alcohol, because alcohol dries your face out and makes you look older. Then moisturizer, then an anti-aging eye balm followed by a final moisturizing protective lotion
Sarcasm ?
Thanks OP for sharing this, but what you did sounds to me more like a “dopamine detox” instead of hacking the reward system of your brain(https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/dopamine-detox#health-benefits). A change in your brain’s reward system happens either (i) naturally, when you are praised by someone for doing something good or achieve a desired outcome, both of which makes your brain associate that behaviour with something positive, or (ii) by increasing your awareness about your habits and their undesired outcomes which takes much more time and requires to be really diciplined. I wonder how much time passed since you complete that 7 days of dopamine fasting (or whatever you call it) and have your bad habits really disappeared magically at the end of that 7 days? Don’t you want to play board games, daydream, or eat greasy food anymore? I’m asking this not to discourage anyone but because I’m genuinely interested in this topic.
Also, not sure if the “only reading and lifting” formula would work for everyone. I think the point here is to cut off habits that activates the reward mechanism in your brain which varies from person to person.
Thank you for sharing the article, bad habits can come back if you don't stay on top of them and over time it'll be easier to override the urge (e.g. impulsively checking Blind). While doctors on both sides argue the merits of 'dopamine detox', they do concede that the end result of refraining from these addictive activities do help with mitigating and resolving bad habits, especially when you replace them with more productive activities. The author also touches on mindfulness meditation which is a very valid scientific technique that is taking root recently. Lastly, I'd like to mention Nicholas Carr's 'The Shallows' where a New York Times Bestseller noticed his inability to read and think deeply and surmised that the use of the internet and social media may have something to do with it. He does a fantastic job of crystallizing the debate around the effects of technology on humans and I encourage anyone to give this a read as it helped me start on my journey. Good luck. https://www.nicholascarr.com/?page_id=16
Dude just share a link. What is this C&P BS over several parts?
“For example, even the mice that went through “social defeat” lost most of the symptoms once they were re-introduced to a new house with friendly mice.” ^ interesting
Yeah but if social defeat is due to being ugly then anywhere you go you’ll just be treated the same.