How I Tricked My Brain To Like Doing Hard Things (dopamine detox)

When you’ve been on YouTube for so long that the algorithm gives you ways to do other things.

I realized that ive started to always scroll down the comments section while the video is still playing. It's my brain searching for more dopamine than the video on its own can provide Edit: thanks for all the dopamine 😁

the hardest thing is actually watching this video trying to ignore the urge to fast-forward to the main point.

Actually, bundling a high dopamine activity with a low dopamine one isn't very good. When you do this, you start losing they joy you got by doing the low dopamine activity. This was the conclusion of a study where they took kids who liked to draw, and when they started giving rewards to the kids after each drawing, the enjoyment of the activity started to decrease. The key is to try to enjoy the low dopamine activity, by thinking the effort is the good part of it, not the reward you're receiving afterwards, that way the activity itself will start releasing more dopamine. Learned from Huberman Lab podcast

I’ve been on YouTube for so long that it’s recommending to me ways to get off of the site

Fun fact: Even forcing myself to watch this video to completion, as opposed to funner content, was difficult. Which I think is part of your point.

At the beginning of the year I started going for 30-40 minute walks every morning in the nearby forest and fields. Have kept it up mostly throughout the year. It is absolutely fantastic - I get plenty of light, I get exercise, I kickstart my metabolism, it wakes me up, and I feel like I have a more consistent energy throughout the day. It has reduced post-lunch slumps massively. It's like a biohack for modern life.

This video really opened my eyes to my dopamine addiction. In the morning, I’ve been doing activities that give me a high dopamine release not realizing why I’m so unmotivated to be productive later in the day. Now I know the significance of working towards a pleasure at the end of the day. Thank you

As much as I hate to admit, social media is destroying our lives

Ah, so that explains why I loved reading as a kid but find it harder and harder to read books as an adult.

I loved the video. I am starting my dopamine detox to start studying for a huge test that will change my life. Good luck to everyone changing their lives and thank you for the video!

The rat experiment at 2:20 is also a good parallel for folks with ADHD. People with ADHD, aren't able to regulate the dopamine in their receptors, so we either have an excess of them (Hyperactive) or a lack of them (Innattentive). I lean more on Innattentive, the lack in ability to produce Dopamine crushes any form of motivating you have. This is due to there being a lack of a "reward" feeling and everything feels one note. For example, the death of my friend felt the same as a wedding I attended, me graduating college, me getting my first girlfriend, me getting that job I wanted, and the same as waking up in the day and staring in the mirror; Everything feels the same. This also explains why a good portion of those with ADHD suffer from depression as well; And it can be mistaken for laziness or unintelligence. Granted, we do have our highs and our lows, but in my experience life just feels the same. It bothers me when people pretend to have ADHD to be "quirky" and "oh squirrel!" but in reality it's extremely debilitating. Imagine having dreams and goals and the desire to want to actually do something in your life, and your body actively and physically prevents you from doing it. I have mad respects for those who made it far with ADHD because it's genuinely a struggle to wake up day to day and find a excuse to continue going; Having ADHD for 6 atleast months will teach you that it really aint a wonder why Depression and suicide are closely tied to adults with ADHD.

“The secret of happiness, you see, is not found in seeking more, but in developing the capacity to enjoy less.” - Socrates.

Me: tries to trick my brain My brain: I know what you're doing

I found your video in 2024 and I really have problems with dopamine addiction. thank you for wonderful video. its help me alot.

I saw it coming: Stop doing the things that make you feel good. As soon as the detox regimen was outlined, I thought to myself, yeah, this makes sense, and man will this be hard. But a few seconds later I actually envisioned in my mind a day without all of those things. Like I ACTIVELY thought about living through a day like that. And something cool happened. For a moment, I felt like there were tears coming, because the absence of those addictions I take for granted translated to a sort of freedom. Maybe one day I will try this.

This guy: dont use your phone or internet Me: doesn't attend online classes

People should be learning this at school. These are critical times!!

wooow I already know this is going to work so well for me! Im a huge dopamine addict, phone, internet, games, and even weed. I used to love reading books and organizing my home and now i cant do it. I am going to detox today! I need my life back. Thank you!

00:07 🕹 Preference for easy over hard tasks; understanding motivation for tackling difficult tasks. 01:28 🐀 Dopamine's role in desire and motivation; rat experiments showing extreme dopamine effects. 03:22 🧠 Dopamine's impact on behavior; prioritizing activities based on expected dopamine release. 06:09 🎮 Dopamine tolerance; preference for high dopamine activities like video games over low dopamine tasks. 07:34 🛑 Need for a dopamine detox; abstaining from high dopamine activities to reset tolerance. 08:58 🌴 Dopamine detox process; embracing boredom, letting dopamine receptors recover. 10:24 🔄 Balancing dopamine behaviors; using high dopamine activities as rewards for completing challenging tasks. 12:42 🧠 Controlling dopamine intake; limiting high dopamine behavior, finding excitement in low dopamin