I think everyone knows the amount of pain and frustration it takes to break a habit, and I know that you’ve come across the term “dopamine” when searching for answers after putting up with this disgusting habit, or what most of us call an “addiction”.
Even though its great for you to know the scientific research behind it, you need the mindset of breaking the addiction, not the studies of this and that. Sure, it can help you see how things work, but you want the solution to the problem, not why this problem exists.
However, before we get into that, we need to address why this pattern worked, and the rest of the techniques either only aided me or were completely useless.
Understanding what we’re up against
So, first off, dopamine. You already know that dopamine is the “pursuit to pleasure” hormone, and it’s the hormone that drives you to do certain acts, rewarding you whenever you have completed that task.
However, all these “modern addictions” (video games, social media, junk food, etc.) have been meticulously designed to hijack your brain, giving unnecessary dopamine when you haven’t worked for that reward. And you know the side effects so Im not gonna get into the details.
This piece of knowledge is a lot less common, but is still known to most people. And that is pain and pleasure are like this ying-yang cycle.
You have a “happiness threshold”, and when you pass this threshold, you feel “happy”. But it is also derived by the pleasure and pain you have experienced throughout your life. Let me show you what i mean…
When you take the drug, or play the video game, the happiness line shifts up. And later, after you’ve done the fun part, you feel this wave that paralyzes you with pains of regret, shame, and laziness.
Suddenly, the happiness lines so high that even playing the game feels no more fun.
But, what if you flipped the script? What if you went to the gym or finished up that project? You’d feel accomplished, triumphant, energized. They might be painful in the moment, but in the future, you will feel waves of gratitude and accomplishment.
So, the way you break an addiction, is obviously to stop doing the addiction. But, you instead replace that with work. With pain, with discomfort, with a goal that you can work on. And the most important part is to cut it all out. NOW. If you don’t take action now, what makes you think future you will? Find something much more healthy than drinking, or playing fortnite, or scrolling on tik tok.
For example, I replaced video games with going to the gym. I’ve replaced social media with leveling up my social skills, and build meaningful relationships. I’ve replaced consuming junk food with eating natural foods which taste even better, like fruits and nuts.
But the bottom line is, you need to replace the addiction with something that will take up just as much if not more time and energy than the addiction you want to break will.
Because I want you to succeed, I’ve listed many things that I know you can do, starting NOW:
- Do house chores for your roommates or family members (or yourself if you do live by yourself
- Learn a new skill. It can literately be anything, from learning parkour, or figuring out how AI works, or reading history books. Anything
- Read or watch podcasts. These are fantastic ways of gaining knowledge, and it will open doors for you to explore your passion.
- And finally, work on a personal project that you’ve wanted to do for so long. Get in shape, increase your income, whatever it can be. Just do that instead of wasting your time on video games
And, heres another hint; use the internet to learn how to get what you want in life done. The resources are all here for you. You just have to take it.
And finally, I saved the best for last: NEVER GIVE UP. You can get knocked down to the ground, and thats normal. You can relapse multiple times, again and again.
But the most important thing though is you get back up, and try again from a different approach. If you can accomplish this, you can break the addiction thats controlled you for so long. You just need to keep getting back up, and push forward, even if you think the odds are against you. I believe in you, and best of luck out there.
Thanks for reading until the end of the article. I’d enjoy if you left a comment on how I can improve my writing content since this is my first article. Have a great rest of your day, and Ill see you in the next article, addiction free.
