How Do You Fully Remove Yourself From Entertanment And Plugging In?

[kyle barnett]

Hi guys, I have always been obsessing over whether or not to quit certain activities, replacing them, and how to become independant of useless idle activities that don't serve us. After contemplation I have ended up dropping daily habit cycles I get into such as video games, memes, newsfeed, porn, pointless messeging etc. And have implemented coming out into nature, doing nothing, reading, swapped anime out for studying history and odcumentaries aswell as more self help content. But my energy gets drained. I am like everyone else in society, where everybody needs some sort of plugin to re-energize. It feels amazing don't get me wrong, BUt I was wondering for people who are self help junkies and have their shit sorted, what are your daily activities like? Do you need plugins from time to time, is there a way to fully wene off them?

[Donald]

Your daily routine is part of the problem. Your environment , your friends and family . Change is difficult when your environment does not change. 

Stop beating yourself and understand that this is a challenge that requires time ( maybe years and decades) 

 

[Leo Gura]

5 hours ago, kyle barnett said:

I am like everyone else in society, where everybody needs some sort of plugin to re-energize.

This is a false belief. You don't NEED to plug-in to re-energize. That's just part of the social addiction.

Which is not to say that it's easy to break free. It's pretty hard if you live in a Western 1st world country. Too many juicy distractions.

Once your meditation habit becomes very strong, you'll find you can use it to re-energize better than watching TV. But that might take 2-3 years of daily practice, to get to such a point.

Totally unplugging is very hard. I suggest you start with baby-steps. Eliminate 1 thing at a time, not everything at once. Start with the lowest-consciousness crap like news, memes, or pointless messaging. Video games and porn aren't too bad, just reduce them a bit for now. Later you can eliminate video game entirely. Porn will be the hardest unless you find a girlfriend. And as long as you don't do it daily, it's really not a big deal. Twice a week will actually save you time & energy versus having a girlfriend.

It's important to find healthier alternatives: nature walks, going out with friends, reading, sports, fishing, cooking, music, etc.

[Awomanaware]

@kyle barnett If you feel the urge for it, let it be. In my experience, the quote - "What you resist persists" is true. The key is to be completely aware while you are doing it. By being aware, you'll probably soon realise it doesn't make any sense. When you give this urge your attention, it will soon go away.

Also, try to find a way to meet people who like doing the same things as you, or invite your loved ones to share these things you enjoy.

[kyle barnett]

Yeah, I have been alot and it is working, I spent 6 days roughly without any of these distractions, just questioning the point in them. Yesterday I felt like my mind was withdrawing, perhaps that will pass

[Aware]

One can fully seclude from entertainment by cutting of the root that leads you to stream back in it over and over again.

 

Ones desire to know the Truth, to end all attachment that doesn't lead to the end of suffering must overthrow the desire to be, or become someone in this world.

 

My own discipline: 4-6 hours sleep from 00:00. A shower, eating healthy food and water or tea. Meditation, study of dharma followed by meditation and sharing what I realized to be true with others. And 23:30 I meditate till 00:00, and go to sleep or into very deep meditation.

Sometimes I go to bed much later when someone asks for explanation of Dharma.

[stevegan928]

@Leo Gura But Leo... i like memes (especially animal related ones) also how else do i keep in touch with friends without messaging? Also is all news bad? Or are you just talking about general news about the goings on on Earth? Is sport related news bad? 

[Shin]

You don't need entertainment to re-energize, it's just that changing your activites, thus your identity, feels like dying.

Not only you start to loose "friends", but you also have to acclimate to your new activities while still feeling the need for the ancient ones.

It is hard in itself, and if your social circle isn't comprehensive and you feel you need their approval, you could be trapped forever.

 

The fact that you are aware of all that is already a blessing, so few people are.

It's not enough though, you also need to unconsciously wanting a better lifestyle, otherwise you'll not gonna do it.

 

Do the affirmation technique (repeat the sentence out loud) twice per day (10 minutes):

"I'm moving on with my life"

It is very effective on the long-term, because at some point you'll always think about it 7 days a week/every hours of the day, rather than thinking of it 5 minutes every month.

Edited December 16, 2016 by Shin