Low Dopamine State - What Should i Do?

[SQAAD]

Let me give you a summary. For a period of 6 months i have been highly motivated and i was pursuing my goals . But now , the last couple of months i have been in a low dopamine state and it is very hard for me to push myself to do certain things (like working on mastery and life purpose).

I have temporarily stopped practicing on the one thing that i wanna master, because i can only do it for like 15 minutes at a time.

The most convenient thing is to scroll through videos on youtube. I noticed that i watch like 5 minutes of a video and then i notice a shift in my consciousness where i am super bored and have no drive to watch any longer. Then i search for another video to watch. Later in the day, i notice that i can watch for 20 minutes or even 45 minutes of a video at a time.

I know some things about dopamine and how it is basically the fuel that gives us energy to do stuff. Besides scrolling through many videos and watching few minutes of one video at a time, i don't do drugs and activities that release huge amounts of dopamine. I watch porn like once every day or once every 2 days but i don't believe it is an issue for me. I never get addicted to watching much porn.

It's weird because for 6 months my motivation levels were quite high and stable. And i had the drive to practice the one thing i wanna master for hours.

I don't know if maybe i was doing too much of my life purpose and kinda burned myself out.

I am thinking of a dopamine fast. Not watching videos on the internet is not an option. But i am thinking maybe i should force myself to not skip videos.

Any advice on how to get out of this low dopamine state is highly appreciated.

 

Edited August 6, 2022 by SQAAD

[Carl-Richard]

Do you do weight training?

[SQAAD]

@Carl-Richard

4 minutes ago, Carl-Richard said:

Do you do weight training?

No. I used to though. Nowadays i mostly go outside for a walk.

[Kksd74628]

@SQAAD

23 minutes ago, SQAAD said:

No. I used to though. Nowadays i mostly go outside for a walk.

That's the answer for you then. Work out like a man and you get your motivation back.

[SQAAD]

@Kksd74628

30 minutes ago, Kksd74628 said:

@SQAAD

That's the answer for you then. Work out like a man and you get your motivation back.

Ahahahaha Leo says its a waste of time ^_-

Edited August 6, 2022 by SQAAD

[Michael569]

Force yourself to do activities that you consider important but boring (e.g. research, reading, journalling). You'll gradually notice your mind being less resistant to that and more compliant. 

Secondly, context switching is killing your focus like nothing else. Even 5 second checks of social media in the midst of an important work causes a major step back. 

Basically it is about retraining your mind to do the boring until it becomes interesting. Ofcourse the thing you are doing has to have some importance to you otherwise it won't work. +

[Carl-Richard]

1 minute ago, SQAAD said:

@Kksd74628

Ahahahaha Leo says its a waste of time ^_-

Leo doesn't have motivation problems.

[Kksd74628]

@SQAAD

Physical activity is meant to boost your male energy and when you lack of it you'll become lazy. It also is very healthy for your body to do some of it so why not straight use the time to change your appearance at the same time. It's also benefical for your self-esteem and capability to function in the world with ease, because you have muscles to carry things. I don't know what you'd need to do in daily basis if working out for 1 hour 3,5 times a week + some running would be useless in comparison to what you do.

It's all about time management and you should learn to do the most valuable things in life as often as needed. Spirituality is not your excuse to be lazy ass bitch, because yeah I love being as well, but I develop myself in the meantime. Spirituality could also be defined as putting everything in your life together in good mix. It's learning structure so well that you can use that knowledge to change your life for better. Many people think that spirituality is just about new experiences, but I'd say that the experiences should teach you to live life better.

[Scholar]

1 hour ago, SQAAD said:

Let me give you a summary. For a period of 6 months i have been highly motivated and i was pursuing my goals . But now , the last couple of months i have been in a low dopamine state and it is very hard for me to push myself to do certain things (like working on mastery and life purpose).

I have temporarily stopped practicing on the one thing that i wanna master, because i can only do it for like 15 minutes at a time.

The most convenient thing is to scroll through videos on youtube. I noticed that i watch like 5 minutes of a video and then i notice a shift in my consciousness where i am super bored and have no drive to watch any longer. Then i search for another video to watch. Later in the day, i notice that i can watch for 20 minutes or even 45 minutes of a video at a time.

I know some things about dopamine and how it is basically the fuel that gives us energy to do stuff. Besides scrolling through many videos and watching few minutes of one video at a time, i don't do drugs and activities that release huge amounts of dopamine. I watch porn like once every day or once every 2 days but i don't believe it is an issue for me. I never get addicted to watching much porn.

It's weird because for 6 months my motivation levels were quite high and stable. And i had the drive to practice the one thing i wanna master for hours.

I don't know if maybe i was doing too much of my life purpose and kinda burned myself out.

I am thinking of a dopamine fast. Not watching videos on the internet is not an option. But i am thinking maybe i should force myself to not skip videos.

Any advice on how to get out of this low dopamine state is highly appreciated.

 

Just try this:

Tomorrow, for the first 8 hours of the day, turn off your internet.

Then, when you do watch a video, before you watch a video, ask yourself consciously. "Do I want to watch this video? Why do I want to watch this video, what will it give me?", and instead of just clicking random videos on youtube, take things into your own hand and plan each video you are going to watch. Realize what the videos are achieving for you, maybe you feel some sort of anxiety when you don't watch videos, then ask yourself "What will happen if I just don't watch the video?".

Then, observe the anxiety, and then ask yourself "Okay, if I did not have anxiety, if I felt movitated right now, what would I want to do be doing? How would I want to spend my time today?"

Realize the space you have within the day, and use it for the things you truly want to do. And realize that the anxiety will not kill you.

 

 

Just see what will happen if you suffer the first 8 hours of your day without internet. What's important is that you cannot access the internet whatsoever from the moment you wake up, until the 8 hours are over. And later, you can do whatever you want.

[SQAAD]

@Michael569

1 hour ago, Michael569 said:

Force yourself to do activities that you consider important but boring (e.g. research, reading, journalling). You'll gradually notice your mind being less resistant to that and more compliant. 

Secondly, context switching is killing your focus like nothing else. Even 5 second checks of social media in the midst of an important work causes a major step back. 

Basically it is about retraining your mind to do the boring until it becomes interesting. Ofcourse the thing you are doing has to have some importance to you otherwise it won't work. +

 

Basically my problem is that when i wake up in the morning, the easiest thing for me is to scroll through some videos and waste time on youtube.

To sit down and practice is not the most attractive option. But this has only been the case the last couple of months. Before that, i didn't waste much time on youtube, and i was practicing for hours. I had the drive, the motivation, the fuel. Until one day i couldn't spend more than 1 hour practicing. I couldn't force myself. It was too painful and unbearable.

I think i need to force myself now. Maybe it will work.

I don't know what else to do. 

Edited August 6, 2022 by SQAAD

[SQAAD]

@Carl-Richard

1 hour ago, Carl-Richard said:

Leo doesn't have motivation problems.

I highly doubt that.

We all have motivation problems eventually. Your dopamine doesn't stay the same. After a peak, it goes below baseline.

Nobody can work at X thing at the same pace indefinitely. Leo takes 2 months breaks every year.

Edited August 6, 2022 by SQAAD

[SQAAD]

@Kksd74628

51 minutes ago, Kksd74628 said:

@SQAAD

Physical activity is meant to boost your male energy and when you lack of it you'll become lazy. It also is very healthy for your body to do some of it so why not straight use the time to change your appearance at the same time. It's also benefical for your self-esteem and capability to function in the world with ease, because you have muscles to carry things. I don't know what you'd need to do in daily basis if working out for 1 hour 3,5 times a week + some running would be useless in comparison to what you do.

It's all about time management and you should learn to do the most valuable things in life as often as needed. Spirituality is not your excuse to be lazy ass bitch, because yeah I love being as well, but I develop myself in the meantime. Spirituality could also be defined as putting everything in your life together in good mix. It's learning structure so well that you can use that knowledge to change your life for better. Many people think that spirituality is just about new experiences, but I'd say that the experiences should teach you to live life better.

Dude, i am physically active. And don't call me indirectly lazy ass b*tch. That is not cool. Your arrogance and testosterone is reeking too much and you should contain it more. 

Not everyone should be running and lifting weights. That is your thing. Don't force in onto others.

Walking 45 minutes every day is good enough for me & doesn't cause uneccesary pressure to my joints. I was lifting weights for years and was into powerlifting . I know the drill. 

Edited August 6, 2022 by SQAAD

[Carl-Richard]

7 minutes ago, SQAAD said:

@Carl-Richard

We all have motivation problems eventually. Your dopamine doesn't stay the same. After a peak, it goes below baseline.

Nobody can work at X thing at the same pace indefinitely. Leo takes 2 months breaks every year.

If it's normal, why do you seek help?

[SQAAD]

@Scholar

47 minutes ago, Scholar said:

 

Realize the space you have within the day, and use it for the things you truly want to do. And realize that the anxiety will not kill you.

 

 

Just see what will happen if you suffer the first 8 hours of your day without internet. What's important is that you cannot access the internet whatsoever from the moment you wake up, until the 8 hours are over. And later, you can do whatever you want.

I like this idea. Anxiety isn't the problem. The issue is boredom. 

 

[zurew]

1 minute ago, SQAAD said:

I think i need to force myself now. Maybe it will work.

I don't know what else to do. 

Need to make it super fucking hard for yourself to be able to reach for your mobile phone or to reach for the things that you want to limit or the things that you don't want to do anymore but you do it because of the dopamine. 

You will automatically do things that are giving you do most dopamine and things that are easily attainable (easily reachable + high dopamine is the deadliest combination here). Being the most attainable part is super important , because if you make an environment for yourself, where the only thing you can do and to reach for are the things that you know you have to do, then your brain won't have much of a choice but to do the 'right' things.

In practice this could mean delete youtube from your mobile phone, or download an app that actually blocks youtube as a site ,and blocks it as an app or it can limit  for you. You could actually turn your mobile off and put it far away from yourself and let yourself literally suffer for the next 1-3 days until your brain recovers a little bit from the enormous stimulation it  gets 24-7.

 

So in a nutshell, contemplate what things you have a problem with and either delete those things from your life, or make those things super hard to be attainable or usable.

[SQAAD]

@Carl-Richard

2 minutes ago, Carl-Richard said:

If it's normal, why do you seek help?

Because multiple minds is better than one mind when trying to find a solution.

[Kksd74628]

@SQAAD

Just now, SQAAD said:

Because multiple minds is better than one mind when trying to find a solution.

You just missed the whole point, read it again.

[SQAAD]

@zurew

7 minutes ago, zurew said:

Need to make it super fucking hard for yourself to be able to reach for your mobile phone or to reach for the things that you want to limit or the things that you don't want to do anymore but you do it because of the dopamine. 

You will automatically do things that are giving you do most dopamine and things that are easily attainable (easily reachable + high dopamine is the deadliest combination here). Being the most attainable part is super important , because if you make an environment for yourself, where the only thing you can do and to reach for are the things that you know you have to do, then your brain won't have much of a choice but to do the 'right' things.

In practice this could mean delete youtube from your mobile phone, or download an app that actually blocks youtube as a site ,and blocks it as an app or it can limit  for you. You could actually turn your mobile off and put it far away from yourself and let yourself literally suffer for the next 1-3 days until your brain recovers a little bit from the enormous stimulation it  gets 24-7.

 

So in a nutshell, contemplate what things you have a problem with and either delete those things from your life, or make those things super hard to be attainable or usable.

Yeah that is great advice. What you are talking about is essentially removing the friction. I like this concept very much. I've heard it from the Atomic Habits book.

It's great not to rely on willpower and just eliminate the damn obstacle. I try to do that as much as i can.

Youtube is my enemy. And my laptop too. That is what i use to master my own thing but also to watch videos on youtube. 

I will check maybe there is a way to block youtube from my laptop.

Edited August 6, 2022 by SQAAD

[Superfluo]

@SQAAD Can the problem be health-related? I've been having the same problem for a year and taking B-vitamins, vitamin D3, going to the gym and improving my sleep (this is critical, because how do you know you sleep well?) and changing my environment (like going to a city near the sea if you can, for vacation) helped a lot, I regained a lot of energy and focus. I think the main culprit is a stagnant or dysfunctional environment.

[SQAAD]

@Superfluo

1 hour ago, Superfluo said:

@SQAAD Can the problem be health-related? I've been having the same problem for a year and taking B-vitamins, vitamin D3, going to the gym and improving my sleep (this is critical, because how do you know you sleep well?) and changing my environment (like going to a city near the sea if you can, for vacation) helped a lot, I regained a lot of energy and focus. I think the main culprit is a stagnant or dysfunctional environment.

Dude you cannot control sleep. You can only create better conditions for sleep to happen.

I am against all this non sense about tracking your sleep, that some 'weirdos' (in my opinion) engage in.

The more you care about sleep, the worse your sleep becomes. Because you are constantly worried and paranoid about it, creating extra stress for yourself

People who sleep well don't think twice about sleep.

People who suffer from insomnia care and worry about sleep 24/7.

And yes if you change environment , you raise dopamine. But that is not my underlying issue.

Edited August 6, 2022 by SQAAD