All Those Dopamine Hits Can’t Be Good for You. Try Fasting Instead.

<p>Dopamine is a neurotransmitter (a chemical messenger found in your brain) that is essential to reward, pleasure, and motivation. The more of the stuff we pump out via the reward pathway, the more pleasurable and reinforcing that experience is.</p> <p>Dopamine motivates us to keep repeating certain behaviors, but overstimulation of the pathways can lead to negative consequences like addiction and lower satisfaction from normal activities. </p> <h2>The push and pull of dopamine</h2> <p>An important lesson from neuroscience is that the same part of the brain that is involved in processing pleasure is also involved in pain. The two work as competing sides, so when you engage in a pleasurable activity like having a pint of beer or a chocolate, you get that little boost of dopamine, tipping your circuitry to the side of pleasure. </p> <p>But your brain’s response to this is to downregulate dopamine transmission to restore balance, which can tip the scale predominantly in favor of pain — especially when you go to excess — and that’s where you get your comedown, your hangover, or after-effect.</p> <h3>Our dopamine-crazy world</h3> <p>We live in a world of overabundance and hyperstimulation that is unprecedented. Our bodies and minds have been blindsided by rapid transformations in technology, products, and lifestyles that can send us into overdrive. </p> <p>Social media engineers design their platforms, apps, and features to be as stimulating as possible. That’s how they get you hooked into doom scrolling and randomly checking for updates 30 times a day. </p> <p>In our supermarkets and stores, processed food is more accessible than ever before. Porn is extremely stimulating content that can be brought up in seconds via your smartphone, and recreational drugs like cannabis are far stronger than they used to be. All this adds up to dopamine overload.</p> <h3>Why is overindulgence a bad thing?</h3> <p>We have primitive wiring installed in our brains that makes us seek out pleasure and avoid pain as much as possible. It is adapted for a world of scarcity, which is a highly useful strategy for an environment where you desperately need to find the next watering hole or food source. </p> <p>However, it’s a terrible adaptation to have in a world of cheap and easily accessible junk food, video games, sex, drugs, television, and Instagram. The more we consume, the more intensely stimulated we need to be in order to feel anything good at all. The more you chase the dragon, the more burned out, wiped, numb, and unhappy you feel. </p> <figure><img src="https://cdn.storymd.com/optimized/8ojJ6aTLo7/original.jpg" alt width="800" height="373" /> <figcaption>Drugs of Abuse <em>Source: National Institute of Drug Abuse, National Institutes of Health</em></figcaption> </figure> <h2>Dopamine fasting</h2> <p>If modern life is bombarding us with constant stimuli that lead to excessive dopamine hits, then cutting out the sources for a while might allow us to reset and recalibrate. This way, we can peel back the addiction-like behaviors, poor motivation, and inability to focus on tasks that don’t provide immediate rewards. </p> <p>This is dopamine fasting, and the idea is that we can lower our baseline dopamine levels by voluntary abstention, ultimately making our brains more sensitive to natural rewards and delivering a better ability to focus.</p> <h3>Misunderstanding of the term</h3> <p>While dopamine fasting, we allow ourselves to feel lonely or bored, or to find simple pleasures in more natural activities. This is all to hand back control over our lives and become better at managing compulsive behaviors that may be disturbing our happiness.</p> <p>The name is a bit misleading because the process doesn’t actually decrease dopamine when you abstain from overstimulating activities. This has led to a misinterpretation of the science, along with the point of doing a dopamine fast. Some view dopamine as a drug similar to cocaine, and as such, fasting is a way to reset your tolerance so that the pleasures you’ve deprived yourself of are more pleasurable when you return. </p> <p>The real point is to develop healthier relationships with hyper-stimulating activities rather than just reload and go for another round.</p> <h3>Benefits of dopamine fasting</h3> <p>Advocates of dopamine fasting claim several benefits including:</p> <ul> <li><strong>Increased focus and productivity.</strong> By reducing distractions from high-dopamine activities, individuals can improve their concentration and efficiency.<br /><br /></li> <li><strong>Improved mental health.</strong> Lowering reliance on external stimuli can help alleviate anxiety, depression, and stress by promoting more balanced emotional responses.<br /><br /></li> <li><strong>Greater appreciation for simple pleasures.</strong> After a period of fasting, people often report heightened enjoyment of simple activities, like reading a book or having a meaningful conversation.<br /><br /></li> <li><strong>Enhanced self-control. </strong>Practicing restraint can strengthen self-discipline and reduce compulsive behaviors.</li> </ul> <figure><img src="https://cdn.storymd.com/optimized/LA1jkPsQo5/original.jpg" alt width="662" height="441" /> <figcaption>The Benefits of Good Habits Source: TheVisualMD</figcaption> </figure> <h2>Criticisms and limitations</h2> <p>Despite its popularity, dopamine fasting has faced criticism. Some experts argue that it oversimplifies the complex role of dopamine in the brain. It’s a relatively new concept, and there is limited scientific evidence directly supporting the effectiveness of dopamine fasting as a mental health intervention. Critics also caution against extreme or prolonged fasting, which can lead to negative physical and psychological effects.</p> <h2>How to go about it</h2> <p>If you’re interested in trying dopamine fasting, a balanced and moderate approach is recommended. Here are some tips:</p> <ul> <li><strong>Set clear goals.</strong> Lay out what you want to achieve and identify specific behaviors you want to change.<br /><br /></li> <li><strong>Start small.</strong> Begin with short fasting periods and gradually increase the duration as you become more comfortable. Some people find that just 24 hours of going cold turkey (no screens, junk food, TV, and so on) is enough.<br /><br /></li> <li><strong>Be mindful.</strong> Take note of how you feel during and after the dopamine fast. Use this time to engage in reflective practices, such as journaling or meditation.<br /><br /></li> <li><strong>Stay flexible.</strong> Dopamine fasting is not a one-size-fits-all solution, so feel free to modify your approach based on what works best for you.</li> </ul><h2>More on Whole Person Health</h2><ul><li><a href="https://soulivity.storymd.com/journal/mr4y3rv1zj-whole-health" target="_blank">Whole Health: Taking Charge of Your Health and Well-Being</a></li><li><a href="https://soulivity.storymd.com/journal/vwdy8kou4w-mental-fitness" target="_blank">Mental Fitness: Tips for Good Mental Health</a></li><li><a href="https://soulivity.storymd.com/journal/mqbvkz6cem-brain-basics" target="_blank">Brain Basics: Know Your Brain</a></li></ul>