#dopamine fast

[sunshinegremlin]

So I'm addicted to my phone again... And it's even worse than last time. I should try a detox from my phone again but does anyone else have any ideas on how to stop scrolling?? Anyone who experienced a phone addiction and got through it? It's honestly ruining my mental health 😅

[canarycontessa]

recent changes that have brought me so much joy

1. Routine de-cluttering

One of the biggest mistakes I've made in my semi-minimalist/decluttering "journey" is thinking that I can get rid of everything that doesn't serve all at once.

Which in itself is the product of a whole other, more foundational mistake: thinking that I can know immediately what doesn't serve me and then get rid of it.

With a few exceptions, de-cluttering does not really have to be a massive, intervention-style purge. I've had a much more gentle, yet persistent time with monthly and quarterly unburdening.

Putting things in a bag, out of sight and then revisiting once I realize I never reached for those things once. Emptying out one storage container or a corner of my closet or my bedroom to the point where there's more breathing room, a little bit of absence. And then letting myself adjust to the space, to how it feels to be lightweight and maybe even free.

2. Buying a timed safe + a safety deposit box ... for my devices

Okay here me out:

KitchenSafe makes these great timed safes that you can set for minutes, hours and even days when you want to prohibit your access to something. Generally something that feeds into your bad habits: sweets, snacks, alcohol, overspending ... whatever can fit in the box, you can lock away and free up the mental space you would have ordinarily spend

If it can fit.

I have a chunky Dell laptop, very wide. The biggest timed safe I could find did not accommodate this laptop, not to mention the other things like my smart TV remote, my smartphone, my mp3 player.

This is where the safety deposit box comes in!

My laptop, my smartphone, and my remote all fit inside the deposit box. I use the keys to lock it up. Then the keys go into the smallest timed safe I could find. And now every possible distraction has been neutralized. And y'all ...

The freedom is just incredible. Not to sound overdramatic, but I'm deadass.

Before I tried it, I knew how the basic principle would work in theory: if you try to resist a temptation, you have to commit a lot of precious mental energy to that resistance; conversely, if you just remove the temptation as any kind of viable option, you don't have to deal with the decision fatigue that comes with resistance.

I knew this in theory, but it was all that and so much more in practice. With my TV, my phone and my computer all put out of reach (typically for the 8+ hours of my workday plus the hours of 9:30 pm to 6 am to give my sleep hygiene half a chance), I've begun to embrace a much more present existence. For example:

Focusing more on my workday, improving my productivity and my colleague relations.

Writing in my notebooks again, brainstorming, writing stream-of-consciousness, etc. without running the gauntlet of trying to do it on my laptop where distractions abound

Reading my e-reader and physical books again! This has been the biggest and maybe best shift. Getting to read all the stuff in my library without trying to do it on (you guessed it) my laptop. No more competing noise near me, just me and my book.

Getting back into "single-use" devices, i.e. my e-reader and my mp3 player. I've never been diagnosed with any kind of attention deficit or adhd or anything like that, but I routinely will be using 3 to 4 devices at once for no conceivable reason. Now though, even if I choose to stay plugged in, it feels really good to be on one frequency instead of like 5.

Ordering out less. My Grubhub-ordering had become a bit of a reflex, especially in the mornings. I've gotten into morning meal prep now to give myself a better prepared option. This in addition to my phone being fully out of reach has curbed my fast food and overspending by A LOT

I'm building up the nerve to attempt a true dopamine fast, over a two day weekend up to a whole week.

3. Respecting the enclosure

I'm reading this book on writing (as I often do) and one of the first major tasks in the book is to create your "writing enclosure". Whatever you need your setting to be to produce your best work, to get down to business quickly and comfortably - build it into your enclosure.

I'm in a fluid, shared living situation, so I tend to draft my laptop all over the place. Now instead, I keep my laptop set up, along with my USB keyboard, mouse, and adjustable tray - no more cramped typing! no more stiff neck from looking down! So simple, practically a no-brainer, but its been so effective.

[freemadeinfo]

384 pages 📖

[balbul]

Hiatus👋🏼

[ya-boi-alex]

A war is cooking, huh?

[ebbpettier]

(Inspired by I bought some deathwish coffee)

[bettertwin1]

It’s time!!! :D I have finished my early Christmas gift for you and Donnie!! I might still make an animatic for you guys for Christmas Day, but it could be another drawing instead.

I hope you enjoy it! It took me at least 3 days (42 hours in total) and I hope you don’t mind me inserting myself into the drawing :)

(also if you want the version w/o the tags, you could ask and I’ll send it to you)

-Ender

TODAY IS SUCH A GOOD DAY I'M GONNA CRY ACTUAL TEARS OF JOY 😭😭😭😭 IM SOSOSOS HAPPY THIS IS SO CUTE OUR SWEATERS THE SONG THE THE THE GUYS SAVE ME I LOVE ART SM!!!! GUYS YOU'RE ALL SO AWESOME THIS IS SO AWESOME 😭😭😭😭😭

[vimbry]

[disast3rtransp0rt]

Sending you rest and relaxation and general soft energy.

Flapping my arms so hard I eventually defy gravity and fly into ur arms.

[possumnest]

if ur anything like me and Struggle With The Plague Of Phone Addiction, i have found a very good app for locking apps called screenzen and its FREE and you can 1. limit the amount of times you allow yourself to open an app every day 2. limit How Long you can have that app open and 3. make it so that you have to wait a certain amt of time before the app actually opens which all help me with not mindlessly opening an app any time im bored for more than 10 seconds, and not getting trapped in a scroll vortex!!!! ive found it rly helpful

[clown-femme]

I kind of resent when other adhd people talk about hyperfocus only because I'm jealous that I don't do that. I WISH I could zero in and stay focused on one task at a time. Can you imagine. I can't even do that with things I like.

That said I am also annoyed when people misuse the term hyperfocus to just mean 'the thing I'm into right now' but that is Beside the point

[sunlightfeeling]

brb giving all my worldly possessions to momochan

[coldvampire]

anyway as soon as i pry myself off this couch im gonna share some screenshots of bg3 protags on my sideblog. just gotta like. reach the desk first.

[lastflowerofyourhouse]

you guys wanna make more locked tomb animatics pspsps i have so many song suggestions

[i-am-an-arson-enthusiast]

WOOOO ARSONNN

YES

wanna… wanna come with me to commit some or. no.