Is it possible to reset your mind? : 24 hours ‘dopamine detox’

In August 2020, I tried ‘dopamine detox’ for 24 hours. 

Apparently there is no actual science behind it and you will find many different views and opinions on this on the internet. My simple understanding is that we can regain control over our lives by allowing ourselves to be less dominated by ‘the unhealthy’ stimuli such as social media or junk food, a bit like digital detox I guess.

Why did I do this? 

I found myself feeling negative and dark recently, started to become resentful and feel sorry for myself over the whole situation with COVID-19. I actually made my own choice of not travelling oversea this Summer. I was content about making that decision, but when my summer holiday actually began, I started to feel ‘trapped’ and almost depressed. I enjoy the occasional meal out and random £5 max ebay shopping, but I suddenly realised that I was becoming abnormally emotionally dependant on those experiences. I could almost hear the voice in my head saying: ‘this will make me happy‘. But when the meal was over, I felt empty and confused, because I still wasn’t happy. It was all very subtle, but horrible and ungrateful feelings nonetheless. I did not like whatever was going on in my head.

This is the reason why I decided to give a go at ‘resetting my mind’. I wanted to reset myself mentally, focus and work on myself and set my priorities clear and straight. I wanted to find calm and joy within myself instead of always expecting ‘outside things’ to give me a sense of satisfaction. 

The rules

Things I could do were:

• Drink water (I was going to be lenient about this and I was right; fasting really didn’t work for me)
• Meditate
• Deep thinking
• Write (pen and paper only)
• Go for walks

What happened on the day

I didn’t enjoy the actual detox day at all. Not eating was not good for me. I wasn’t really hungry, I didn’t even get any cravings, but I was feeling light headed, dizzy and weak the whole day. I eventually ate a bowl of cereal at around 4PM because I was not even able to think. I thought: ‘if I was too weak to even think, that just defeats the entire purpose’.

I did lots of writing. I thought about my past experiences and what I wanted for my future, those kind of things. But the whole day was basically about me struggling with dizziness and exhaustion, and a sense of disorientation. I don’t know why, but I was thirsty all the time and drunk a lot of water which was good. My mind definitely did not feel clear and I had no ‘light bulb’ moment. 

The next few days

I don’t know if it was just a placebo effect. But I woke up the next day and I felt… calm, and grounded.

My thoughts really felt like my own. I realised that outside things suddenly had very little affect on me. For example, making one small sale on Redbubble (merch alert! Please visit the ‘shop’ page :-)) always gave me joy, but this slight, almost invisible but intense idea of ‘my self-worth depends on this’ always tagged along with it. I did not have that that morning; I was glad, grateful, content and just looked forward to creating more.

I guess I used to be allowing outside factors control and decide what I feel, hear, see or understand too much. It became so normal I didn’t even realise that. That morning I felt ‘who I was’ was happening inside myself within, not on the computer screen, not an object I can see and touch, but within myself. I felt incredibly calm and still. 

I am writing this on the 5th day after ‘detox’, and I still feel very much grounded and in touch with ‘here and now’. I’m not regretting past or overly anxious about future like I used to. I am conscious of them, but I am ‘here’ and I am living ‘now’.

What worked/happened?

Again, it could just be placebo. But it could be just simply allowing myself to do ‘nothing’ and giving my brain a vacation, which I NEVER do. Whatever it was, I am enjoying the way I see the world at the moment. But I’m guessing it will be like an oven in your kitchen; looks great for a few days after cleaning, but won’t stay like that forever.

Will I do it again and/or recommend to other people?

Yes and yes. Although, my next one will look more like digital detox. I will not go on full-on fasting, but eat fruits and vegetables and drink lots of water. I will allow myself to do some reading (on paper) as I feel my brain functions better when there is some stimulus. I will recommend it to anyone who’s been feeling a little lost like I was, but I also recommend not to go over the top. You know how your body and brain function, so make up your own rules in terms of things you can/can’t do on your detox day.

Thank you for reading till the end. I am fully aware that this post has been very different to my usual travel blog. The day after my detox, I wrote in my journal:

‘Don’t always expect or wait for the world to show beautiful things. Instead, go out with your mind completely ready to notice, find and accept the beauty that the real world, your every day life, holds.’