A gentle dopamine detox challenge meant to reset your reward system, improve your focus, and boost natural motivation.
How often do we scroll to never-ever land? Or look back on our week and notice we drank *maybe* too much for comfort?
Then, we marinate in the sulk of our shortcomings and hope it gets better. But, we turn around only to grab a drink and open our phones to social media...
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When I started to drink less, and drink mindfully, it was like a slap in the face! My reward system improved, I was laser focused, and waaaay happier!
Here you will learn how to do a gentle 3-week dopamine detox so at the end you feel more aligned, clear minded, and totally refreshed.
This post is all about the dopamine detox challenge.
Dopamine Detox Challenge
A gentle dopamine detox challenge that will help you go from insane cravings to complete satisfaction. In this 3-week realignment, the idea is to retrain your mind, heart, and body to lead you to a more peaceful, joyous life. For more, read the Dopamine Detox book!
For my drinkers out there, try the Sunnyside app to help guide your shift to drinking less. You can start using it now and it will help you sustain beneficial habits after these 3 weeks. It changed my life when I began to track my drinking and saw how much I was actually drinking...
What is dopamine?
Dopamine is our brain's "reward system" and our "feel good" hormone. When we complete tasks that help us survive our brains release dopamine (eat, drink, compete to survive, etc). Therefore, we will continue to seek out that experience to feel good.
According to Cleveland Clinic, when you have the right amount of dopamine you feel:
- Happy
- Alert
- Focused
- Motivated
- Steady sex drive
When you have low-dopamine you tend to:
- Be tired
- Be unmotivated
- Have memory loss
- Have sleep issues
- Be unable to focus
- Low sex drive
Natural ways to get little dopamine squirts are to exercise often (like running, yoga, biking), eat whole foods, listen to music, complete tasks, have positive social interaction, get enough sleep, get adequate sunlight, and try new things!!
All of those sound pretty amazing, right?! I can see how those would give us our dopamine squirts. Now, what about quick-dopamine?
Quick-dopamine looks like:
- Scrolling on social media
- Being news-obsessed
- Watching mindless TV
- Eating junk food
- Drinking lots of alcohol
- Caffeine overload
- Constantly checking your phone for notifications
- Mindless internet browsing
Everyone has their own vices and it can look different for everyone. Plus, they can evolve over time. My biggest one was drinking and now my biggest one is mindless browsing...
Why is it an issue...
If dopamine is the feel good hormone, then we are prone to seek it out by all means necessary. This is why sugar, junk food, drinking, and scrolling are so addictive.
When we engage in quick-dopamine things, we drain our brains pool of dopamine. So, when we actually do something with natural dopamine it does not feel as rewarding.
Think about quick-dopamine, like scrolling or junk food, as hitting the lottery. Once you hit the lottery, anything less than that will feel... well... Less than that! Making it less satisfying and you are less likely to repeat it.
This dopamine detox challenge will retrain your brain and cleanse your dopamine pool so the little tasks, like hugging your husband or doing chores, will feel like a million bucks.
3-Week Dopamine Detox Schedule
For a super successful dopamine detox, I would recommend to get a journal or a notebook that you can plan, reflect, and strategize in.
Also, set a reward for yourself after the 3 weeks. Maybe you buy yourself something nice, or go out to your favorite restaurant. Something to make the 3-weeks worth your time (other than the obvious benefits).
Week 1: Awareness & Reduction
The first week is really about identifying and cutting high dopamine stimulants to begin to build your baseline. I think about it like clearing out the garden all the way down to rock!
Daily routine:
- Write down, or think about, your daily routine now. Where do you splurge on high-dopamine? Aim to cut those out! Look below for replacement ideas!
- Create a high-performing morning routine
- Have a solid night routine to fall back on
Your morning and night routines are critical in how you wake up and spend your days. I swear by my morning, ever since I started waking up at 5am my entire life has shifted.
Replacements:
I learned this the hard way... To change a habit, or shift your life, you have to replace that habit or thing with something else. Otherwise, you will just default back to your old ways. Trust me on this one!
For drinkers, find alternatives to drinking that fill those moments when you would normally drink. For social media scrollers, pick up a book or find an intriguing podcast. For sugar-lovers, find a healthy alternative snack with natural sugars.
Week 2: Habit Building & Low-Dopamine Tasks
Ok, let's build on week one and implement more strategies...
Daily routine:
- Continue your routine from week one
- Reflect on where you are struggling
- Implement low-dopamine activities, like walking, laundry, or watering plants to retrain your dopamine receptors
- Do those tasks when you are feeling challenged!
Low-dopamine tasks are a game changer. When I am feeling unmotivated, unfocused, etc, I will do a simple chore around the house or run an errand. I swear, it breathes life into my day and refocuses my mind.
Replacements:
Continue your work from week one.
Now, when you feel an urge set a timer for 20 minutes. Most cravings and urges will dissipate after a few minutes. So, during that 20 minutes do a low-dopamine activity. After the 20 minutes, notice how you feel!
Week 3: Sustainability
After the first two weeks you might be feeling more in a groove, or you might be extremely challenged, depending on how you started! This week is all about how to continue and have sustainable results.
Daily routine:
- Continue your routines
- Notice what you love and what you don't
- Can you shift some things around to make it more sustainable long-term?
- Implement helpful programs, like Sunnyside for drinking, etc.
Replacements:
Now we start to deepen our routines with goals and objectives! Maybe you love waking up at 5am... Lean into that and expand what feels good in your new shifts. And, prioritize real world connection with friends, community events, family, etc.
Pro Tip: As you start to step out of these three weeks set goals for yourself of how you want to stay consistent. If your culprit is drinking, get the Sunnyside app to continue your positive drinking habits and stay encouraged. If you are a social media scroller, put screen time limits on your phone, etc.
Ultimately, I hope this guide is helpful to gently realign yourself with the greater vision of your life. To step away from drinking, minimize doom scrolling, and more. High dopamine hitters can really impact our lives... I'm sure you can see that!
I have been doing a dopamine detox now for about a month and have never felt more aligned, grounded, and sustained. Hope you feel the same!