Dopamine Addiction Social Media: 5 x Ways to Heal Your Quick Fix Brain Chemistry
Dopamine addiction social media: 5 x WAys to heal your quick fix brain chemistry
Repost June 2022//
During the past month, I have become acutely aware of how addicted I am to social media. Even though I am very selective about who and what I follow (generally my feeds are full of positive, soul-enriching stories), I began noticing myself tapping the icons for a quick hit in an attempt to fix my feelings.
I noticed that whenever I was lacking trust or faith, the first thing I would do was hit up Instagram. Scrolling through positive affirmations and posts would give me a little pick me up, but then I began to see the truth…
After, a quick dopamine hit – I would generally feel worse.
I realised that every time I clicked that icon, I was diminishing my power.
I was giving my power away, as I looked for something to save me from my feelings; not trusting that I could lift myself up and out into a better feeling place…
“You have the ability to quickly change your patterns of thought, and eventually your life experience.” – Abraham Hicks
After experiencing some major life changes recently, I have been feeling a little lonely and a little lost.
But, looking for answers on the old ‘gram wasn’t helping me at all.
And so, I decided to change my social media habits.
is it worth deleting social media?
At first, I debated whether I should give up social media completely.
It sounded like a good idea but then again, I knew from past experience…
Whenever I cut something out of my life completely, whether it be food, people or situations – I just end up wanting them more.
And so, I chose something in between.
Something, a hell of a lot simpler with surprisingly positive results.
I simply rearranged the home screen on my phone.
I moved all of my social media icons, four pages to to right which meant I now had to swipe four times before I could even access them.
I now had four extra seconds to decide whether social media was actually going to serve me in that moment.
The social media dopamine effect
After a couple of weeks of trying out this method, I realised…
Four out of five times, I didn’t really want to be on the apps.
In most cases, I was just trying to fix my feelings.
In most cases, I just wanted to feel better than I was currently feeling.
For the past few months, I have also been engaging in a brain rewiring course.
Perhaps, this is why I am now becoming acutely aware of my actions and how they are intrinsically linked to my emotional state.
During this course (Dynamic Neural Retraining Programme – Annie Hopper) I learnt about the importance of ramping up the feel-good neurotransmitters in your brain, to create healthier, happier outcomes.
Annie talks about the four neurotransmitters: Dopamine, Oxytocin, Serotonin and Endorphins. And after fine tuning my social media usage I realised..
My body was addicted to the one-hit wonder – dopamine!
Dopamine is associated with pleasure, reward and motivation. And whilst we all know that social media can give us a quick fix, it led me to wonder…
How much of my brain chemistry is made up of quick fix’s of dopamine?
How can I utilise the other neurotransmitters to raise my mood and overall life experience?
Boosting oxytocin, serotonin and endorphins
During the past few weeks I have been playing around with the following:
continuing with my morning routine of DNRS visualisations, but adding music to enhance the experience and release more positive neurotransmitters.
up-levelling my exercise regime and incorporating runs/swims before my day at work (bring on the endorphins!)
asking people for a hug when I feel sad or low (releasing oxytocin)
cleaning up my diet (there are plenty of foods rich in Serotonin!)
And whilst these are small changes, along with the rearrangement of my social media icons – I feel different.
Don’t get me wrong…
Sometimes, I still feel sad.
Sometimes, I still feel lonely.
Sometimes, I really want a quick fix when things get rough.
Yet, beneath these feelings, I know – I am in the driver’s seat.
I control my brain’s chemistry and I can choose differently.
I can choose to raise my thoughts, my awareness and elevate my mood, simply because I want to – it’s my conscious choice.
The quick hits don’t quite do it for me anymore.
And whilst I am yet to perfect this delicate dance with my brain chemistry, I feel positive and hopeful that I am on the right path to creating a life of sustained joy, rather than seconds of ecstasy.
5 x Top tips to heal your dopamine addiction social media
Move your social media icons to a place that is less easily accessible – give yourself time between the impulse and the action to ask: is this really going to serve me right now?
Incorporate hugs, foods and exercise that will balance your brain chemistry and raise levels of oxytocin, serotonin and endorphins.
Practise meditation and or visualisations that will soothe your nervous system and release your daily DOSE of Dopamine, Oxytocin, Serotonin and Endorphins.
When you find yourself acting impulsively, ask yourself: what feeling am I trying to run away from? Do I need to give this feeling space to be felt? Or, can I direct my brain into a healthier activity?
Don’t beat yourself up if you find yourself engaging in a quick fix – notice how you feel after doing this and allow this feeling to be the drive to choose differently next time.
Comment below, I would love to hear from you.
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