Wondering how to heal the brain after quitting porn?

Well, if so, you just found the right page. 

This is part 2 in my series on how to recover faster after a porn addiction.

You might want to grab a cup of coffee and stay for a while, because what you'll discover in today's video could seriously be lifechanging information.

Let's begin...

How To Heal The Brain After Porn Addiction

Scandinavian Bob here, hi.

Welcome to part 2 in the series about how to recover your brain after porn addiction.

Are you interested in speeding up the recovery time and boosting the effects of all those positive benefits?

Well if so, this is the video for you and you do not want to miss this.

Now, I said in part 1 that we were going to talk about cold showers today, but I’m going to give you something much more and much better here. 

If you missed part one, you don’t need to go back. 

How supernormal stimuli downregulates the dopamine system...

This video should actually be part one instead because I’m actually going to share a short excerpt from an online course presentation I did about dopamine fasting, which by the way, dopamine fasting is also a tool that can speed up recovery time, perhaps the most powerful tool there is.

But anyway, I’m sharing this presentation with you because it will show you first the process of how supernormal stimuli, like watching a lot of porn, downregulates the dopamine system.

But then also what you can do to reverse it and we’re going to understand that by looking at a super interesting graph. And then after that we can start zooming in on different tools, one by one, like cold showers and so on.

So even if some of you may recognize the concept I talk about in the first half of the presentation, please watch it all because I’m telling you it will be life changing information for you.

It’s gonna be simple to understand and you will be getting one aha moment after the other.

So get rid of all the distractions and do your best to stay to the end here because this is gonna be life changing information well worth your time… 

Ok, here comes the presentation…

**Watch video at the top for presentation**

How desensitization happens...

Ok, so you have just learned what desensitization looks like inside your brain on a neurobiological level.  And once again I need to point out that this desensitization does NOT happen with healthy dopamine activities even if they release dopamine...

...you know, things like exercising, eating healthy foods, listening to music, dancing, and all those good things - unless you go really crazy with them and burn yourself out.  

No, 99% of the time of the time desensitization happens when you go for those low value dopamine activities.

And even then it doesn't happen instantly. It's only if you keep doing it many times, over and over again, depending a bit on how potent the dopamine activity is, of course.

The receptors don't come back right away...

Now, the nasty thing here is that these receptors do not grow back instantly when you stop doing whatever caused the desensitization in the first place. They need time in order to upregulate.  

But the good news is, they can and will grow back, and this, ladies and gentlemen, is where dopamine fasting enters the picture.  

Dopamine fasting to the rescue...

If you have been somewhat uncertain until now, and your sitting there asking yourself..."Just exactly what IS a dopamine fast?"...then here’s my definition of it....

A dopamine fast is simply a period of time where you deprive your brain of stimulating things, or REDUCE the amount of them, in order to help your brain “reset" the dopamine system.

Because by depriving the brain of some of the most stimulating things for a while, the desensitization will reverse as the receptors start growing back, and you can once again start feeling and getting the full effects of the dopamine signals again...

...and thus it will help you...

• Get more excitement for life
• Get more motivation and drive
• Improve your focus and concentration
• Basically get more enjoyment out of life in general...

And you can also reverse those ADHD-like tendencies if they are caused by too much, and too rapid, online stimulations.

You don't need to deprive yourself of ALL dopamine releasing activities if you're trying to heal your brain from porn a bit faster, by doing a dopamine fast...

Find out how long your porn recovery will be by clicking on the FREE pmo recovery time estimator above

Now, you don’t need to deprive yourself of all stimulating things during a fast.

For example physical exercise raises dopamine too...

• And so do cold showers...
• Intermittent fasting
• Meditation
• Hugging
• Socializing
• Talking a walk in nature
• Building something
• Playing a musical instrument
• Painting
• Writing
• etc. etc...

...some of these are so-called "high value dopamine activities" because there is no crash afterwards and they do not downregulate your dopamine system. 

In fact, they can even help to upregulate and restore it. I.e. help speed up your recovery...

...more on that in just a moment!

The dopamine system is complex...

I have to point out that the dopamine system is pretty complex and this picture you’re looking at now (see video) that you also saw few minutes ago, well the explanation there was a bit simplistic.

A double whammy...

For example, in addictions the sending nerve cell can also start sending less signals, while you also have less dopamine receptors. Then it really becomes a double whammy, obviously....

...with really low dopamine functioning as a result.

Let's take a look at something else here...

Remember when I just told you that desensitization doesn't happen instantly, but that it happens if you keep doing those low value dopamine activities repeatedly, many times over and over again?

Richard Solomon's opponent process theory of emotions in porn addiction...(dopamine)...

This is a graph that will show you exactly that...

The graph is also known as Richard Solomon's opponent process theory.

And it’s now obviously more than just a theory, but anyway…

As you can see we have an “A - process" to the left, and then we have a "B-process" to the right. 

Pain and pleasure are co-located in the brain....                            

So, then the y axis here (koll upp) is how you’re feeling. The higher up, the better you feel, and then the lower we go down here, the WORSE you feel.

Here in the middle is your baseline. Your baseline level of pleasure, happiness or awesomeness or whatever the heck we want to call it. 

And before I continue here, I’m going to give you a phrase to remember for later on. 

This graph is actually pretty old, but recent studies have found that it is really super accurate, because brain scientists have now found that pain and pleasure are co-located in the brain. 

Push on one side - and the other side will respond...

If you push on one of them, the other one will respond. 

And this is the phrase I want you to remember...

Pain and pleasure are co located in the brain!

First few stimulations...

Ok, so let’s take a look at the graph here: when we present a potent stimulus to the body, let’s take alcohol as the first example, this is what's going to happen...

The pleasure curve starts rising sharply almost immediately (see video), and what we are engaging in here is a low value dopamine activity, by the way, and as most of you already know, a lot of people feel really good right here. 

Instant gratification and instant dopamine...

You feel more relaxed, more euphoric and you have quite a lot of dopamine.

You sail up here, way above your baseline.

Engaging in this activity is the A-process in Richard Solomon’s graph.

Now the brain doesn’t like extreme things, it likes to maintain homeostasis, so it doesn’t like sharp changes in the baseline level.

A counter mechanism sets in...

This means that whenever a powerful stimulus pushes the baseline, the brain immediately kicks in a counter mechanism. 

So, you adapt pretty quickly and go down here (see video), and after a few more hours you go down here, even further…even below your baseline levels (see video, you are now under your baseline levels).

This counteraction process is the B-process, in Richard Solomans graph. 

And down here you’re not feeling well. 

It doesn't feel good at all...

...and perhaps many of you can relate as you’re thinking about how you used to feel the day after a heavy night's drinking session.

Find out how long your porn recovery will be by clicking on the FREE pmo recovery time estimator above

Alcohol is not the only thing that activates the B-process...

And here I need to point out, drinking alcohol is just one example here.

The rebound effect will occur with pretty much all potent instant gratifications you can find out there, not just alcohol. 

Now, here comes something interesting.

So, pay attention now…

Notice that it says first: few simulations up here (see video).

Temporary rebound vs longer effects...

Well, this means that this slump down here is just a temporary rebound effect of your dopamine levels, and you’ll slowly start to feel better, as you manage to get back up to baseline - after a few hours or a day or so. 

However, let's now go to the next lesson where I’ll show you how this graph will start to change after repeated exposures...

You do not want to miss this, because in a moment you will get a big ‘aha moment’ when you start realizing something really fascinating here…

Super interesting stuff here!

Ok, so as you remember, the graph we were just looking at in the last lesson showed what the rebound effect in dopamine looks like on dopamine and your dopamine system after engaging in just a few stimulations.

This was the graph we were looking at then (see video). Well, now let's take a look at what the graph will look like after many stimulations.

The graph changes with repeated stimulations / exposures...

And as you can see, now the graph has changed!

Now that you’ve been doing the activity, repeatedly, over and over again, NOW you actually are desensitized.

And when you look at the graph now you can literally see the desensitization. Because now you get less enjoyment and pleasure from the stimuli, and then even worse, the B-process gets even longer and deeper than previously.

A new - lower dopamine 'set point"...

And the worst of all, when you start to recover from your alcohol binge (or whatever stimuli) after a day or two you no longer reach up to your former baseline. 

Can you see that?

So, you are now stuck below your former baseline.

In other words, you have now permanently changed your set point so that you have a lower level of motivation, happiness and awesomeness.

It is reversible...

Well, permanent is perhaps not the best word, because you can reverse it, by getting away from all that low value dopamine stimulation for a while.

If you ignore it...it's a permanent 'bad' set point...

Scandinavian Bob doing an online presentation about dopamine

But if you ignore that and you just keep blasting your brain with more low value dopamine stimulation, well then it’s permanent - because you’re stuck there, below your former baseline levels.

So, now I'm sure more and more of you start to understand how valuable dopamine fasting will be to help reverse your disrupted dopamine system. And how incredibly useful it is going to be for you to take a short break from the most stimulating stuff. 

And here comes a twist that almost no one talks about on YouTube. They only talk about doing a dopamine fast to “reset” the dopamine system by removing stimulating things.

You can FLIP the graph and do amazing things....

But then what 99% of them miss is that you can actually flipp the Richard Solomon’s graph to help speed up the resetting process. 

Yes, we can turn everything upside down to speed up the growth of new D2 receptors.

Check this out because this is so cool…

If we go back to the first graph here (see video), remember when I said that your brain doesn’t like extreme things and that it wants to maintain homeostasis? 

Well, this means that the graph works the other way around as well. 

Now look here…

If we go to the Y-axis and flip the emotions there, and we put the pain and effort up here, and the pleasure and happiness down here.

Swap pleasure with pain...

Ok, great, so if we now present the brain with a stimulus that is quite painful or takes quite a lot of effort, like for example going for a fast 30 minute run....

...well then you will feel pain in the moment (pain is now the stimulation / the exposure), so the pain is now the A-process.

But then the counter mechanism, which is the B-process, kicks in after you’re done so then you’ll actually start feeling really good... 

The good and the bad are now on different sides of the X-axis...

...because again, this is now the good side of the line!

This, my friends is what I call a high value dopamine activity, because you get lasting dopamine levels that don't drop your baseline levels in the long run.

In fact it is the very opposite of an addiction!

And here comes the coolest part of everything so far…

Remember the first few simulations line here? 

Here too, repeated exposures changes the graph - but this tine something amazingly good happens...

And remember how the graph will change after many stimulations?  

Well, the coolest thing here is that the second graph now also works when we have flipped the Y-axis. 

So the more often you do stuff that takes effort and are a bit painful, like for example...

• Running hard for 20 minutes
• Doing heavy squats
• Doing intermittent fasting
• Taking cold showers
• And on and on, all those effortful things...

...the more of those you do, the less painful they will start to feel in the moment. And the cool part here is that after you are done, when the B-process kicks in, you now feel even more pleasure and enjoyment after you’re done.

Yeah, because remember, the B-process always becomes deeper and stronger and longer after we have been logging in ongoing repeated stimulations....

...no matter which way you flip the y-axis. 

You have created a new happiness / badass set point...

But hands down, the absolute best part about the repeated stimulations after flipping the y-axis is that,  when the B-process finally comes to an end, you remain on this side of the baseline, which is now the happiness and pleasure side. 

Can you see it? 

You have now permanently changed your pleasure thermostat to a new set point. A better set point this time, as you are now on the right side of the line. 

Now, just how cool is this?

It's the complete opposite of an addiction...

This is literally the exact opposite of the addiction and desensitization process. Showing how you permanently create a new baseline level of happiness, drive and motivation, as you can see in the picture right here (see video).  

You now also have a lower baseline level of pain (this is good)...

And since pain and pleasure are co-located in the brain, in other words if you push on one side, the other side counteracts, that means you now also have a lower baseline level of pain.

Or, perhaps a better way to put this is, you are now a dude walking around feeling more happy while you at the same time have a much higher pain threshold. 

Just how badass is that? 

You’re suddenly

• Happier
• More awesome
• And on top of that you now also have a higher pain tolerance. 

Does this make sense to you?

I hope it does!

You can really supercharge your dopamine system here...

Not only can this help reverse desensitization, but  by adding a bit of painful stuff into your fasts, you can actually grow more receptors than what you had even before you started using those instant gratification simulations. 

Even more than what “normal people” have, who are not desensitized. 

This is where I got the term “supercharge your dopamine system” from, because if you can get your dopamine system in way better shape than a normal functioning brain, oh man, supercharging is not a stupid term at all. In fact, it is quite appropriate.

Now isn’t this exciting?

And as you can probably sense right now… now we are starting to close in on the dopamine fasting protocols.

This is going to be so exciting because this is really where the magic is going to happen. 

Yes, it is finally time to change things around and start talking about the positive stuff!

How to make dopamine work for you rather than against you, how to get back that child-like excitement for life and completely skyrocket your motivation and drive.

This is going to be so cool...

So let's now go to the next module, where we start the preparation for your very first dopamine focused fast..

Ok,so that was just a short excerpt of my course and let’s jump back to our current video. 

Now wasn’t that interesting?

And you should know when you change your setpoint in a positive way like that, that you just saw in the later part of that graph, you should know that you are also significantly speeding up the recovery of your brain after an addiction.

And now when you understand all of this it’s going to be so easy for us to continue our series with zooming in on one tool at a time and exactly how I myself and many of my clients are using them.

But this video is already getting too long so in part 3 we will continue with this and then we’ll start to look at different, interesting tools we can use, one by one.

Thanks for reading!

-Bob

Related posts...

• Part 1 of how to recover the brain quicker after porn addiction can be found right here
• NoFap and porn addiction - how to speed up recovery
• What would happen if we had super low dopamine?
• 7 Things you can do to speed up NoFap / pmo recovery
• How to recover brain after porn addiction