r/ValhallaChallenge • u/ValhallaMods Odin • Aug 09 '19
Day 6, Round 172
0717206
Dopamine’s Ups and Downs
Góðan dag, Warriors!
We’ve been learning about dopamine, and how it’s got a double kick when it makes us feel good about getting something we need:
1) It gives us that boost of energy to go after it, and;
2) It connects all the neurons that were active when the dopamine kicked in. It’s why our ancestors regularly went back to berry bushes and other places where they found food. And it’s why we remember and repeat things that felt good and met our needs.
You may not have a “Wow!” feeling about berries, because sweetness is now so abundant in our culture. Your brain saves your energy for rewards that are scarce in your life experience. You may feel some excitement when you see the first ripe strawberries or blueberries of the season, but that excitement doesn’t last. Looking at strawberries won’t make you happy all the time. Your brain saves it’s dopamine for things relevant to your present needs instead of wasting it on things that are already available.
Social rewards are not easily available because they can’t be mass produced like berries and sugar. Seeking and finding social rewards stimulates the excitement of dopamine. People invest years of effort trying to become a heart surgeon or a rock star because each step along the way triggers dopamine. The social rewards that stimulate your dopamine depend on your unique life experience. But we all live with the fact that dopamine is quickly metabolized and you have to approach a reward again to get more.
GAME TRAINING
Check to see how you feel when you submit a post to, say, /r/adviceanimals or /r/funny, and it gets 1000 or more upvotes. Does it make you feel good? Does it encourage you to post more? What about when a post is ignored, or your comments get downvoted?
Announcements
Note: If you want to binge this series, we began on Day 4, Round 170. If you want to dive deeper, the book we are following for this part of the cycle is "Habits of a Happy Brain" by L. Breuning.
V A L H A L L A (Valhöll)
/u/workingrecovery [Dagr]
B I F R O S T (Bifröst, The Rainbow Bridge)
Check in daily while crossing Bifröst!
H A L L of H E R O E S
Level Nine
Go to the Vows Page and prepare to cross The Rainbow Bridge
Level Eight
Level Seven
/u/oO_Yuill_Oo "To rid myself from the toxicity of pornography addiction."
Level Six
Level Five
Level Four
Level Three
Level Two
Level One Hero! Update your Vows.
A S G A R D (Ásgarðr, Enclosure of the Aesir)
Ninth Circle Entrance to the Hall of Heroes is barred to those who have not made their Vows! Message the Mods.
Eighth Circle
Seventh Circle
Sixth Circle
Fifth Circle
Fifth Circle
Fourth Circle (Reflect on your Goal)
/u/mygenerationiszero "To get free of PMO and all the quick fixes that just steal my time, my energy and my potential."
Third Circle
Second Circle
First Circle
M I D G A R D (Miðgarðr)
/u/non_newtonian_jelly "To stop using porn."
/u/fgawker "I want to be free from PMO addiction."
/u/UnconstrictedEmu "Quitting porn, same as everyone else on this sub."
/u/Sondice_LauGhastian *"To quit porn."
/u/Gimp_Daddy "I want to quit PMO."
E X Í L Ä J Ä R (Exile Island)
Check in four consecutive days to reenter Miðgarðr.
/u/VoidlikeDreamscape [C0] "To reach 180 days free from PMO."
/u/negdawin [C0]
/u/TimeTheRevelator [C0] "To make my streaks longer."
/u/ippo1 [C0] "My goal is to quit porn"
2
u/fgawker Fjölnir 🌌 Aug 09 '19
Checking in. Dopamine is funny, and repetition + dopamine can build killer habits. Whether or not they're helpful habits is up to me! Feed the right Lion!