The Key to Actually Quitting Bad Habits
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If you’re struggling to overcome unproductive habits, like spending too much time on your phone or vaping when you're stressed out, welcome to the club. It seems we've all got practices that are hard to quit, but apparently wellness influencers and social media sites have come up with a quick fix: Re-train your brain with a “dopamine detox.”
The practice suggests refraining from activities that trigger the release of dopamine, a neurotransmitter associated with pleasure and reward, for a certain period of time. The theory is you can reset your brain’s reward system by taking a break from behaviors you find harmful and want to change. A quick search on TikTok yields thousands of hits on “dopamine detox” in every language imaginable. But, as with many health fads, the idea has become distorted — and perhaps even harmful. Read this before you hop on this viral trend.
What is dopamine?
The brain has billions of neurons that transfer messages from one nerve cell to another, orchestrating everything from movements to emotions. “Dopamine allows neurons to communicate with each other,” says Anthony Rostain, M.D., chair of the department of psychiatry and behavior health at Cooper University Health Care. “It helps direct our behavior to search and work for rewards. It’s central to all we do.” That includes functions such as learning, motivation, sleep, attention and mood.
From an evolutionary standpoint, dopamine rewards you when you’re doing things necessary for survival, such as eating and drinking. “It’s part of a complex circuitry,” says Talia Lerner, Ph.D., associate professor of neuroscience at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. “Dopamine is not about the experience of pleasure, but of learning about the motivation to go pursue those things.” Basically, dopamine makes you feel good when you do certain things so that you repeat the behaviors.
What is a dopamine detox?
Also known as “dopamine fasting,” the idea of a dopamine detox comes from a 2019 LinkedIn post by psychologist Cameron Sepah. He described the approach as a way to reduce impulsive behaviors, such as overeating or scrolling social media constantly, by “restricting them to specific periods of time, and practicing fasting from impulsively engaging in them, in order to regain behavioral flexibility.”
Sepah clearly stated that the concept was based on cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), an evidence-based technique for changing thinking and behavioral patterns. He even clarified in a later post that his theory had been misinterpreted by some people.
But the catchy name took off, popularized by some proponents as a way to reduce levels of dopamine by abstaining from anything that gives pleasure, including socializing with others, reading, engaging in favorite hobbies or listening to music.
The truth about dopamine detoxes
“While trying to get a handle on excessive behaviors is good, the idea of a ‘diet’ from dopamine isn’t effective,” says Dr. Rostain. “The idea that you need to ‘detox’ from dopamine, a naturally occurring chemical messenger, is inaccurate.”
That’s because while dopamine does rise in response to rewards, it doesn’t decrease when you avoid pleasant activities. “The term is a misnomer because you can’t get rid of dopamine, nor would you want to because dopamine deficiencies are related to health conditions such as Parkinson’s, ADHD, and restless legs syndrome,” says Dr. Rostain.
It’s not that taking a break from bad habits is a bad idea. It’s just not that simple. “Dopamine is being used as a synonym for reward or indulgence, but you miss the nuances of the science behind it,” says Lerner. “It’s not something you can shut off, and the idea of depriving yourself of all pleasure is not a good way to live your life.”
In fact, good-for-you activities, such as spending time with friends or enjoying a sporting event, also release dopamine. “You can never ‘get rid of’ dopamine,” says Petros Levounis, Ph.D., chair of the department of psychiatry, Rutgers New Jersey Medical School. “There are all kinds of good events, such as enjoying a nice meal or listening to music, that cause a dopamine spike that we should allow ourselves to experience.”
What should you do instead of a dopamine detox?
For negative behaviors you’d like to change, such as smoking, there are ways to redirect your need for immediate gratification and certain therapy techniques may. “Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) can teach you how to not engage in an activity and live with intense cravings without succumbing to them,” says Levounis. “You can learn to disassociate the immediacy of a behavior with a dopamine spike in the brain.”
CBT uses a variety of techniques, such as mindfulness exercises, to help you learn to live with your cravings without giving in. For example, if you’re trying to quit smoking, CBT teaches you to increase the number of minutes between waking and having your first cigarette — first for two minutes, then five minutes, then 10 minutes and so on. “You’re tricking your brain into allowing you to experience the craving as it grows bigger and bigger, then plateaus, then resolves,” says Levounis.
Essentially, CBT teaches you to identify a thought or trigger, learn to live with the discomfort of it, evaluate how it makes you feel and then learn to engage in another activity, such as reading a book, going for a walk or playing with your pet. “You find other rewarding behaviors to do instead of the one you’re trying to change,” says Dr. Rostain.
Another facet of CBT is learning to limit your exposure to something, such as allowing yourself only a certain amount of time on social media or not having ice cream in the freezer if you know you’re going to binge on it, says Dr. Rostain.
The bottom line
“If you want to embrace the catchy name, that’s fine. But there’s no real definition, and you can’t ‘detox’ yourself from it,” says Levounis. “However, there are ways of not always giving into immediate gratification. You can learn techniques, such as CBT, for not engaging in things that are not good for you.” Treating dopamine like a toxin is not an effective way to change behaviors — and anyone who says it is, isn't basing their claim on science. If you want help overcoming an unhealthy behavior, look for a therapist, psychologist or other mental health professional trained in CBT.
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