Dopamine Decoded: Why You Crave More, Enjoy Less, & How to Win

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The Self Sensei - SelfSensei.com

Vib Kapila

104 episodes

1 day ago

Gain Clarity and Unlock a deeper understanding of yourself and the world around you by exploring the science behind your thoughts, emotions, and behaviors through our carefully curated collection of research on core psychological concepts. Each episode is thoroughly researched to provide you with accurate and insightful knowledge about the fundamental principles that shape our minds and actions.

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Dopamine Decoded: Why You Crave More, Enjoy Less, & How to Win

The Self Sensei - SelfSensei.com

42 minutes 27 seconds

2 months ago

Dopamine Decoded: Why You Crave More, Enjoy Less, & How to Win

Check out SelfSensei.com's article on 'Your Brain on Dopamine: The Secret Behind Cravings, Addiction, and How to Reset Your Reward System'

https://selfsensei.com/beyond-sensei/your-brain-on-dopamine-the-secret-behind-cravings-addiction-and-how-to-reset-your-reward-system/

Why is it so hard to focus? It's not weak willpower—it's your dopamine. This deep dive explains the real neuroscience of motivation, desire, and self-control. Discover the critical difference between 'wanting' (dopamine) and 'liking' (pleasure) and how our modern world is designed to hijack this system. Learn why you crave more but enjoy less (incentive sensitization) and how to reclaim your focus. We cover practical, science-backed strategies like 'dopamine detoxing' (and why it works), adding friction, and choosing effort to master your motivation.

00:00 - The Modern Struggle: Digital Burnout vs. Deep Work
01:43 - The Great Misconception: Dopamine is Not Pleasure
02:07 - The Key Distinction: "Wanting" (Dopamine) vs. "Liking" (Opioids)
04:20 - Proof: How Suppressing Dopamine Kills Motivation, Not Pleasure
06:29 - When "Wanting" Breaks: Impulse Control & Addiction
07:23 - Incentive Sensitization: Why You Crave More But Enjoy Less
09:22 - Why Speed Matters: How Fast Delivery Makes Tech Addictive
10:48 - Tolerance & Anhedonia: Chasing "Normal"
12:05 - The Weakened "CEO": How Compulsion Hijacks Your Prefrontal Cortex
14:14 - The Role of Stress: "Gasoline on the Fire" of Cravings
15:53 - Engineered for Addiction: The "Slot Machine" Effect of Tech
17:30 - Starving Your Brain's "Resting State" (DMN)
18:28 - The Marshmallow Test Revisited: It's About Trust, Not Just Willpower
20:19 - Does "Dopamine Detoxing" Actually Work?
20:57 - The Real Value: Training Discomfort Tolerance
22:50 - Practical Strategy: Create Your Own Subjective Reward
23:45 - Practical Strategy: Use Random Rewards to Build Grit
25:22 - Practical Strategy: The 10-Minute Rule to Beat Urges
25:57 - Practical Strategy: Choose Effort & "Earn" Your Dopamine
27:14 - Practical Strategy: Digital Hygiene & Adding Friction
29:26 - Warning: Stop "Dopamine Layering"
31:37 - Final Challenge: Practice Due Diligence
#dopamine #neuroscience #motivation #focus #addiction #digitalburnout #selfcontrol #productivity#dopaminedetox #brainscience #psychology #habits#mentalhealth #incentivesensitization #procrastination