The Neuroscience of Why Dopamine Detoxes Don’t Work

The anticipation of reward is biochemically more “addictive” than achieving it — You can use this system to your advantage.

Photo by Gaspar Uhas on Unsplash

Pleasure is like a crater, when it’s filled, it goes away. There’s no more pleasure you can juice from that once it’s filled. It’s why dopamine isn’t released after you do something fun. It’s released in the anticipatory phase, and somewhat during.

Understanding the role of dopamine in the reward circuit can help you leverage it. Dopamine is cool, it makes life really fun! It gets a bad rap, and I don’t know why. It’s like the neurotransmitter scapegoat, but the truth is a lot more nuanced than that.

Don’t blame dopamine addiction

You’ve probably heard that — because of our modern lives (social media, Uber Eats, online gaming, online dating) — everyone is “addicted to dopamine.”

Like many things spouted on the internet, it’s a scientific misconception that you can be “addicted” to dopamine. Dopamine is a neurotransmitter that is released in the brain’s reward center. It’s not something you can get directly addicted to, but it does lock you into the dopamine-inducing behavior.

Let’s say you get a dopamine rush when you eat cookies. You might start eating cookies more often, because the pleasurable reward strengthens certain neural pathways to tell your brain: “This action is associated with this reward — do it more, I like it.”

Dopamine can motivate human behavior, which is why you constantly want to check your Instagram to see if you’ve got any more likes. But dopamine is not solely responsible for addictive or hedonistic behaviors; other neurotransmitters and brain circuits also play crucial roles.

Moreover, the brain does not operate in a binary state of excess or deficiency; its regulation is intricate and context-dependent. Efforts to reduce or eliminate dopamine through extreme measures can disrupt essential physiological processes and lead to adverse effects on mood, cognition, and overall well-being. (We’ll come to this).

The scarcity loop

According to the book Scarcity Brain by Michael Easter, the “scarcity loop” is a three-part behavior system that requires: opportunity, unpredictable rewards, and quick repeatability. If you want someone to become addicted to something, all you’ve got to do is hack this system.

Here’s an example: the opportunity to go viral on TikTok, the unpredictability of when it will happen, and the fact it’s easy to do from your phone, so you can do it again quickly if it doesn’t work the first time.

Dopamine is involved in this behavioral loop, sure. But is it solely responsible for the compulsive addiction of hedonic behavior? No.

Monk mode won’t fix your obsession with immediate gratification

According to the internet, to break free from your dopamine addiction, you’ve got to do a “dopamine detox” or go full monk mode. Proponents of this detox believe that excessive exposure to stimulating activities, such as video games or social media, leads to desensitization of dopamine receptors, and a “detox” period can restore sensitivity and improve overall well-being.

Essentially: Detach yourself from any dopamine-inducing behavior, in the pursuit of having greater control over your desires and compulsive behavior.

Does it work? No.

The brain’s response to stimuli involves intricate neural circuits and multiple neurotransmitters, not just dopamine. Additionally, the concept of “detoxing” from all stimuli contradicts the evidence that moderate engagement in rewarding activities is generally healthy.

In a study, genetically engineered dopamine-deficient mice didn’t produce enough dopamine from the dopamine-rewarding behavior of food seeking, and so the mice died.

In reality, dopamine keeps us alive, it’s an evolved — rather than devolved — trait. Sure — you don’t want to overload your pleasure center by taking addictive drugs or gambling in a Vegas casino for hours on end. However, attempting to remove all dopamine-inducing activities has limited support in the scientific literature.

Dopamine is pretty awesome, if you know how to leverage it. Your brain’s innate desire to pursue dopamine is something that can become a competitive advantage.

The hedonic treadmill

Photo by Intenza Fitness on Unsplash

The way I think about pleasure, or dopamine, is like a crater. The anticipation of filling the crater is more fulfilling than the act itself.

Contrary to popular belief, dopamine is predominantly released in the pleasure-seeking, rather than the attainment of pleasure. It’s why many people consider dating more exciting than a relationship, why the lead-up to Christmas is better than the day, or why having a vacation booked keeps you on track with your workout routine.

It’s why the richest people I’ve interacted with are usually the most devoid of enthusiasm. What is there to seek when you can access to everything, at all times? All their pleasure craters have been filled, and it’s not as fun to live life without the possibility of obtaining more.

We’re all on a hedonic treadmill: we’re looking for more pleasure craters to fill. Once they’re filled, we’re on to the next. Keep them empty, it makes life more exciting.

Dopamine fasters don’t understand the almost comical misunderstanding of dopamine release. By not doing the act, they may actually increase their dopamine sensitivity to the action. Let’s say you go a month without using social media to “detox.” When you finally get social media back, there’s a possibility you’ll be more enthralled by it.

Dopamine drives us to stay alive, but more than this, it makes life really fun. You can hack your dopamine system to motivate positive behavior, too.

Leverage your dopamine system to your advantage

Don’t do a dopamine detox. If you’re struggling with addiction, see someone. If you’re struggling with discipline, get your shit together. Get off social media, quit eating junk, and stop blaming dopamine for your shortcomings.

You can use dopamine to your advantage. Make your life more fun, pursue more dopamine-inducing yet positive goals. Trade your video gaming for a game of pickleball. Swap your mindless scrolling for a gym session. You can still enjoy and rely on dopamine, but do it to your advantage. Do things that benefit you and get addicted to them!

Getting more granular, you can also use the scarcity loop to drive “addiction” to positive behaviors:

1. Set big goals.
2. Identify smaller goals that contribute toward that bigger goal.
3. For each small goal, decide how you can build scarcity around it (e.g. opportunity, unpredictable reward, and quick repeatability.)
4. When you work towards each small goal, intentionally tell yourself that you’re chipping away at your goal.
5. Once you complete each small goal (or even a smaller target within that small goal), reward yourself with some positive reinforcement, becoming addicted to the process.

Dopamine isn’t dangerous or detrimental. It’s what makes life fun. Keep those craters, and when you’re about to fill one, create another one. Anticipate all the good things and all the goals you have set for yourself — and you might find yourself more likely to keep up the work involved to attain them.

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