by Sophia Diep
Introduction: Struggling to Focus
I used to think my brain was broken. No matter how many times I told myself to focus, I could not do it. I would sit down to study, open my laptop, and before I even realized what was happening, I would be watching random YouTube videos or scrolling through Instagram. I did not even remember picking up my phone—it just happened. At first, I blamed myself. I told myself I was lazy, undisciplined, addicted to distractions. But the harder I tried to force myself to focus, the worse it got. Even when I managed to put my phone away, my brain felt restless, desperate for some kind of stimulation. I could not sit still. I could not focus. It felt impossible.
Then, I came across the idea of a dopamine detox. The internet made it sound like a magic reset button—cut out all distractions for a day or a week, and my brain would suddenly work the way I wanted it to. No more procrastination, no more mindless scrolling. Just pure focus. At that point, I was willing to try anything.
The Detox Process: Going Cold Turkey
I decided to do a full detox. No social media. No YouTube. No music. No video games. No snacks I did not "need." Just pure, distraction-free living. I told myself it would be hard, but by the end, I would come out better. The first few hours were not so bad. I felt productive, maybe even a little powerful—like I was finally taking control of my brain. But by the afternoon, the withdrawal hit. I felt bored out of my mind. I kept reaching for my phone, only to realize it was not there. My brain felt itchy, like it needed something—anything—to hold onto. Studying was not interesting, reading was not interesting, even just existing felt dull. It was like my world had gone completely gray. I had expected to struggle a little, but I did not expect to feel this bad. I thought I was supposed to gain more focus, not lose all my motivation completely.
The Science Behind What I Was Feeling
I did not know it at the time, but my brain was not reacting this way because I was weak—it was reacting this way because it had been trained to expect constant dopamine spikes. Dopamine is not just about pleasure. It is about motivation. It is what pushes us to seek things that feel rewarding. When we get used to quick, easy dopamine from endless scrolling or binge-watching, our brains start prioritizing those activities over everything else—even the things we actually want to focus on. So when I suddenly cut off all my usual dopamine sources, my brain did not just reset. It panicked. It was not getting its usual hits of stimulation, so instead of magically becoming more productive, I felt even more drained.
Was the Detox Effective? Realizing the Problem
I lasted about three days before I cracked. I told myself I would just check my phone once, and next thing I knew, I was deep into a YouTube rabbit hole. The second I gave in, I felt guilty—like I had failed. But then I had another realization: The problem was not dopamine. The problem was how I was seeking it. Completely cutting out all stimulation did not make me more focused—it just made me miserable. What actually mattered was learning to control where my dopamine was coming from instead of letting it control me.
Instead of banning everything, I started making small changes that actually stuck. I gave myself specific times for social media instead of cutting it out completely. I started rewarding myself for deep work instead of relying on distractions to get through it. I made studying feel rewarding by setting goals I could actually track. And slowly, I started realizing that my brain was not broken—it had just been overloaded.
The Science Behind the Detox: What the Experts Say
This experience made me wonder: Does the idea of a dopamine detox actually hold any scientific merit? According to Dr. Peter Grinspoon, a Harvard professor and physician, the concept of a dopamine "fast" is based on a misunderstanding of how dopamine works. Grinspoon explains that dopamine is a neurotransmitter involved in reward, motivation, and pleasure. When we engage in rewarding activities, our dopamine levels rise, but this does not mean that avoiding these activities will lower dopamine levels, as many believe. A detox, as commonly advertised, does not lower dopamine levels. Instead, it merely allows us to step away from overstimulating behaviors that create short-term gratification and learn to better control our impulses (Grinspoon, 2020).
Dr. Grinspoon also highlights that the term "dopamine fast" was coined by psychiatrist Dr. Cameron Sepah, who intended it to be a method based on cognitive behavioral therapy to help us regain control over compulsive behaviors such as excessive social media use or emotional eating. Sepah’s original goal was not to eliminate all dopamine-triggering activities, but rather to provide a tool for reducing our dependence on quick, fleeting sources of gratification (Grinspoon, 2020). However, the way the concept has been widely misunderstood and taken to extreme lengths—where people attempt to cut out even healthy and normal activities—does not align with the true purpose of dopamine fasting.
Conclusion: Was It Worth It?
Did my dopamine detox “reset” my brain? No. If anything, it just made me see how deep the problem really was. But it also taught me something important: I did not need to eliminate dopamine in accordance with the internet trend—I needed to retrain my brain to use dopamine differently, in alignment with the method based on scientific evidence. Now, I still get distracted sometimes. I still reach for my phone without thinking. But I do not feel trapped by it anymore. I have realized that focus is not about cutting everything out—it is about learning how to live with distractions without letting them take over. And honestly? That feels like a much better answer than a detox ever could.
Sources
Grinspoon, Peter, MD. "Dopamine Fasting: Misunderstanding Science Spawns a Maladaptive Fad." Harvard Health, 26 Feb. 2020, www.health.harvard.edu/blog/dopamine-fasting-misunderstanding-science-spawns-a-maladaptive-fad-2020022618917.
