Today I did something I haven’t done for years:
I lay on the couch, put on my headphones, and listened to music.
Nothing else, just listened to music. Sure enough, I stopped after 2 songs. Got bored. Needed a little more stimulus.
They say it’s about dopamine baseline. Scrolling instagram is 10x stronger dose than listening to a good song. If you scroll Instagram every 2 hours, then just music is not really much of pleasure.
I think this just might be behind this burnout generation. I have many times find myself absolutely unwilling to clean my house or take out the trash. It wasn’t always like this. Years ago, I would’ve found pleasure in doing those things.
Now I simply don’t.
Is it really too much screen time? Is my dopamine baseline all out of whack? Or am I burnt out? Do I need to take 6 month sabbatical?
I wonder if anyone else is going through this sort of thing.
I don’t think “listening to recorded music alone” has been a big part of human behavior for more than a few years in the 20th century. Music used to be something you’d attend to with company in convivial places. That’s a very different context for your attention.
The phone is like a very compelling alternative. Imagine a negotiation: you’re always referencing your backup alternative. Even a lover can have a hard time competing with the infinite jest of the internet. This is our world, maybe our central challenge.
Maybe you can clean your place in a way that’s more radical, funny, joyous. Maybe you can do it while listening to a podcast. Maybe you can turn it into a thrilling kind of spiritual exercise.
Religion, I think, has always revolved around this challenge, in different manifestations. Some old people might call it the devil, he’s always alluring, appealing, fascinating, charismatic, addictive… You might not want to be religious about it but still, you might need some powerful and radiant ally against the “adversary.” Or maybe you need to bow down and admit your weakness and find some paradoxical shimmering of strength in humility.
If anything, I get waaay to excited / uplifted when listening to favorite songs, so I simply can't do it at work or before sleep. I am just listening to something "chill" that doesn't have an emotional baggage
However the entire 'dopamin fasting/detox' thing is unscientific[1]. You can't detox from what is a basic neurotransmitter involved in just about anything in your brain or body. Detoxing from it makes about as much sense as bloodletting. You don't need to deprive yourself of stimulation, which in general is healthy, or do anything radical.
[1]https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/dopamine-fasting-misunde...
If you are getting bored while trying to relax, do you really need to relax in the first place? Is it even possible to get bored if you are physically and mentally exhausted?
I take boredom to mean my body is trying to get me to stop laying about, not that it craves entertainment. Go to the gym or tidy up or something. Then when you are tired, relaxing comes a lot more naturally.
I also think a lot of people have a really low tolerance for boredom. It may be useful to just sort of linger in the experience for a while, explore what it feels like to be bored. It's a bit uncomfortable, but hardly the worst situation a person has ever been in.
Naturally, we are inclined to one of two reactions to stuff like this:
1. Resist, f.e. keep listening to music no matter what 2. Bow and look for the next exciting thing
Try something different. Try watching the feeling of "getting bored" without judging it, just watch. You will notice that it swiftly goes away and is replaced by other feeling.