You're Addicted and You Don't Even Know It: 6 Dopamine Traps Stealing Your Life

Dopamine should reward us for our achievements. But what achievement did you receive the last time you ate half of that chocolate bar? You have to control your dopamine, or it will control you. You will love it — no doubt. But what will you have ten years from now besides a long streak of self-destruction?

Dopamine is your brain’s motivator. It’s the chemical that pushes you to chase goals, crave rewards, and feel pleasure after an achievement.

It sounds great, right?

Well, it was great — before we engineered an environment that hijacks it 24/7.

According to a 2020 study published in the Journal of Behavioral Addictions , heavy stimulation from digital devices creates similar dopamine patterns to drug addiction. Another Stanford study found that constant micro-doses of pleasure lower your baseline dopamine, meaning you feel less joy from real achievements.

So, what does that mean?

Your brain is short-circuiting. The things that once motivated you can’t even get through the noise anymore.

Cheap rewards have overthrown real success, deep connections, and meaningful creation. And every fake dopamine hit buries you deeper.

It’s time to detox. Here’s how.

You're reading an excerpt from The Challenge — a weekly newsletter dedicated to self-improvement, goal-setting, habits, time management, and health tips.

Every week, you'll receive:

• A life-enhancing challenge
• A custom infographic to track your progress

Join 3900+ driven individuals and take your first challenge.

I’ve been having issues pursuing my online career in the last few days. And I’ve searched for a motivation behind this low desire.

It’s not something rare in my routine. I often have periods where I am prolific and moments where I don’t write at all. But this time, it was different.

I didn’t have the desire to succeed anymore. And that made me think — what if I am getting too many free pleasures?

I’ve been in this market for a few years now, and I know dopamine can become a drug — so the alert triggered immediately. But still, I had to get out of that comfort zone, and it took me some time.

Enough about me. Let’s talk about you.

If you’re still reading, the introduction probably caught your attention. You felt like I was talking about you. And that might be true — you’re not the only one experiencing these issues.

Most people struggle with dopamine today because we lowered that baseline too much, and we need greater releases to feel good. But it’s time to invert that trend. It’s time to detox and take back our motivation and drive.

Here are six traps you want to avoid.

There was a time when people thought cigarettes were harmless. But fast forward a few decades, and we realized we were paying to get sick.

The same is happening with social media now.

You think you’re connecting, but you’re not. You are feeding an addiction engineered to keep you stuck.

You’ve got all your friends on TikTok and Instagram, I’m sure of that. But when was the last time you had a real conversation with them? (No, sending memes to each other doesn’t count.)

I’m not going to tell you to delete all social media apps for a month — that’s not how you fix an addiction. But you should limit the time you spend on social media.

In the beginning, you will need support to block those apps. For example, I use Opal to block all social media between 9 AM and 5 PM. Then, you can bring back control over your side with small steps.

Decide when to log in to an app and when to log out. Give yourself predefined slots of time in which you are allowed to use social media. And when time runs out, log out. This way, no notification will ever catch your attention.

Do you feel sad?

Here’s a burger, some fries, and a Coke.

Do you feel better now? Of course, you do. But in 10 minutes you:

• burned at least $10
• vanished a one-hour workout (if not even more)
• and lowered your dopamine levels again.

That dopamine bomb provides some energy and clarity for a while. But then, it weighs over your belly as it does on your motivation. And all of that because of one impulsive meal.

Impulsive meals have been the reason I’ve been overweight all my life. I’m gluttonous, and I can’t control myself sometimes. But you won’t solve nerves and stress with a burger. So, why do we keep doing it?

You may find different answers. But, essentially, food provides a temporary sense of comfort and distraction. Also, when stressed, our body releases cortisol, which increases appetite and cravings for high-fat and sugary food.

Yet, fast food and impulsive meals have one simple fix — only eat what you cook.

If you didn’t make it, don’t eat it.

It requires a lot of discipline, but it works!

You were going to relax for an hour. But five hours later, you’re still lying on the couch, wondering why real life feels so… flat.

How many times did it happen?

I experienced it for the first time when I finished How I Met Your Mother (my favorite show). I wanted to have more because my life wasn’t that awesome. And I didn’t realize the only way to have the same things was to go out and meet new people.

The same thing might happen to you. When you binge-watch your favorite TV show or influencer, your brain is overfed but starting. And no amount of Netflix will fix it.

Many influencers against binge-watching suggest limiting your consumption to one weekly episode. However, that seems too much of a change. And we all know small changes are the way to improve bad habits. So, what should you do?

Start with one episode a day (maximum 1 hour).

That should limit most of your consumption. But it’s still too stretched if you love watching movies with your partner or friends. So, we will add a second rule:

You can watch longer movies, but only with another person — never alone.

This way, consumption becomes intentional.

Ding — you look.

Ping — you look again.

Buzz — gotcha, you picked up your phone.

What is so irresistible about the notifications on our phones?

There are many reasons why you do that:

• you fear you will miss out on important communication (FOMO)
• you have trained your body to react to that kind of stimuli
• and it pushes dopamine into your body, of course.

But every notification is a micro-anxiety attack. If you know it’s there, you have to check it. And until you do, your mind keeps coming back to it. Sometimes, even if there are no notifications, you check your phone to see if there’s anything new.

This has to stop now! You can’t shock your brain like this every day.

I blocked all notifications since my first smartphone. And every time I visit my parents, I’m sick of the constant vibrations and sounds their phones make.

How can you live like that?

Turn off everything except phone calls because nothing is urgent anymore. And if something urgent does happen, people will call you.

Block your Instagram, email, and even WhatsApp messages. Don’t worry — you won’t miss anything.

You may already have three pairs of sneakers. Yet, you will buy another one with the right promo.

You didn’t need that ring light. You didn’t need that new gadget. You bought it because it didn’t cost much. In some cases, it did cost a lot, but you thought you needed it.

Do you want to know a secret?

You probably didn’t want most of those things. But you wanted the hit. You wanted to feel the micro-rush of dopamine when you clicked Buy Now. So you kept buying.

I’ve been using a simple but efficient rule for a couple of years now:

Delay any small buy for seven days and big buy for a month. If you still want it after that time, you can buy it.

Now, small and big buys are relative — they depend on your salary. And you will for sure know what it means in your case.

Why do you need music on every walk or while you drive?

Why do you listen to podcasts while cooking?

You’re afraid of silence. Silence means you have to think, which is the opposite of a dopamine rush.

When there’s noise, you keep your brain fed. It’s not hungry — it can’t be — because you keep feeding it emotions. But your dopamine threshold lowers, so you will always want more noise and less silence.

Since I started working and had to commute daily, I always listened to music while going to work and back home. But a few mornings ago, I rediscovered the pleasure of silence.

I was going to the gym, and I was sick of the same daily songs. So, I turned off the music and experienced the pleasure of driving. It was a short route, but I did it again. And then, I started doing it daily.

Introduce a few minutes of silence in your daily routines. It could be during your commute to work or school or a relaxing walk at the end of the day. Silence everything — no phone, no headphones, no stimulation.

You’re not tired, lazy, or broken. But you may be addicted to dopamine. And it’s becoming a problem.

Your motivation and productivity may drop for different reasons. Sometimes, they don’t even drop — it’s only your mind playing toxic tricks on you. But if they do, you must save your brain before the world finishes frying it.

You don’t need more hacks or apps. You need silence, hunger, and real rewards. You need to feel bored again — so you can remember what it’s like to truly want something. And then, get it!

Unlock exclusive content and take your self-improvement to the next level with a premium subscription.

• ✅ The Productivity Mastery Series – Proven productivity systems in Notion, ready for you to implement.
• 📚 The Challenge Book Club – Actionable insights from the best personal growth books so you can apply their lessons without reading them all.
• 🔥 Monthly Exclusive Content – The top 5 must-read articles, behind-the-scenes life updates, full archive, and more.

Join 3900+ driven individuals who are serious about growth. Upgrade now and invest in your future.