Hi everyone, I've been PMO'ing for nearly 10 years and its affected my relationships, self esteem and health. I recently left a long-term (by my standards, 2 years) relationship and since then, I've been thinking a lot about self care and being the best me I can be, getting my life back on track without having a massive post-relationship freak out. So I was thinking back to the last time I felt really good about myself for an extended period of time and I remembered that 2 years ago, I had managed to give up PMO for at least a couple of months, just on my own, not sure how but it happened. After finding this website and community and reading all the 'superpower' stuff, I realised that I was feeling the benefits of the Reboot 2 years ago, without knowing it at the time! Now that I've found this wonderful place, I'm going to try again, I'm out running again for the first time in a few years and even though I've only done a few days, I'm feeling more productive and more excited to wake up in the mornings. I can't want to go through this journey, the ups and downs with all of you and hopefully we can bask in our collective glory down the way.
Hey @Zammy95 , I'm just an ordinary member on here. No super powers. So, I'm just saying hello. I offer only my ESH (experience, strength and hope). My ESH is that I have to work the program. Work it everyday and work it hard. Work it? Oh yeah. There's work to be done, that's what's worked for me. Two things I've found necessary. 1. I had to Learn the NoFap Program. 2. Getting involved with the community on here was vital to help my recovery. Learn the NoFap Program The resources listed on the "New Users: List of Rebooting Resources" helped me find my way around the reasons behind the program and the terms used. They are: Download the free Getting Started guide. Set up a PMO-Counter Badge. More info here! Basic introduction to the science of porn addiction! Basic information about rebooting and how our challenges can help you recover from PMO. This is the most important page to read. If you only can read one page, read this one. About NoFap. Watch this video - it is an epic intro resource if you want to get particular details about porn addiction and how it changes how your brain works. This is a good light-weight video about porn addiction. Read through the journal sections and see what other rebooters have experienced. It is good to know what to expect, otherwise the "chaser effect", "the surge", or the "flatline" might throw you off. If you come across vocabulary that you can't understand, check out our rebooting glossary of terms. GET ACCOUNTABLE FOR YOUR HABITS! Sign up for a peer accountability partner. Otherwise if you want more professional-hosted solutions, check out NoFap Premium or Reboot Camp. If you can afford to invest in yourself, these are great options. You can find this same list on the top of the forum you posted this message on at - the "New to NoFap" forum. Get Involved with the Community The community has been my lifeline. I've found journals I love, people who are very supportive and a place where I could get to work helping in a small way others. I'm nobody important around here. Just a normal user with no magic powers. But, I can: Read Journals, and comment when I have ESH Find people I admire and stay in touch via their profiles Pick a forum and make sure evvery post gets and answer. I can't answer them all, but that's good - different opinions make for a better group. Post in my journal (I could be better at it - but I do milestone posts at least) To make a journal go to the section listed by age and start one. Keep all your journal posts in one thread. But, for random thoughts, you can create a new thread. Looking forward to seeing you around on the forums, - L PS - Think of pmo like a wolf. Stay near the center of the group with the winners and the wolf has a more difficult time finding you. But, stray near the edges of the community and the wolf can pick you off.
One of the ways I got involved with the fellowship was by reading some really great journals. I've included journals from all age groups, spiritual members, religious members, secular members, male and female. You should find journals that help. If not, look around, there are hundreds of others from which to choose. When I say "it works if you work it", reading journals is part of that work. Once you open a journal, click "Watch Thread" in the upper right of the page to get alerts when new posts are made. Here are just a few: @2525 Journals at: https://www.nofap.com/forum/index.php?threads/147264/ --- @Visor Journals at: https://www.nofap.com/forum/index.php?threads/144228/ --- @Dragonnlife Journals at: https://www.nofap.com/forum/index.php?threads/136148 --- @weddingnails Journals at: https://www.nofap.com/forum/index.php?threads/143418/ --- @Struggle Bug Journals at: https://www.nofap.com/forum/index.php?threads/141911/ --- @BigDawg913 Journals at: https://www.nofap.com/forum/index.php?threads/145872/ --- @Sunshadow Journals at: https://www.nofap.com/forum/index.php?threads/75108/ --- @kropo82 Journals at: https://www.nofap.com/forum/index.php?threads/78164/ --- @tet2vd Journals at: https://www.nofap.com/forum/index.php?threads/144513 --- @Protagoras Journals at: https://www.nofap.com/forum/index.php?threads/109842/ --- @Tomoya Okazaki Journals at: https://www.nofap.com/forum/index.php?threads/143534/ --- There are many more, and you can discover them on your own. But, these are great places to start. This is a work in progress. So, if a journal has changed or is no longer active, look around there are some amazing journals on here. - L