Bad day - result of youtube/video games?

Bad mood and fatigue could be caused by poor sleep quality? Being on your phone straight before bed probably isn't too great for sleep, maybe try reading a book or listening to a podcast instead?

But I get where you're coming from, I can go a month NoFap and feel stellar but even a few days without Youtube makes me agitated. Your body craves the dopamine that it gets from these activities and is trying to convince you that this nofap journey is futile because its a junkie that wants its sweet hit of dopamine to numb it out. The truth is that we don't really need the escapism, at least not everyday. For all of human history we haven't had these things, they are not a prerequisite to our ability to function as normal healthy people in our day to day. The idea that video games/youtube are needed to wind down is cursed as most of the time they're highly stimulating, putting you more on edge. Lastly going on long binges of dopamine pumping activities can actually lower your pleasure threshold making the mundane activities of life feel far less rewarding, this could be why you're in a bad mood.

But like I said, I can relate, its f**king tough. If you are going to cut out these things then you need to have a back-up, something more productive that you can grow to enjoy and feel sustained from. A hobby or sport perhaps.

 

I agree with Endureandsurvive. It is actually depleting your dopamin, which is what gives you will to do things (ever tried to get up and clean your room after gaming for hours, it takes superhuman strength). For example, rats end up starving to death, even though there's food right next to them, when scientists screw up their dopamin regulation. This phone and gaming usage needs to be replaced with something else, otherwise of course you're out going to be able to do it. This activity is not energizing, so no, you do not need it. But your brain loves to be lazy, so it can be a powerful illusion of need. I too often fall prey to it.

 

For a long time, I was the guy staying up til 2-3am watching youtube videos or playing videogames. I'd get around 4-5 hours of sleep, waking up all groggy, feeling like shit and wishing I could sleep 10 more hours only to do the same thing that evening... rinse and repeat.

On top of that, the less sleep I got the higher the chances I'd PMO. Just to get that quick dopamine release and feel slightly "better" for a few minutes.

The most sustainable change you can make is swapping Youtube/phone before bed with an evening routine of your choosing. No need for a major change in routine at the beginning. Start small, the smallest possible change and build up from that.

Me, I started with making sure I brushed my teeth and rinsed with mouthwash religiously every night before bed. Over time (every week or so) I added a new step (journaling, skin care routine, etc). Now there's a huge gap between the last time I use the phone/pc and the time I go to bed. Almost no effort.

 

Yeah, mostly to check instagram and youtube.

2 things helped me the most:

1. I uninstalled instagram from my phone. I could still access it through the browser though, so I essentially unfollowed all the entertainment accounts I was following. Think memes, Florida jokes, etc. Once that was out of the way, I lost interest gradually.
2. It became more entertaining to do the routine than mindlessly browsing through Youtube. By the time I was done with the routine, I was drowsy enough to just slide into bed. This happened gradually over 5-10 days. The body would immediately recognise the routine and prepare itself for sleep without effort.

Decent sleep plus a couple of coffees in the morning and it's a different ball game.

Once you get a solid evening routine you can start thinking about a morning routine. This won't immediately help you quit PMO but in my opinion it'll help you put more structure in your life, which in turn will make videogames and youtube less appealing.