P.A.W.S. - what are they, cure, duration

That’s the Anhedonia, I felt like this the past year but recently in April Anhedonia aka flatline got better. You can force to do things but it all takes time to get better. Just keep abstaining this is like any other withdrawal it takes time to for your brain to heal.

 

You are forgetting one of the key elements of PAWS in your post. That is the W part. Withdrawal is one of the key elements of paws and cravings are apart of that and a key distinction between other possible causes. This theory also doesn't explain why some people recover either over a period of time or one day out of nowhere. If the emotional root is the cause of the symptoms then it doesn't make sense to have a complete turn around out of nowhere if you have done no work to resolve them.

"why some people experience PIED/ED at 18 and others at 30 or 45. Or why each rebooter experiences different symptoms. It even answers why older individuals are said to heal sooner than younger rebooters." This question has been answered though. It is due to the developing brain of an adolescent. Learning is much stronger during these years and when approaching adulthood the brain solidifies these learned patterns. I think its also why children can learn languages much quicker that adults. The brain goes through different phases. I think theres more on yourbrainonporn.com. Theres also just the simple fact of genetics that also play a role.

 

8 months for me today. I've felt lately that I've hit a wall in my recovery. Urges and cravings have been noticeably higher along with vivid dreams. I've pretty much been in a rut for about a month straight it feels. Sometimes recovery is not linear and its important to note that we can often feel as if we are going backwards. All we can really do is have faith.

 

Wow, so relatable experiences, when I was in that state, I couldn't have enough courage to come here on nofap too, cuz I was feeling 0 during reading text, I couldn't understand, I couldn't feel whats written,etc..The penis feels so numb, so relatable mate..
I can still get in that zone if I even '' try'' to watch porn for more than 15 minutes, I get a bad anhedonia, anxiety, get cold and flue, I mean put it short I have got an allergy to porn, but yet its tempting in nature..
Same thing happened to me, Dad used to do his best for getting some of my legal paperworks straight and I was like yeah okay, Fk lawyer, fk law, why its that tough for a citizen to even go through this, the only response I had was frustration and else nothing.. These xp are very painful, I dont try to remember them during rewiring. Hope One day, I will get to that point..

 

Hey @mentorr I am happy to inform u that today, I woke up in the morning satisfactorily, like no headache, last night I didnt take any sugar, I did some in the afternoon, but from then none, also I practiced some spirituality from Eckhart Tolle, I observed my self talk, and just shedding some awareness on it I started feeling relaxed.
Sugar is inherently bad, also salt, I will surely cut them especially during this time.Lets see in the coming days. Thanks

 

You'll be alright in no time if you keep your head up....

 

Really positive news - that headache in the morning really gets you off to a bad start for the day.

Just my advice - I don't actually think that you need to cut sugar totally out of your diet. Consuming small amounts of sugar is fine, but I would aim to keep it somewhere between 8-15grams per day (if possible), and avoid refined if you can. If you go over that it is not the end of the world, but as you mentioned, consuming earlier in the day is better.

Really glad you were able to get a better nights rest. Practicing Eckhart Tolle's philosophy's never hurts either.

 

Yes, there is some sugars in what I have in lunch, well there is a very tasty recipe that is made in all over my area made with tomato that require some sugar. By cutting out I meant food full of sugar, like ice cream, cake, etc and not eating these especially after sun goes down is a better idea

 

One thing that I've noticed recently is, drinking alcohol or smoking increases you're chances of getting a wet dream.

 

There seems to be two types of rebooters:

1. Rebooters that recover within under a year through abstinence
2. Rebooters who take longer to recover due to going through PAWS

I think he majority of us in this thread are the latter - the 'PAWS lot' that take longer. Both types of rebooter seem to experience similar symptoms, however where I think the two types differ is later on in recovery. The 1st type does not enter PAWS. They experience around 4-5 cycles of the flatline and gradually recover. The 2nd type seems to drop deeper into a depressive, anxious mode AFTER they have already begun to feel better. We also experience periods of anhedonia and what feels like additional flatlines periods.

My thoughts? Our nervous system has been conditioned in a different way to those who recover without PAWS. How exactly, I am still not sure.

Imagine the body (or nervous system) as a 1000ml cup. Say you have years of pent up anger from your younger years. That is 350ml. Say you have some pent up sadness too, that's 300ml. Not to mention the shame you also accumulated, that's 200ml. That totals in at 850ml leaving you with 150ml (of energy) to get by with in your daily life. No wonder we feel like s**t all the time, the nervous system is holding all this excess energy which is wreaking havoc on the internal system. This why it is called 'emotional baggage,' because we are literally carrying the emotions around with us in our bodies.

Now you are in a relationship and decide to ejaculate with your significant other, not realising that the orgasm will cost you 800ml in energy from the nervous system. Or even better you decide to edge to Porn costing you 1000ml in energy. Do you see where this is going? The nervous system is essentially blocked which is why we become so sensitive to any form of arousal, or why we have little to no energy to do anything. This is why I think going through the flatline is so important. It is essentially a purge of the junk we have stored in the nervous system.

I agree, this does not complete the entire puzzle, and for some of us this piece may not fit the puzzle at all. However there is A LOT of evidence to support this theory, meanwhile we have little to nothing to go on around PMO itself causing our symptoms.

 

I do agree and think this is partially right. But I think stimulation of the nervous system also plays a part.

There is the point that individuals who are now in their later 30s or older grew up without the internet in their childhood. Therefore no high speed access to the internet to over-stimulate the nervous system so easily. Back then it was all magazines, if not mental imagery.

Then there is the rest of us who grew up with high-speed internet, social media, dating apps etc. Our nervous system is conditioned in a different way to those who grew up without the internet. I agree that the brain solidifies learned patters at a young age, but for older rebooters, their brains have likely solidified the habit of looking at porn just not via the internet. Obviously each case will be different and this is just a generic description.

 

I forgot what happiness and joy has felt like. Has anyone here had a similar experience?
like I am literally dead inside

 

To furthur the point, I would add that youngsters now can get instant gratification from anything they want from diverse experiences. The 90s people had to wait for anything that gives them any significant experience. And also these people had practical experiences, but the new generation gets that experience mostly virtually. I m not here to tell u this is wrong that is right.. Just have to adapt ourselves in this environment for the longevity..

 

I went through it around 3-4 months ago. Its was probably one if not the hardest periods for me because I could not feel a damn thing. My advice is to just keep going even if you feel unsure. For me I gradually knew I was emerging from it when I slowly became able to feel again.

 

The top remedy for this that only works is Abstinence Time, have patience u will eventually come out of it.. Pretty same xp from my side as @mentorr

 

Try to live a normal life. Even if it’s hard to. When I didn’t have my motivation I still had to force myself. Now I have motivation and nothing feels forced. Shit just takes time. Another thing I would like to add that because I am feel way better I no longer have the desire to pmo. Im truly done with that. The hell is not worth it.

 

Dude, when my symptoms hit. I didn’t know what the hell was going on. I took time off because my Anhedonia depression, suicidal ideation, and etc. I went back to work. I tried going out to parties and events but my anxiety was severe but as time went by it kinda got better. I was out of work for months because the agony. I finally went back to work after my suicide attempt. I told myself fuck it, if I’ll try to pull through the even though things don’t feel good. While I was working I was crying and angry because I felt so empty. Everything just felt pointless at the time. As time has gone by I just been working on my projects and working a full time job. I’m going out a lot more too.

 

You are definitely right about that emotional link being somewhere in the paws story. The age old question is just where it fits in. At the beginning, middle or end? My paws story was different that most. I went into some form of paws before recovery even started, which is how i found out about all this in the first place. I was looking for answers to unexplained symptoms before it clicked. I quit then everything got worse, confirming my suspicions. I remember stumbling on my first thread about sexual exhaustion which lead me to nofap.

I dont know if there is some unresolved emotion that im unaware of but i will find out as recovery progresses.

Im planning on making a thread here specifically for paws after im successful. One big paws guide before i leave here for good. There simply is nothing on here that is really helpful when it comes to paws, except maybe this thread.