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How long should a reboot last to fully repair your brain?

Discussion in 'Self Improvement' started by Almtead, Oct 16, 2015.

  1. Almtead

    Almtead Fapstronaut

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    Hey everyone. I'm on the 90 day reboot and I know that its the standard length of time to quit PMOing but I want to make sure that it's the correct amount of time. I'm 6 days into the 90 days and I'm fighting a 15 year addiction to PMO, I'm noticing small benefits already but since I'm doing this I want to do it the right way and do enough time to, as much as I can, fully repair my brain and permanently get off of porn. I don't care how long it takes and I am extremely determined and confident I can do this. What are some of your guys experiences and what do you think?
     
  2. NoBrainer

    NoBrainer Distinguished Fapstronaut

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    Well, here is a cautionary tale. My addiction lasted for about 6 years, and it took me a lot longer to reboot than 90 days. The 90 day reboot does not claim to fully heal your brain from your past addiction, it is simply a good amount of time to build yourself into new habits, making abstinence easier to maintain from there on in. Gary Wilson suggests anywhere from 3 to 9 months to 'recover' fully from the addiction, or to the point where the addiction's lasting effects are not noticeable. I'd say this is fairly accurate, anywhere from 3 to 9 months.

    By the way, how old were you when you started PMOing? This makes a significant difference in recovery time. If you're fighting a 15 year addiction, I'm guessing you started before the days of streaming or downloading of porn videos on the internet, which is a good thing. It is the past dependence on high speed, hardcore internet porn during adolescence that makes quitting so much harder for the younger guys here.
     
  3. Almtead

    Almtead Fapstronaut

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    Yeah I started before the days of high-speed internet. I saw a porn mag when I was 13 or 14 and that was my first exposure but my real addiction began when I got my first computer when I was late 15 early 16 years old and it was slow. I'm 30 now so that should give you an idea. I mostly did pictures and short video downloads from things like limewire and kazaa, if you remember those. I mostly stayed on pictures through my my teens and very early twenties but around 22 I got access to high-speed internet and started videos and binge watching. My use was always at the higher end of moderate but 3 or 4 years ago it got bad, when I got my first smart phone. After that its been almost non stop and its gotten to the point where I'm getting interested in fetish types of porn because I've seen so much of the regular stuff that I don't get that "thrill" from it anymore. I never really thought of it as a real problem before but now my tastes are changing and its had a deep impact on my mind and the way I think about things, these are problems I've never had before. Plus anxiety, awkwardness, lack of confidence and PIED. I used to be a confident, well spoken guy 4 years ago and I want that back. The escalation is what made me see the truth about this stuff and when I tried to quit on my own before coming here I couldn't make it past 3 days with nothing but porn on my mind. I know this has to stop before this gets worse or I go past the point of no return and it permanently messes up my mind.
     
    Sante364, nfphro, Mordandy and 2 others like this.
  4. david-ca

    david-ca Fapstronaut

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    There was an experiment about the dopamine receptors in the brain and that they are exhausted because they are overly induced.It takes at most 2 weeks to heal the dopamine receptors.but it's kind of physical,The real repair is when you get back to where you were before you started it(if possible at all to completely get back). A few days ago i was looking at a porn picture and i wasn't getting a hard erection ,why?Because my brain has gotten used to it while 7 years ago I could easily get an erection by a simple erotic picture.you know what i am talking about and it probably has happened to you too.I personally think after the second week and then after the 6th week you get on track.don't think about it Your brain repairs itself.
     
  5. Almtead

    Almtead Fapstronaut

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    Oh absolutely. I use to be able to use Sports Illustrated Swimsuit and Victoria Secret mags but now those wouldn't do it, I wouldn't even get an erection. I'm 7 days in and I'm starting to get a few of the beginning benefits but the impulse and cravings are still there but not as bad as the first couple of days. The main thing I'm going through is the withdrawal effects from the lack of dopamine; tiredness, lack of motivation, unable to concentrate, depression, that kind of stuff but I can definitely tell my sensitivity to regular girls has gone up exponentially. I'm going to keep at it because I'm really liking where I'm heading. I think I'm going to do a minimum of 6 months, maybe 9 if I don't feel right then.
     
    bomonti likes this.
  6. nigelisfree

    nigelisfree Fapstronaut

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    I've made huge progress in 3 years of mindfulness each day (and often all day) plus SA and reading, and healthy living is incredible, as well as a sponsor who i can text anytime if fantasy interfrers and it dissipates fast.

    but as you learn to let go of fantasy...get ready to experience pain, loneliness, fear and sit with it. That is not a threat ...its an opportunity!. Mindfulness is turning toward, opening and feeling stuff fully! But if you can sit with that...the real fire, the tugging urges...the pit of despair...each day as they arise...you can sit with anything. Think about it...what can't you accept?
    i am 50 right now and I have largely over come my fetishes, of over 35 years, that lead to full blown fantasy addiction.

    I say largely as its still there simmering but 95% better...its a tiny issues now. It has taken me 3 years of working gently on me and practicing mindfulness and learning how to let go of it with friends in SA and just me alone using everyday triggers to feel it and let go. Do not fight with fetish, fantasy and addiction... but just learn to see it, feel it and let it go. (that is not to say there is never a time to resist...there certainly is but just not fighting all the time or it wears you down)

    What reduces an addiction is not the drama of resisting it...or feeding it...but of making it insignificant.

    If you look up "How to let go of a lifelong fetish part 1,2, 3" it better articulates it. Good luck and great points you made.
     
  7. Almtead

    Almtead Fapstronaut

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    Thanks for the support nigelisfree. Can you send me the links to the overcoming lifelong fetishes, I did a search and couldn't find them.
     
  8. nigelisfree

    nigelisfree Fapstronaut

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    Almtead likes this.
  9. Almtead

    Almtead Fapstronaut

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  10. Stafford

    Stafford Fapstronaut

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    I started with high speed internet porn how many months will it take me, I was addicted for 5 years and going to start reboot
     
  11. IggyIshness

    IggyIshness Fapstronaut

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  12. Stafford

    Stafford Fapstronaut

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  13. Stafford

    Stafford Fapstronaut

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    Why does take 250 days and not 90 days
     
  14. Stafford

    Stafford Fapstronaut

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    Does sleeping pill help in the starting stage or I can become addicted to it
     
  15. thesmexyboi463841

    thesmexyboi463841 Fapstronaut

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    Can you tell me how long mine will take. I too started by using high speed internet porn, but i was addicted for 4 years. When will i start to see an improvement in concentration
     
  16. IggyIshness

    IggyIshness Fapstronaut

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    Around the amount of time i stated.. you will be perfect. But to see a improvement a few months.
     
  17. Gittir

    Gittir Fapstronaut

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    What if you never used visual porn at all? I only used fantasising and perhaps some erotic stories to help my imagination. How long would it take?
     
  18. 90 days is a good start to reboot. But I hear many people say that heavy porn users need around 150 - 180 days of reboot.
     
  19. Truegamer007

    Truegamer007 Fapstronaut

    What worked for me (it may not work for you) is that I decided to give up porn and masturbation FOREVER. Now you don't have to go that far, but I would recommend STRONGLY to give up porn at least forever. It's not healthy, it's not worth it, you don't need it. Develop better hobbies. Read, play sports, learn an instrument, anything.

    Also, don't get too hung up on counting days. Rather focus on your life and how to improve it. Aim to be better everyday than you were yesterday. That's the secret to happiness.
     
  20. thesmexyboi463841

    thesmexyboi463841 Fapstronaut

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    I have to give my gcse exams in may, by then, i will have a streak of 133 days. Will i be at a disadvantage due to lack of concentration ability
     

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