Does Nofap has any relationship with anxiety?

Highly probable.

But you can't pretend to be cured in just 90 days, you have to understand you have a problem,you have a serious addiction to porn, and you have to solve it right, not in just 90 days.

Go for 6 months/1 year of nofap, just eliminate porn and masturbation from your life, no option.

 

Brother Suhail. OOOOFFFFF. Where could one begin - EMOTIONS for a normal person can be sooooooo misleading (how one interprets them). For us, who have been engaged in PMO, our normal emotions are coupled with shame, guilt, resulting in us feeling, and perpetually, fear, anxiety, depression. I'll speak for myself, I think based on how I feel, which is wrong because I have observed that for the same experience, I felt two different ways at two different times, and interpreted what had happened in these two ways based on how I felt during each time.

I am dumbfounded. I know and am sure I have been doing this for soooo long.

Hence, I need to be very very very very very careful how I interpret my emotions.

I promise you Sir, once, as Mattew mentioned, the time that you don'e engage in PMO increases, your heart will calm down, and all these emotions you feel right now will disappear and you might (like I did), feel dumb for thinking that way in the first place.

I have to tell myself this I guess, before I preach it, it is very very very important to first get control over one's emotions - and for us current or ex-Fappers, it's even more important. It would be dangerous to think based on how I feel, because truly, the reality of what is, I don't perceive correctly and then act based on my false intepretation. I loose.

I need to change as well. I keep telling myself to observe my emotions. And while it is very hard, because I see myself used to giving into the first thought/impulse that arises, those days I manage not to give in to my emotions/impulses or not to interpret a situation based on how I feel, I grow stronger, firstly, and secondly, in a day or two, or even later that day, I see something happen that went directly against what I had previously (negatively) thought earlier.

For the next year, I am trying to observe my emotions even more. I want to be able interpret emotions correctly. This will help me do anything. It already is working with the ladies, in school, at work.

Just be patient, and don't you dare loose hope or give in to your anxiety for one minute. It will passs. This is a promise. Pray for me to achieve the same.

 

Wish us the best, Sir. Hope we don't loose sight of the light at the end of the tunnel. LOL.There actually is light!

 

Why count number of days? Let it be 90 or 900 days, you just need to focus on your life goals. Work hard, have patience, stay healthy and everything will be fine.

The more you think about counting days on NoFap the more you get stressed and may lead to failure, so instead use that energy on thinking about things that really matter like how to overcome your anxiety problem. Research as much as you can and work on it. I hope you will find a way...

 

Exactly!

 

@Suhail22 sounds like you're in withdrawal from dopamine/pmo addiction. Panic and anxiety are common symptoms.

It is extremely important that you do abstain from all pmo for however long your body may need. This may easily take 1-2 years.

 

Yes it is curable, nofap, headspace app (the best mindfulness and meditation app imo), therapy, exercise, getting outdoors, ssri drugs, herbal supplements, gentle exposure therapy, have discipline whatever you do but don't put a lot of pressure on yourself

 

What I mean by pressure is a lot of thinking or tension, if the thinking is unproductive such as always thinking about the end goal or thinking you need to be somewhere else to be content

So plan your goals and work toward them with discipline but then be content with the present moment, and be kind to yourself, if you fail of course you can analyse where you went wrong, but don't overthink things

 

That is true, you should live by that mindset, but please, also be aware of the fact that any relapse can (and will) restart the anxiety.

You need to think of anxiety as both a withdrawal symptom and a guide. Believe me when I say that if you relapse, panic and anxiety will be knocking at your door with all it's got. And it doesn't care about whether you've completed 90 days or not. Once panic and anxiety tops your list of withdrawal symptoms, 90 days of abstinence is very unlikely do the trick. All I'm saying is, don't get lost in the present moment too much, because thinking about the end goal and wanting to end the anxiety is your biggest weapon against any urge. The body is so weak during withdrawal that the sympathetic nervous system is constantly activated. Panic attacks and severe anxiety are the most pronounced symptom of this fight or flight condition. One single mistake can undo a lot, if not most of your progress. In that sense not thinking about tomorrow really is to be avoided. In the back of your mind, you need to think about where you want to be in a year, two years from now. But it's true that you shouldn't obsess about it. It all comes down to balance, and not losing yourself too much in the present moment (i.e. giving in to the urge). The urges will come, and they will be quite strong the first few months. In these moments, it will be up to you to think about your future goals.

Here's a list of common post-acute withdrawal symptoms from alcohol and drugs. You will - without a doubt - recognize a lot of these. To me it really does sound as if you are in withdrawal. These symptoms can set in pretty quickly (14 days -1 month of no pmo). Having developed fetishes seems to make it more likely to get this set of symptoms. It's basically what withdrawal from severe dopamine/stimulant addiction (as in pmo/drug addiction) looks like. This is exactly why porn sites should have warnings (may be habit forming). Unfortunately an addict won't care about these conditions as long as they're not part of his/her reality. This can feel like a personal, psychological hell and no one should ever have to go through something of the kind.

Common symptoms of post-acute withdrawal syndrome are:[14][15][16][17]

• Psychosocial dysfunction
• Anhedonia[18]
• Depression
• Impaired interpersonal skills
• Obsessive-compulsive behaviour
• Feelings of guilt
• Autonomic disturbances
• Pessimistic thoughts
• Impaired concentration
• Lack of initiative
• Craving
• Inability to think clearly
• Memory problems
• Emotional overreactions or numbness
• Sleep disturbances
• Physical coordination problems
• Stress sensitivity
• Increased sensitivity to pain
• Panic disorder[13]
• Generalized anxiety disorder[13]
• Sleep disturbance (dreams of using, behaviors associated with the life style)

 

Thank you for your input, I absolutely agree that balance is important and especially having some sight of long term goals, I should have emphasized this more.

I also agree that being too wrapped up in the emotions, feelings and thoughts of the present can be harmful, especially when getting over addiction. Some level of observation and non-reaction is required but this takes A LOT of practice, like years.

I am no Buddhist master or anything, having really just started out on this journey myself, but I enjoy relaying what I read or hear and discussing it.

 

Remember, anxiety is your guide from now on. Today's brief moment of intense pleasure is not worth tomorrow's panic attack... It is not worth your physical and emotional wellbeing. I'm sure you will agree. If you get into this kind of mindset, you will conquer this addiction eventually.

Anxiety from porn/dopamine withdrawal is no joke. This is actually severe clinical distress that mimics, or manifests as psychiatric disorders.

You are not alone in this.