41day Nofap benefits is bullsh*t - IMO

I can understand your pain and your doubts. Some people here seems to get offended by your being honest and telling your feelings and results.

I think abstaining from PMO is a good thing per se, so I encourage you to continue and make a life habit off it, without expecting any benefits. Then move on an try to improve other things in your life, one after another. That's all you can do!

 

I'm glad you're making progress. 10 months is a great achievement I have yet to accomplish. I'm doing fine, thanks for asking.

Yeah anhedonia is a b... I too have problems with motivation at work and with implementation of necessary changes into my life. I went through some dark weeks not long ago and I've realized, I shouldn't try to implement lots of changes at once, because I get overwhelmed and don't do shit in the end. My big problem has been chronic depression and social/general anxiety. I couldn't do anything but self-pity when the "black dog" came to visit and all the goals I tried to achieve fell into the water instantly. So I decided to limit my goals to behaviors that will help me stabilize my mood and hopefully get rid of anxiety, nothing more and it has worked so far. I do believe in body and mind connection. Because I've been unable to control my mind, I've focused on the body part hoping that the mind will follow and it has. I've learned 1) Wim Hof method and I practice it "religiously" every day, 2) do hour to hour and a half walking/jogging or cycling in nature 3) try eating heathy plus taking supplements that help me fight depression every day (fish oil, vitamin B, D, Zinc, Mg). I still have troubles sleeping but I'm working on it. I do this things daily no matter what and I've seen great improvements in mood and especially on anxiety levels. Maybe you should try to implement some of it, if you're fighting anhedonia. It takes less then 2 hours daily to do them and it has really helped me a lot. All these methods have scientific background in lowering stress hormones and upping body's endorphins (dopamine, serotonine plus lots of other feel good stuff).

I intend to enroll in yoga class next week and start to do some weight lifting again and that should complete the body part of equation. Then I'll slowly start to work on the mind and spirit part while maintaining "body part routine". I'm following videos of some guy on YT (Tim Johnson), who got rid of 40 years long lasting multiple addictions. His advices are pure gold. Lots of life changes left to implement but I've learned my lesson. You can't rush it. Patience is a virtue. Confucius once said: "It doesn't matter how slowly you go as long as you don't stop."

 

That's the thing with a lot of nofap youtubers and some comments under their post that they don't really talk about the "low" on nofap. In order to feel the highs, you have to go through the lows first and it will depend how long and how heavy were you addicted to pmo. I'm 13 months hardmode and I'm still in the reboot process. If I were you I would try to inform by searching on this forum or Google what to expect once you decide to abstain.

 

Now I understand, for me the larger the group, the more my social anxiety rears its ugly head.
This guys is kind of a goofball, but he has a ton of great suggestions to get over social fear not just with females but with people in general.

 

It is semen retention that gives you the benefits of NoFap. Merely not masturbating is not enough you have to not have sex, not think about sex, and not watch porn. Almost always the people who say NoFap doesn't work aren't doing it properly.

 

I don't believe fantasizing is a problem. You can't stop fantasizing occasionally. When brain has nothing to focus on it starts fantasizing. Boredom is a crucial cognitive process and makes us more creative. Maybe try to lean mindfulness meditation. The goal is to observe your thoughts and cravings but don't act on the impulse. Just let it be.

Social anxiety part is more tricky. I have suffer from it my entire life. I think I have finally found a solution that works for me, but it's rather unpleasant to implement and demands some self-discipline. I do an hour to an hour and a half of aerobic exercise (brisk walking/running/cycling in nature) followed by Wim Hof method (deep breathing + dynamic stretching + cold shower ->Aug 20, 2019) on daily basis. Maybe you could try it. I don't know if it will work for you but it's worth trying it out. If you chose to try it yourself, start slowly and build up gradually to avoid burning out and injuries. You can start with 30 min walks, 1 cycle of deep breathing and get your feet/arms in cold water and progress from there.

 

Since I discovered NoFAP and through some readings —e.g. Carl G. Jung–, I have come to the conclusion that fantasizing has done me a lot of harm. Man's psique feels thoughts and dreams as real as matter or physical reality. So fantasizing causes rewiring on your brain which is not based on reality. In my opinion, that can not be good.

Of course, I don't want to confuse fantasizing with visualization, which is the first creation of things in your mind.

And why should you wait till September? You are waiting for a week now. "September" is just a name for a day in the future. Why not start now?