My first challenge, 90 day PMO, starting Jan. 4, 2017

I am still here and still going. I have switched to the 40+ forum and keep a journal there as my primary way to share my personal experience with hard mode on the NoFap forums. I think today is Day 41 for me.

Congrats on your progress, too!

 

I have had a lot of positive changes, but intercourse hasn't been part of my experience. I was single before I started hard mode and I am still single. I'm keeping a low profile on Valentine's Day.

Maybe that is something I will talk about in the future. For now, it's been about breaking the addiction and improving spiritual, physical, and mental health.

Like you I started here at Day 1 and then one day at a time, getting through some difficult weeks, using the forums, and after a while you start to break the habit.

It may be more difficult to build a good streak at age 17 than it is for somebody past their 20's. I don't know from experience because I wasn't even thinking about trying to stop PMO when I was 17, but that was also before the internet was a thing. But, I would suspect that with teen hormones, you may need to be more patient with yourself in getting a streak going. You will need persistence and a lot of support. Don't give up.

 

I have had motivational problems and low energy for years. It's improved since I stopped PMO.

One thing it helps to be aware of is that your brain is going demand dopamine when you don't give it the dopamine from PMO. After a while, some people experience "flat-lining" where your whole system feels depressed because it doesn't know how to find motivation and energy without getting the kick from dopamine.

So, not only do you have to quit PMO, but you also have to replace the behavior with something else, something healthy that will give you energy. Exercise is a good solid option.

 

If I were you, I would stop taking the herb and see what happens. You want to see what your body is doing without complicating matters by taking the herb.

I gather what you are asking about sexual acts is whether cutting out anything but vaginal intercourse will help improve erectile function during vaginal intercourse. You'll have to try it and find out. My guess is that it will help, but you won't know unless you try.

As for exercise, yes, you have to suck it up. You also might want to take a general assessment of your life and how engaged you are in things which would be outside the internet (social activities, work, relationships, spiritual life, hobbies, projects, goals for the future, etc).

Be aware that if you are doing hard mode (no PMO) the second and third week tend to be the most difficult to maintain the challenge without a reset or relapse.

I wonder if younger people, like yourself, who grew up with internet porn (rather than just magazines and VHS videos) are more prone to hitting a flat-line when they cut out PMO. Internet porn is a lot more powerful, so perhaps, when you remove it, it is going to create a greater vacuum your life, more depression and a feeling of emptiness. This is something you will have to work through by training yourself how to gain pleasure through real life experiences (rather than artificial stimulation, herbs, drugs, etc).

 

Day 47. Still going!

 

Thanks. I am still going. Day 55