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

Discussion in 'Rebooting - Porn Addiction Recovery' started by Fenix Rising, May 12, 2019.

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  1. Brain Fog

    Brain Fog Fapstronaut

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    It sounds familiar. Whenever I see something arousing my heart rate quickens dramatically, I get an anxious feeling in my chest, my mind glazes over, and I begin trembling, my fingers especially. This can come from an innocent conversation with a girl as well, albeit to a lesser extent, if I get the impression that she's interested in me sexually.
     
    Last edited: Mar 21, 2023
  2. Brain Fog

    Brain Fog Fapstronaut

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    As long as you do not binge, the damage done was minimal. A relapse can be turned into a walk in the park with the right attitude. Know that you did it once so you can do it again.

    You will get out of this, brother. Do not despair, and do not beat yourself up. Relapse is part of the process.
     
    Last edited: Mar 21, 2023
    Selfdiscovery likes this.
  3. Mr.Chips

    Mr.Chips Fapstronaut

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    Yes, it gets worse the more time edging done.


    Yes exactly this is my situation.

    In conclusion, we have to stay away from the artificial stimuli and having full recovery will get us to the right track. Thanks for sharing
     
    Brain Fog likes this.
  4. Ezpz

    Ezpz Fapstronaut

    Edging is for sure the most detrimental thing to your recovery! If you can manage to at least eliminate the edging part of your relapses that is big progress.

    I strongly believe edging is the cause of most paws cases.
     
  5. Ezpz

    Ezpz Fapstronaut

    Exactly my line of thought in recovery. I always prioritise recovery over most other things. Some activities that others have mentioned have also actually made things worse for me in paws. Such as cold showers and occasionally exercise.

    Its best to find out for yourself what actually helps you and what doesnt.
     
  6. When you get a break from PAWS??
    If not mistaken I remembered you said after 3 pm or something symptoms stop bothering you.
     
    Ezpz likes this.
  7. sikreodds97

    sikreodds97 Fapstronaut

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    I relapsed after 253 days. It was coming. I dont do anything all day, i sit on my computer 24/7. I dont have a lot of friends due to social anxiety. I have also lost faith in rebooting because i dont really get benefits. However i cant let that stop me. Its one relapse, but my god it sucks. And i know the rest of the week will be horrible for me. Im going offline for a month, Nosurf. This is a warning sign for me and i need to do something else besides Nofap. I need to try and take control of my life again. Of course my goal is semen retention, but i feel like i fucked up all the progress. Dont know what im doing man.
     
  8. Mr.Chips

    Mr.Chips Fapstronaut

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    It's a hard feeling, I have been there. But trust me there is progress and you still didn't lose the record. You have passed about 8 months and this is great.

    Let's make things clear, the recovery process is not linear. There are days of feeling good, others feel bad, because many factors play a role in the recovery.

    When I hit the rock buttom, I started feeling better after 9 months and it was not all great but I was able to function again. Then by time things got better and and worse depending on how much I was aware regarding edging, handling stress, managing the general lifestyle bad habits of eating, setting, late sleeping and such.

    I had relapsed like 3 or 4 times during this phase but no binge and the interval between each was long like couple of months

    But I managed to pass the 380+ days, after the 300 days I literally felt like 95% normal but edging ruined it.. It was a constant slips that dragged me to the buttom again.

    Until today, although I relapsed 3 times since last september and they ruined a lot, by contant self care things get better by days.

    Do your best not to binge, you are still on progress. And do your best not to edge, after a relapse, cravings and emotions of loneliness and grief could get a bit harder in the first two months. If these two elements are controlled then you will get back to the track quickly.

    Also schedule time to go out to exercise (don't stress yourself), have good sleep, reduce the exposure to computer (take a break every 20 minutes or so and move your body).

    Never give up man, keep it up and stay optimistic, you got this!
     
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  9. Dave G 123

    Dave G 123 Fapstronaut

    Have you considered a 12 step program like Sex Addicts Anonymous?
     
  10. Brain Fog

    Brain Fog Fapstronaut

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    This. It's scary how intense the effect of edging can be on the brain. I wonder what my recovery would have looked like if I hadn't tried to prolong my pleasure so much. It's like an all-you-can-eat buffet for a glutton, or a lifetime's supply of drugs for a drug addict.

    Whatever you do, do not beat yourself up. That will never work. Only positivity will help you overcome this. AND DO NOT BINGE. You will sorely regret doing so if you do, and in a month or two you won't understand why you ever thought those thoughts in the first place.

    This time, do something drastic. Change the layout of your room around. Introduce different smells, colors, and lights into your environment. Change the wallpaper if you can. Keep things clean and make your bed every day if you don't already. Last but not least, make sure you don't spend all of your time in your room (I know you know this by now though). This helped me enormously.

    There is joy in other corners of our lives that can replace porn if we look. Maybe it's more difficult for some due to the nature of our symptoms, but it's important to look regardless. I derive a lot of joy from my old memories, so I'm stuck in the past in a way, but I still appreciate music, art, food, writing, animals, keeping my living space clean, aspen trees in the summer—things like that.

    Also, if I didn't know the world was changing for the better in a massive way right now, I wouldn't have any reason to stay alive aside from these things, the pain that my family would feel if I went and overdosed on something, and the hope of eventual recovery.
     
    Last edited: Mar 23, 2023
  11. Brain Fog

    Brain Fog Fapstronaut

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    Also, I know that hygiene plays an important role for me in keeping urges at a minimum. When I shower, shave, and keep my nails short, I feel much less likely to sink into erotic ideations, or to even go near that swamp. Why? I have an all-or-nothing attitude, and if I'm unclean it's easier to think unclean thoughts for some reason. The same is true for when my room is untidy. I cleaned out a ton of dusty books and stuff not long ago, and it has given me a sense of control over my problems that I didn't realize could be found in just keeping my room clean. Even putting things in drawers and cupboards and keeping everything outwardly clean is helpful, but it's probably best to keep the space as spotless as possible, inside and out.

    Maybe it's just me and the way my brain works, but it might be something some of us overlook. It's been a game changer for me, along with essential oils, air purifiers, and opening windows (smells can remind us of porn, and should not be underestimated).
     
    Last edited: Mar 23, 2023
    Selfdiscovery, Kierann and born3 like this.
  12. sikreodds97

    sikreodds97 Fapstronaut

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    I havent because even though i slip up sometimes, i have had plenty of 300+ day streaks, im not an addict anymore. However im thinking of biting the thing that ive been scared about doing all my life. Im extremely sure that i have ADHD and that often comes with a chemical imbalance and depression and anxiety. Ive been depressed and anxious pretty much all my life and never understood why. PMO helped me and weed helped me and when i got off those i felt even more horrible, probably because of the chemical baseline. And even though i felt good when first coming off them, im off weed for 5 years and dont feel better. Ive been trying nofap for 7 years and dont feel better despite moments of clariry and many streaks. I wont lose hope for semen retention, i will stay on that. But ive heard so many stories of peoples anxiety and depression lifting when they get treated for adhd(ive had all the symptoms espeically as a child). Im really anti big pharma, but im 25, i dont feel like ive been happy my entire life. My life is a mess. Im thinking of booking a time with the doctor and talk about getting me treated with meds. I remember being young and being very depressed, low self esteem, and anxious thoughts despite no big trauma in my life. If i end up getting PAWS from these meds and feeling horrible, then it is what it is. However im not going to be a bystander to my life anymore and wait.
     
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  13. sikreodds97

    sikreodds97 Fapstronaut

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    I appriciate it. I already have a plan from tommorow with nosurf, i need to overcome that addiction too. I need to change my mindset.
     
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  14. Ezpz

    Ezpz Fapstronaut

    One relapse probably wont set you back all the way to square one. You have gone a significant time pmo free. Was edging involved?

    I know how horrible it can be to relapse after a long stretch of time pmo free. Do what you can to mitigate the relapse and move forward with your recovery!
     
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  15. Ezpz

    Ezpz Fapstronaut

    This was the case on my previous reboot. Each reboot for me is different. Now im pretty much all over the place. I will get brief periods where im feeling better throughout the days but its pretty rare
     
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  16. Ezpz

    Ezpz Fapstronaut

    You could have adhd. However keep in mind paws can cause adhd like symptoms so it can be hard to tell the difference. I have often thought this myself as ive had these symptoms even before nofap, however im pretty sure they started when pmo use started, then progressed as i used pmo more over the years. Of course everything got significantly worse as i decided to quit.

    I think its a good idea to get checked out with a docter anyhow. You could try the meds, see if it helps.
     
    Dave G 123 likes this.
  17. Mr.Chips

    Mr.Chips Fapstronaut

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    There is Dr. Terish on YouTube mentioned a lot about the connection between ADHD and Computer consumption
     
  18. Life Project

    Life Project Fapstronaut

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    Great response, Brain Fog. Thank you, that was very informative to read. I'm really starting to connect the dots between high stimulus activities and pmo. I agree with your first point: engaging in these activities can increase likelihood of relapse. I've seen this in my own journey too many times to count, especially with music and YT usage. What you said about whether these various activities affects our PAWS-induced recovery is extremely interesting. In my opinion, I think it does affect recovery a bit. It's important to disclaim, as you mentioned, anything and absolutely anything is better than relapse to pmo. But I think there is some damage that can be done, especially when in PAWS, if you experience a (or many) substantial dopamine releases. My case this past weekend might be a good example for both of the topics of this correlation. Long story short, I was sick this past week/weekend, I felt terrible w/ dealing with PAWS. So, on Friday I decided to switch the tv on to watch my favorite team play college basketball as a mini-escape of the agony I was feeling; something I haven't done in a long time. I experienced numerous substantial dopamine spikes when I was watching. I watched basketball again on Sunday and same thing happened: numerous substantial hits in my brain. Both times I left feeling like I had just relapsed in a way. I felt the pull to go back and watch the tv, look up interviews with players/coaches, etc. Now, this is the interesting part: I experienced both an increase in pmo urges and the relief to my PAWS symptoms. This is what scared me. I haven't had a pmo urge since the first couple weeks in my recovery; sexual urges yes, pmo urges no. So, I've really battled Sunday night through today with these pmo urges. And I came out of my PAWS a bit- I feel happier, more relaxed. It's as if my brain got those dopamine hits and calmed down. I still have these questions though. Was my recovery slowed, or even messed up, because of this? And the connection to the pmo urges are still mysterious. I was sick- my friend did a good job at enlightening me that is a cause to my increase in pmo urge. I also think that since my reward system was stimulated in such a way that mimicked pmo, the brain is thirsting after something (the thing) that would quench that high-dopaminergic void-and that would be pmo. So, it's sort of like double edged sword with high stimulus activities I'm seeing. One side is increased in urges, chances of relapse increase and the other would be a possible slowing or backsliding in recovery. It's interesting to note even if I sing in church or something, my brain is firing off pretty good- dang addicted brain- all it wants are those massive releases of neurotransmitters. Lastly, with what you said about using these things responsibly without falling into a instant gratification-dopamine slide. I don't see myself doing that for awhile. It's like every time I hear a soon I love, I feel a massive pull to listen to more and more and more. Watch a sports game, I get so into it and I feel the pull to sit there, basking in the numbness and euphoria. I don't know man..
     
  19. Does this happen to you guys ?
    Have anyone felt a strong thing inside your head ? As if it's something heavy ???

    I feel it and I'm constantly feeling Foggy, Brain Fog! I can't think - I'm really unable to think at all, It's like I've lost that ability, have any of you felt the same ?
     
    Anonymous86 likes this.
  20. sikreodds97

    sikreodds97 Fapstronaut

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    Thanks man, im back on track now. It was rough and scary how i could just fall back just like that. I have made some changes now, stay on semen retention but dont focus too much on it. I have lost hope getting the benefits back but i never want porn or masturbation again in my life, so that has to go forever, its so damaging, and there is still that voice who thinks maybe i can suddenly recover but the thing is i havent gotten better in 5 years over different streaks. And i know some paws people just wake up and feel amazing but it just hasnt happened. Still going to be on it and keep trying tho, who knows maybe in a year or two it may happen, but i need to stay clean. I want to get into nosurf and battle my surfing addiction. And i have decided to try microdosing probably psilocybin first before maybe going the pharma adhd route. Microdosing is something ive wanted for years and people respond amazing with microdosing in terms of depression/anxiety and it can promote neurogenisis. First i need to get myself back on my feet, getting a hang on my surfing addiction and making some changes in my life.
     
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