When you feel excited down there or you see an image or figure that shakes you in your brain and thoughts, who is in charge of what comes next? Our willpower I would reckon. If not that our base impulses must be in charge? I want to discuss taking responsibility over our own minds in this thread. In a way that is applicable to not being a slave to urges. This should hopefully foster tips and advice exchanges to benefit a reboot. To keep this thing active and available for discussion I want to set an ongoing quote sharing aspect. You may share quotes about willpower and impulse, or rather anything related to these two ends of the same spectrum, our own minds. I will share a quote to begin in the next post and leave you to it.
“...our impulses are too strong for our judgement sometimes” ― Thomas Hardy, Tess of the D'Urbervilles
Nice thread! 'Willpower is the key to success. Successful people strive no matter what they feel by applying their will to overcome apathy, doubt or fear.' - Dan Millman 'Willpower is the tuition you pay for a Degree in character' - R.S 'Our performance depends on so many factors only some of which we can control. What I can control is my mind and what I bring to the starting line.' - Bonnie Blair
"In the long run, we shape our lives, and we shape ourselves. The process never ends until we die. And the choices we make are ultimately our own responsibility." Eleanor Roosevelt I have the knowledge about what to do when temptations to lust comes along. I have the responsibility to apply that knowledge and do something to cut off lustful thoughts before they become harmful actions. I can choose to apply the knowledge or I can choose to ignore it and do what is harmful to me. Speaking for myself, any failure now with PMO addiction is because I failed to apply what I've learned.
Nice topic, i have been thinking about this too lately. Its easy to explain a little bit when i compare it with smoking addiction. When i look at my former smoking habit, the time i quitted was when i noticed how it harmed me, and that this whole addiction is just some trick of the mind, there is no real value or pleasure in it, there may be just a perceived one. Smoking makes no sense anymore, there is no more desire for it. I think willpower is very important, however maybe equivalent important the right understanding. If i really understand that something is not good, that it is of no real value, then why desire it? While i struggled with smoking addiction (and trying to quit) for years, and it suddenly was totally easy to stop, when i could see through this illusion. But with pmo it might be a different story, because the procreation drift is natural, and a very strong one. While inhaling smoke is not a natural urge. And i cant really compare the 2, the comparison goes so far as that it can become an addiction.. With NoFap, im into it already for a year, and havent had a streak of a month yet. First few weeks i feel really motivated and energetic, but then urges come.. i resist a few days, but after a while i give in.. excuses, rationalisations. I really need willpower for these moments. It almost feels like o cant trust myself, because i dont stick to my principles. Also, when the urges come, it really starts bothering and annoying me. Also the fear that if i dont release, these urges will be constantly there... it then seems the only way out to release. If i knew that the urges would go away after a few weeks i'd be more able to resist it (it would really help me if someone has the experience that it does go away, and the tension not building up and up), but at that moment it feels like the urges only increase, and that i have to release to feel normal again. In that moment i start to think and believe pmo is normal, natural, normally i do not see it that way. I hope becoming free of pmo addiction will also get easier with better understanding, but i definitely will train my willpower more. Every time i fall, get back up, and try again, try harder.
“I don’t think it’s merely willpower that makes you able to do something. The world isn’t that simple. To tell the truth, I don’t even think there’s that much correlation between my running every day and whether or not I have a strong will. I think I’ve been able to run for more than twenty years for a simple reason: It suits me. Or at least because I don’t find it all that painful. Human beings naturally continue doing things they like, and they don’t continue what they don’t like. Admittedly, something close to will does play a small part in that. But no matter how strong a will a person has, no matter how much he may hate to lose, if it’s an activity he doesn’t really care for, he won’t keep it up for long. Even if he did, it wouldn’t be good for him.” ― Haruki Murakami, What I Talk About When I Talk About Running
I can feel when the devil's slippery grasp seeps into my psyche. I can feel it immediately. If I don't start to get it off me right away it increases until the moment of temptation strikes. Actually it seems to be a series of moments escalating in intensity until that fateful moment of choice where I either step onto the wrong road or deliberately get away from it with vigor into something completely subduing and wholesome like spiritual training. Even when I do get on that wrong road, no matter how far I keep treading down it I still have the power to step off. In fact I have the power to step off at any point however once you go down the wrong road far enough, past the sprites and goblins so to speak, and a big nasty ghost or demon gets you in its possession where it locks you into lusting at a screen for days on end sometimes it seems, it is not easy to get off that road until devastation happens. Such is the nature of the beast. Reading Dr. Lance Dodes showed me we can always step out of the addictive train of thoughts and actions at any point, however for most of us once we begin acting out in our addiction we are so habituated to continuing with it until we binge horribly. It might take training to begin stepping out of that cycle in steps until we simply choose to not even take one step down that wrong road anymore. For me I think willpower could help me choose something wholesome over entertaining tempting states of mind. The deviant sexual temptation type. I only seem to be afflicted by base impulse choices now in the middle of the night when I am not fully awake. Like an impulse grabs me in a sleeping state and I wake up in erotic torment. It seems to be lessening but this is where the beast has seemed to have found me at my weakest. “Willpower and self-discipline are more effective than intellect and talent.” ― Akiroq Brost
Thank you and yeah I used the fancy font, is there some unwritten NoFap rule against the fancy font? Attempting to spread some joy and experiment. I attempted it with colors too, but it was too far Great previous post, who is Dr. Dodes? What does he profess? Also...the goblins were a nice addition. x
“Willpower and self-discipline are more effective than intellect and talent.” ― Akiroq Brost[/QUOTE] I like that quote ! Goes very deep. At the same time i think that Nofap is the most natural lifestyle, but it not always feels that way..for me in the past after few weeks mostly.. Most history wise man & sages have done celibacy & nofap also
