What does a dopamine rush feel like?

Hey guys,

I just wanna ask y'all what a dopamine rush/high or just surge feels to you? What physiological changes in your body do you notice/feel? I'm really uncertain about whether what I feel sometimes is dopamine rushing through my body or wtf, so I'd love your input!

Thanks, keep strong, y'all!

I'm rebooting from getting regular dopamine rushes from hours of edging to porn.

It's like I'm in a trance, a porn trance. I lose track of time completely. An hour goes by in what feels like five minutes.
I feel intoxicated, but not drunk. The feeling is really good, like a shot in the arm of pure joy and deep interest in a subject (which happens to be porn, not exactly high brow stuff).
I also feel aroused and "sexually mighty" in some weird way.
Of course it is just an illusion, but by brain doesn't seem to care that I am wasting my time in a fantasy world.

The bad effects are many, and I keep reminding myself of those each and every day, so that I stay grounded and don't lose track of why I need to reboot right now.

Hmm, so arousal is the only real physiological reaction and feeling you have noticed?

I'm kinda disappointed with only one reply on this - share your thoughts, people!!! Thanks Introspect=)

I briefly saw a P image last night for the first time in 4 weeks. I was stupidly testing myself to see if my reaction to P had gone - which I thought it had. Well, it hadn't. It was a massive dopamine surge. So powerful it shocked and scared me. I went from totally soft to rock hard in seconds, I felt like my mind was in some sort of manic state. There was a wave of arousal and fear running through my body. An urge to satisfy myself almost too powerful to resist. I did resist, I turned off that image after a mere 3 seconds or so. But the dopamine surge has been messing with me for the past 12 hours. I feel nervous, edgy, horny, aching down south, out of balance. I didn't used to have this response - probably because I was desensitised to it after using P for so many years. But after nearly a month of staying away from P and artificial stimulation, the dopamine response was profound. Like it tries to take over my mind and self-control.

Dopamine is strong but subtle, I believe. You don't get the sudden rush you might get from an illegal drug. I guess it is more like the satisfaction of the first sip from an alcoholic drink; you don't get drunk immediately, but you feel happier once you've taken that first gulp. And like alcohol, your brain makes you crave it, without you really knowing.

I recall my last few porn sessions (5 months ago). I thought it was a simple matter of wanting to do something which was fun/interesting/exciting, just the same as the feeling you get wanting to go out to socialise, or go to see a live band. But porn is free and available in your own home; it is as bad as the biscuit tin for a dieter - always there to tempt you. So the feeling beforehand was (apparently) a simple interest, no wild craving or feeling of madness (so I thought). I thought I was in control, and choosing to do something intentionally.

During the browsing session, I would lose track of time, go into a sort of trance. It all felt very fluid and immersive. I wouldn't have said I was experiencing massive powerful happiness/pleasure, like I imagine illegal drugs give....I would have just used words like contentment - a nice level of happiness - and arousal. I was enjoying myself, absorbed, excited. But if questioned I might have realised this wasnt the same ecstasy I get from live music, or from a great moment performing my favourite sport.

That is why I say dopamine is subtle - both before and during the hit. You want it badly, but you think you are consciously choosing to go and get some. Then when the dopamine starts flowing, you are so absorbed/immersed you don't notice it hitting like an external drug (alcohol/tobacco/pot/coke etc) does. Lots of little hits keep you topped up, in the zone.

The second you finish - WHAM! The guilt hits. It is like you're suddenly dumped back into real life, and realise what you've done, as if you were not aware previously! Where has all that time gone? It is so stupid.

It is like an would-be-dieter gobbling a cake. I get enough pleasure (and guilt) from food to know what this feels like. You can want that sugar so badly you dont think rationally.....MUNCH.....and afterwards you feel that sudden 'back in the room' feeling, and cant even remember if you took the time to savour the taste properly.

Your brain releases dopamine when you eat nice food too, so I wonder if there are lots of cross-overs between these two problems, porn and unhealthy eating. We get so used to eating food we almost dont notice the drug hitting.

That's a really good description of it E45! I recognize myself in how you described a P browsing session.

j0int92, I realized there are other signs too:

Flushing of the face and especially the cheeks.
Somewhat elevated body temperature. Sweating a lot.

It was a massive dopamine surge. So powerful it shocked and scared me. I went from totally soft to rock hard in seconds, I felt like my mind was in some sort of manic state. There was a wave of arousal and fear running through my body. An urge to satisfy myself almost too powerful to resist.

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This I REALLY could relate to. The heartbeat racing, EXCITEMENT rushing through as you know you're about to watch something or ARE watching something, the arousal... But that's what I'm trying to find out. Is that just intense arousal or is it dopamine? Can dopamine really be felt on a physical level?
In my experience, natural, organic arousal does not come with that intense excitement, that is one of the main difference I'd say, but maybe that's just 'cause my brain is still on porn? Man Irdfk... This is why I really wanna see if people have a definite answer they're sure about!

Kudos on resisting... That is some A-grade willpower you got there, honestly!!!

And thanks to everyone who contributed!=)

Yes of course dopamine can be felt physically. It is the same as with drugs, you get that rush and wave of sexual pleasure through your body.

My dopamine rush:

the strongest is when i've abstained from porn and im about to watch it again. my brain knows im going to watch it, so my hands start shaking, my heart is beating ridicuously fast and i get so light headed, when i ejaculate it's the best feeling ever.

t

You asked about  any physical traits a dopamine rush gives... from experience I feel a spot in my head start to pound and or get heated, I know it may sound weird, but it's true! and it's every time I feel a dopamine rush.

the strongest is when i've abstained from porn and im about to watch it again. my brain knows im going to watch it, so my hands start shaking, my heart is beating ridicuously fast

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^THIS!!!!! I don't shake or get lightheaded, but that RACING heart and insane feeling of intense excitement is sick. Again though, how do we know for sure that's the dopamine rush? AARGH this is driving me crazy. We'd need a neuroscientist and scanning machines to see the brain activity and have the "patient" testify what he felt when, so we'd know whether it was the dopamine or not.

from experience I feel a spot in my head start to pound and or get heated

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Hahah wtf that's so weird!

Lol trust me I know, it's very weird, but I also do feel my heart rate go faster and sometimes feel dizzy afterwards as well.

Hahaha that is some intense arousal, man hahaha.


DonLorenzo:

Yes of course dopamine can be felt physically. It is the same as with drugs, you get that rush and wave of sexual pleasure through your body.

Click to expand...

How do you know that's not arousal? You produce dopamine when you eat and sleep too, yet you don't get sexually aroused from eating good food (if you do I'd recommend you get checked haha. Would be pretty cool though) so yeah, that's why I'm asking. I am trying to pinpoint the physiological effects of dopamine and see if a distinction can be made between natural arousal and a porn-induced dopamine rush.

if i looked at p after a while rebooting i just feel so much adrenaline and anxiety i dont even know if its even pleasurable, just an intense need to mo

If you've been PMOing recently you won't really notice the RUSH. 



After abstaining for like 3 months and then relapsing though..    it's fucking powerful.    I actually started to shake and feel chills.  Very jittery.        It's only THEN when you realize that PMO is druglike.    Ever since I had that moment, I've realized how serious PMO really is . 

Definitely agree with all this here. For me, a dopamine surge feels like I imagine a shot of adrenaline feels like. Your sympathetic nervous system goes absolutely ape shit. Breathing quickens, heart rate increases, but most  of all, you feel this really freaky sense of laser-like focus when you act, or decide to act, on a craving. Suddenly nothing matters but getting to porn. It's creepy stuff, when you really think about it-- you know it's all just chemicals in the brain, but when a dopamine surge occurs, it's almost like your mind has been hijacked and a different part of you takes over, and that part of you has only one goal: get to porn. Of course, afterwards is when the regret and the shame drop in. Dopamine is nasty stuff. But it can be beat. Best of luck, everyone.

E45 said:

Dopamine is strong but subtle, I believe. You don't get the sudden rush you might get from an illegal drug. I guess it is more like the satisfaction of the first sip from an alcoholic drink; you don't get drunk immediately, but you feel happier once you've taken that first gulp. And like alcohol, your brain makes you crave it, without you really knowing.

I recall my last few porn sessions (5 months ago). I thought it was a simple matter of wanting to do something which was fun/interesting/exciting, just the same as the feeling you get wanting to go out to socialise, or go to see a live band. But porn is free and available in your own home; it is as bad as the biscuit tin for a dieter - always there to tempt you. So the feeling beforehand was (apparently) a simple interest, no wild craving or feeling of madness (so I thought). I thought I was in control, and choosing to do something intentionally.

During the browsing session, I would lose track of time, go into a sort of trance. It all felt very fluid and immersive. I wouldn't have said I was experiencing massive powerful happiness/pleasure, like I imagine illegal drugs give....I would have just used words like contentment - a nice level of happiness - and arousal. I was enjoying myself, absorbed, excited. But if questioned I might have realised this wasnt the same ecstasy I get from live music, or from a great moment performing my favourite sport.

That is why I say dopamine is subtle - both before and during the hit. You want it badly, but you think you are consciously choosing to go and get some. Then when the dopamine starts flowing, you are so absorbed/immersed you don't notice it hitting like an external drug (alcohol/tobacco/pot/coke etc) does. Lots of little hits keep you topped up, in the zone.

The second you finish - WHAM! The guilt hits. It is like you're suddenly dumped back into real life, and realise what you've done, as if you were not aware previously! Where has all that time gone? It is so stupid.

It is like an would-be-dieter gobbling a cake. I get enough pleasure (and guilt) from food to know what this feels like. You can want that sugar so badly you dont think rationally.....MUNCH.....and afterwards you feel that sudden 'back in the room' feeling, and cant even remember if you took the time to savour the taste properly.

Your brain releases dopamine when you eat nice food too, so I wonder if there are lots of cross-overs between these two problems, porn and unhealthy eating. We get so used to eating food we almost dont notice the drug hitting.

Click to expand...

This entire post is a great description of dopamine and it's subtlety. To the emboldened part, yes, there is definitely cross over. Both eating and sex urges come from the primal part of the brain. Kathryn Hansen's Book "Brain Over Binge" spells out an excellent methodology, designed to master urges to binge eat, which actually work equally as well for urges to act out to porn.

An excellent post was made in Leon's Journal "The End of All Flesh" (over 40 forum) the other day by none other than Leon. He has some outstanding passages posted from the book. Great mind tools for mastering urges. A sensible methodology that works once internalized.

It's hard to notice when it starts taking your mind. I generally feel like if my heart is beating a bit more intensely. My eyes looses focus to whatever I'm trying to pay attention, my mouth opens a bit without I notice it...
If I let it takes me, the thoughts about pleasing my desire becomes so strong that I start feeling that if I refuse to please it, I'll be doing something bad to myself...
It's kinda weird. 

For me when I failed my first reboot after 175 days when I saw the first video I experienced an instant woody and an rush of excitement like I could not control myself.

NoFap92 said:

Hahaha that is some intense arousal, man hahaha.


DonLorenzo:

Yes of course dopamine can be felt physically. It is the same as with drugs, you get that rush and wave of sexual pleasure through your body.

Click to expand...

How do you know that's not arousal? You produce dopamine when you eat and sleep too, yet you don't get sexually aroused from eating good food (if you do I'd recommend you get checked haha. Would be pretty cool though) so yeah, that's why I'm asking. I am trying to pinpoint the physiological effects of dopamine and see if a distinction can be made between natural arousal and a porn-induced dopamine rush.

Click to expand...

Arousal IS dopamine. And maybe some other chemicals too. When you watch porn you become VERY aroused. It is always the dopamine. And you dont get aroused by food because it only gives VERY small dopamine surge. Sex and porn gives a lot more dopamine. Also there are different pathways working. But the question you are all asking here: it is dopamine and it is arousal. When you get aroused you get dopamine. And you most certainly do feel the dopamine physically.