Depriving yourself of immediate pleasures to “reset” your brain is the attractive bet of “dopamine detox”, but behind this attractive concept hides a dubious simplification of neuroscience. Do you really have to cut yourself off from all screens to rekindle your life?
If dopamine detox is so appealing, it is because it promises to address a universal problem: our addiction to screens. Notifications, likes and looping videos lock us into a cycle of constant overstimulation. Because when we scroll on our screens, a neurotransmitter, called dopamine, is activated and provides a feeling of reward, explains Sébastien Carnicella, researcher at the Grenoble Institute of Neurosciences.
Scroll and punishment: the tyranny of screens
In 2023, French people spent on average 3.5 hours per day in front of their screens, according to the annual report from the mobile data analysis specialist Data. AI. Léna Situations, famous YouTuber, admitted sometimes spending up to 7 hours a day on her devices. To remedy this, she decided to set herself a challenge: a month without screens. His testimony, published two weeks ago on YouTube, already has several million views.
So, do screens really manipulate us via dopamine? Does the feeling of reward triggered by a message, a like or a comment stimulate our desire to stay connected to the point of dangerously harming us?
Dopamine on the menu?
On social networks (ironically), “dopamine detox” videos are flourishing with simplistic recipes: stop everything that “stimulates” dopamine. An attractive idea, but largely erroneous. As Sébastien Carnicella reminds us, dopamine, far from being an enemy, is essential to our motivation. Without her, no plans, no desire… No life in short.
The term “detox” also poses a problem for the researcher: “It implies withdrawal, but this amounts to creating a lack of dopamine. It’s stupidity.” Taming your dopamine therefore seems an idea more risky than useful. “It’s more the dopamine that tames us,” he jokes. However, we have the possibility of positively influencing our dopamine production through a balanced diet, good sleep or stimulating physical and intellectual activities. So without a screen…
Change addiction gently
Rather than “purging” this essential molecule, some influencers offer an alternative: the “dopamine menu”. The idea? Swap Netflix evenings for a jog, a drawing session or a good book. No restrictive or radical detox, but a change in sources of stimulation. A more realistic approach which seems to be more relevant for Sébastien Carnicella. “If we remove the object of addiction, we must replace it with another object of interest to re-educate the dopaminergic system to more normal and healthy stimulation. »
Notre dossier By the Web
Morality? If you are tempted by “dopamine detox”, maintain a dose of skepticism. Rather than giving in to the call of hashtags and ephemeral trends, start by gently regaining control of your habits. After all, the real revolution does not come through a black screen, but through an awakened mind. So, close this article… (but come back tomorrow).
