How to Give Your Brain the Stimulation It Needs

Summary

This video explores the ADHD brain's quest for stimulation, often leading to excessive social media scrolling without satisfaction. The creator discusses the 'bucket with a hole' analogy to explain the futile attempt to fill the need for dopamine. To combat this, she introduces the concept of a 'Dopamenu', inspired by a conversation with Eric Tivers. The Dopamenu is a curated list of activities that provide meaningful stimulation, categorized into appetizers, entrees, desserts, and specials. The video guides viewers on how to design their own Dopamenu, offering a strategy to make better dopamine choices and avoid boredom-induced unhealthy habits.

Takeaways

• 🧠 ADHD brains often seek stimulation and may not spend hours on social media for enjoyment, but because they need it to function.
• 🔄 The quick dopamine sources from social media can be insufficient and likened to trying to fill a bucket with a hole in it.
• 📉 Engaging in the same activities repeatedly can diminish their pleasure, leading to a cycle of dissatisfaction.
• 🛠️ The solution is to find activities that provide the necessary stimulation and fill the 'bucket' of dopamine effectively.
• 🤔 Making different choices requires planning, weighing options, and initiating actions, which can be challenging when already bored or low on dopamine.
• 📋 Separating planning from choosing can simplify decision-making, as suggested by Eric Tivers, who recommends creating a 'dopamine menu'.
• 🍽️ The 'dopamine menu' or 'dopa-menu' should include activities that excite and activities that provide quick dopamine bursts without being overwhelming.
• 📝 Designing the menu involves reflecting on past experiences to identify activities that truly make one feel alive versus those that don't.
• 👨‍🍳 Preparing ingredients ahead of time, similar to restaurants, can make it easier to engage in stimulating activities when needed.
• 📢 Advertising the menu with enticing descriptions can make it more appealing and remind one of the available options when bored.
• 🤷‍♂️ If nothing feels enjoyable, it might be a sign of depression, and seeking medical advice could be the appropriate next step.

Q & A

Why do people with ADHD often spend hours scrolling through social media?

People with ADHD often spend hours scrolling through social media because they are looking for the stimulation they need to function, as their brains require a lot of stimulation.

What does Eric Tivers compare the process of trying to satisfy the need for stimulation to?

Eric Tivers compares the process to trying to fill a bucket with a hole in it, where dopamine is both coming in and going out, making it difficult to satisfy the need for stimulation.

What is the 'dopamine menu' or 'dopa-menu' suggested by Eric for people with ADHD?

The 'dopamine menu' or 'dopa-menu' is a list of activities that excite and stimulate individuals, which they can refer to when they feel bored or need stimulation, rather than defaulting to less satisfying activities.

How does Jessica describe the structure of her Dopamenu?

Jessica structures her Dopamenu into Entrees for exciting activities, Desserts for go-to's that don't fill the bucket, Appetizers for quick dopamine bursts, Sides for activities that enhance engagement, and Specials for occasional indulgences.

What does Jessica suggest doing with the options on the Dopamenu that are not realistic at the moment?

Jessica suggests omitting any options from the Dopamenu that aren't realistic at the moment, similar to how restaurants remove items from their menu that are not in season or not popular.

What is the purpose of preparing ingredients in advance according to Jessica's advice?

Preparing ingredients in advance is meant to decrease the setup time for engaging activities, making it easier to choose and start these activities when the need for stimulation arises.

How does Jessica recommend making the Dopamenu more enticing?

Jessica recommends adding enticing descriptions to the Dopamenu items and making it visually appealing or funny, as well as placing it in locations where it can be easily seen when boredom strikes.

What is the acronym Jessica uses to describe the process of creating a Dopamenu?

Jessica uses the acronym DOPA to describe the process of creating a Dopamenu, which stands for Design, Omit, Prepare, and Advertise.

How does Eric suggest dealing with the situation when nothing feels enjoyable?

Eric suggests calling a doctor if nothing feels enjoyable, as it could be a sign of depression or a need for new stimulation due to boredom from doing the same activities.

What is the hashtag Jessica encourages viewers to use if they create their own Dopamenu?

Jessica encourages viewers to use the hashtag #BraintasticTuesday if they create their own Dopamenu and share it on Instagram.

Outlines

00:00

🤳 Social Media and ADHD Stimulation

The script discusses the common behavior of spending excessive time on social media due to the need for stimulation in individuals with ADHD. It explains that this behavior is driven by a search for dopamine, which traditional quick fixes often fail to provide. The analogy of trying to fill a bucket with a hole is used to illustrate the ineffectiveness of these attempts. The video suggests creating a 'dopamine menu' or 'dopa-menu' to provide healthier and more satisfying stimulation options. The concept is further explored through a conversation with Eric Tivers, who also has ADHD and offers practical advice on how to create such a menu, emphasizing the importance of separating planning from choosing to make better dopamine choices.

05:02

📋 Creating a Dopamenu for ADHD

This paragraph outlines the steps to create a Dopamenu, a tool designed to help individuals with ADHD make better choices for dopamine stimulation. The process includes designing the menu with categories like 'Entrees' for exciting activities, 'Desserts' for less satisfying go-tos, 'Appetizers' for quick dopamine boosts, and 'Sides' for enhancing other activities. It also discusses the importance of preparing ingredients in advance to reduce the time to start engaging activities and suggests creating barriers for less desirable habits. The paragraph concludes with the idea of advertising the menu with enticing descriptions and placing it in visible locations to prompt better choices when boredom strikes. Additionally, it mentions the use of random choice generators for decision-making and the importance of recognizing when a lack of enjoyment might indicate depression, suggesting consultation with a doctor in such cases.

Keywords

💡ADHD

ADHD, or Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by difficulty in paying attention, impulsivity, and hyperactivity. In the video, it's mentioned that ADHD brains require a lot of stimulation to function effectively, which is a central theme as it explains why individuals with ADHD might turn to social media scrolling as a means to seek that stimulation.

💡Dopamine

Dopamine is a neurotransmitter associated with the brain's reward system, playing a role in motivation, pleasure, and reinforcement of behavior. The video discusses the concept of dopamine as a 'bucket with a hole' to illustrate the difficulty of maintaining a steady level of this chemical, which is why individuals with ADHD might not feel satisfied despite seeking quick dopamine hits from social media.

💡Stimulation

Stimulation in this context refers to the excitement or engagement that an individual seeks to maintain focus and function optimally. The video emphasizes that people with ADHD often scroll through social media as a means to find this stimulation, but it may not be sufficient or satisfying for their needs.

💡Executive Functions

Executive functions are cognitive processes that enable goal-directed behavior, such as planning, initiating, and organizing. The video suggests that individuals with ADHD may struggle with these functions, especially when they are trying to choose activities that provide the necessary stimulation, hence the suggestion to separate planning from choosing.

💡Dopamenu

The term 'Dopamenu' is a play on words combining 'dopamine' and 'menu,' suggesting a curated list of activities designed to provide the dopamine stimulation an individual with ADHD might seek. The video introduces the concept of creating such a menu to help make better choices for dopamine-boosting activities.

💡Boredom

Boredom is a state of being weary or uninterested in one's current activity. In the video, it's mentioned that individuals with ADHD may feel bored and seek out activities to alleviate this feeling, often resorting to less satisfying quick fixes like social media scrolling.

💡Pleasure Button

The 'pleasure button' is a metaphor used in the video to describe the tendency of individuals to repeatedly engage in the same activity for quick gratification, which may eventually lead to the activity losing its appeal due to overuse.

💡Desserts

In the context of the 'Dopamenu,' 'desserts' represent activities that provide a quick dopamine boost but may not be fulfilling in the long term. The video uses this term to categorize activities like social media scrolling, which might offer temporary relief from boredom but do not provide lasting satisfaction.

💡Appetizers

Appetizers in the 'Dopamenu' are quick activities that can provide an immediate dopamine burst without consuming too much time or attention. The video gives examples like doing a minute of jumping jacks or having a cup of coffee, which can offer a quick pick-me-up.

💡Sides

In the 'Dopamenu' analogy, 'sides' are additional elements that can be added to other activities to make them more engaging and stimulating. The video suggests using things like music playlists or fidgets to enhance the enjoyment of an activity.

💡Specials

Specials on the 'Dopamenu' refer to unique or less frequent activities that can provide a significant dopamine boost, such as attending a concert or going on vacation. The video mentions these as occasional treats that are not part of the regular menu due to their infrequency or cost.

Highlights

People with ADHD often scroll through social media for hours, not because it's a good use of time, but because they seek the stimulation they need to function.

Quick and easy sources of dopamine often fail to satisfy the stimulation needs of ADHD brains, which is likened to trying to fill a bucket with a hole in it.

The concept of a 'dopamine menu' or 'dopa-menu' is introduced as a tool to help manage dopamine-seeking behavior in ADHD individuals.

Creating a dopamine menu separates the planning from the choosing, which can be less overwhelming for executive functions.

The menu should include activities that provide excitement and those that offer quick dopamine bursts without being too engrossing.

It's important to omit unrealistic options from the dopamine menu, similar to how restaurants adjust their offerings based on various factors.

Preparing ingredients in advance can help reduce the time and effort needed to start engaging activities, making them more accessible.

Creating barriers for less desirable go-to activities can help reduce their frequency and encourage healthier choices.

Advertising the dopamine menu with enticing descriptions and placing it in visible locations can prompt more mindful choices.

The Dopamenu can be a tool for self-regulation, helping individuals with ADHD to make better dopamine choices when they're already low on dopamine.

The video introduces the acronym DOPA to help in designing a Dopamenu, which stands for Entrees, Desserts, Appetizers, and Sides.

The Dopamenu includes 'specials' for occasional activities that can provide a significant dopamine boost but are not feasible to do regularly.

Eric Tivers, who also has ADHD, shares personal anecdotes and strategies for managing dopamine-seeking behavior.

The video suggests using random choice generators as a tool to make decisions from the Dopamenu when unsure of what to choose.

The Dopamenu is not meant to replace all choices but to provide a variety of options when the usual activities no longer feel enjoyable.

Eric advises consulting a doctor if previously enjoyable activities no longer provide pleasure, as it could be a sign of depression.

Transcripts

Hello Brains!

Raise your hand if you’ve ever spent 3 hours scrolling through social media.

Raise your *other* hand if you’ve ever actually *planned* to.

(INTRO)

ADHD brains need a lot of stimulation.

I explain why in this video, but basically, most of us don’t spend hours

scrolling through social media because we think that's a great use of our time —

we do it because we’re looking for the stimulation we need to function.

Unfortunately, the quick and easy sources of dopamine we tend to turn to often

aren't enough to actually satisfy that need.

I had a really great conversation with Eric Tivers about this a couple weeks ago — and

he explained it as trying to fill a bucket with a hole in it.

Water’s coming into the bucket...but it’s also going out of the bucket.

So we spend hours scrolling through social media without really enjoying ourselves.

Or we hit the pleasure button on the same activity so many times,

it actually stops being as fun.

Or we send WAY too many texts.

The obvious solution here is to do things that *do* give us the level of

stimulation we need.

That DO fill our buckets.

But making different choices requires figuring out what those choices are,

weighing those choices,

figuring out the steps involved then initiating them,

and, because the more satisfying dopamine choices usually take longer to set up, being

able to tolerate the distress of being bored in the meantime.

Which, when we’re already low on dopamine, has a possibility scale ranging from “mayyyybe?”

to “nope.”

Just like it’s really hard to make good food choices when you’re already hungry,

it’s really hard to make good dopamine choices when you’re already low on dopamine.

One way we can make it easier is to separate the planning from the choosing.

Or as Eric puts it -- don’t try to do all the executive functions at the same time.

[ERIC]: One of the challenges that we come across is that we are looking for something

to stimulate ourselves at the time when we need to stimulate ourselves.

We can create a dopamine menu or a dopa-menu for things that excite us.

So when you're like, "I'm so boredddd," grab the menu!

I feel like not doing that is almost like going to the grocery store hungry.

[Jessica]: Yeahhh.

Without a grocery sho-- without a list.

[Eric]: Without a list. Right. Without a list.

Whatever's the fastest, easiest, like, I want to eat this thing NOW.

[Jessica]: In case you're thinking, "well yeah, that's easy for him to say, he's a professional--"

He also has ADHD.

And he's very good at entertaining himself.

[Eric]: What do we do about how to...

Wait, what do we do about what?

[Jessica]:(laughs)

[Eric]: I just had the thought.

Would these tomatoes fit in my nose?

[Jessica]: Do you need a minute?

[Eric]: There's a tomato somewhere on the floor of my office.

And if I forget about it, it's eventually gonna become a sundried tomato.

Do you see my tomato?

[Jessica]: I don't see your tomato.

Does anybody else see Eric's tomato?

[Eric]: I love that I have clothes on my floor and this is my office.

Okay, hold on.

Where's the tomato?!

[Jessica]: So I tried it out!

I made a Dopamenu based on his suggestions, and it was actually a really cool experience.

I elaborated on the concept a bit based on my experience in restaurants working with

actual menus, and then put it all together in a handy acronym: DOPA.

Here you go.

The world’s first video on how to create a Dopamenu.

In 4 steps.

First, DESIGN your menu.

To do this,

Eric recommends thinking about things that you’ve done that made you feel really excited,

or alive -- and on the flip side, what your go-to’s are when you’re bored

that don't actually make you feel great.

You can design your menu however you want, but I split mine up into:

Entrees: the activities that excite me and make me feel alive — like playing my guitar,

or taking my dog to the dog park, going to the gym or yoga,

spending quality time with someone, game nights with friends, making a TikTok video!

Desserts: things that are my go-to’s that I tend to overdo it on.

Things that don't really fill the bucket.

Scrolling through social media, texting, spending time with someone who’s not really present,

ruminating, mindless eating,

watching TV, playing video games by myself, wow I have a lot of these.

I would like to point out that it's totally fine to eat dessert sometimes, it’s just

good to be aware of when that’s what we’re ordering because if that’s all we’re eating,

we’re probably not going to feel great.

I also added

Appetizers: things that can give me a quick dopamine burst without sucking me in.

So things like a minute of jumping jacks, or a cup of coffee, or setting a timer for

5 minutes on social media.

And

Sides: things I can add to other activities to make them more engaging.

So, adding a music playlist, using a fidget, or making it more challenging.

And I made a separate menu for “specials” --

Things like concerts that I might be able to go to occasionally but I can’t do very often.

Going on vacation, buying a new outfit!

Once you have a bunch of options on your menu,

omit any options that aren’t realistic right now.

You know what...

Restaurants take stuff off their menu all the time because it’s not in season or it’s

too expensive to make or nobody's ordering it; so can we.

Dog park will have to wait until we can do that again.

I will actually never choose "write a novel" over "post on Twitter;" also

this is not a to-do list, this is a Dopamenu.

That one’s kind of expensive, it should probably be a special --

Oh good, I have specials again.

The idea is, what’s on your menu should be something you’d actually “order”

and something you can actually “make.”

Once you’ve got your menu set,

Prep your ingredients!

Restaurants know that when people are hungry, they don’t like to wait... so they prepare

everything they reasonably can ahead of time.

We can do the same.

After creating my menu, I set up a table for painting my minis so it doesn’t take as

long to get started,

I put my guitar on a stand by the couch.

When I’m done watching TV at night, I switch it to a YouTube workout video so that that's

the first thing I see when I turn it on in the morning,

and because I realized video games are only really satisfying to me when they’re new

or when I’m playing with a friend, I added to my video game budget so that I can try

new games and occasionally buy one for a friend.

I also *created* a few barriers to some of my go-to's that I would like to not go to

as often.

I put my phone charger where I can’t reach it from the couch, I deleted Facebook from

my phone and gave my kitchen a cover charge.

Before I can grab a snack, I have to roll a d20 and I do whatever exercise matches the

number on the die.

Basically, for the things you want to encourage yourself to do, decrease the number of steps

involved.

For any go-to's you’d like to go to a little less often, you can do the opposite and

increase the number of steps.

Finally,

Advertise your menu!

Most menus have enticing descriptions to get you to order the thing.

We can do that too!

We can also make it pretty, or funny, and post it where we’ll be able to see it when

we’re bored.

I posted one on my coffeetable, in my studio, on my fridge, and I made a mini version for

the lock screen of my phone.

Now when I pick up my phone, I can see what my other options are.

If you're not sure what to choose, there are even websites with random choice generators.

Just put in all your options and it will pick one for you.

This isn’t to say that suddenly we’re going to make all different choices,

or even that we should.

There’s something to be said for familiarity, especially when we’re going through a crisis.

But by preparing a menu in advance, we’ll have more options available to us when we

need them.

Of course, if nothing seems fun, Eric has a different piece of advice for that.

What do we do if nothing feels enjoyable?

[ERIC]: Call your doctor.

Maybe that's depression.

So, if the, you know, it's the things that you once found enjoyable are not, I mean...it

also could be ADHD cause you're just bored of the thing cause you've already been doing

this for a week and I need something new now.

Um...

[JESSICA]: How do you know the difference?

[ERIC]: I think you feel it physically when it's depression.

[JESSICA]: That's it for this video!

Let us know what you think in the comments below and share any ideas you have.

If you do design a menu, post it on Instagram and use the #BraintasticTuesday.

It's where we're starting to celebrate all of our achievements!

Thank you to my Brain Advocates and all my Patreon Brains for helping us hit

our next goal!

Like, subscribe, click the bell if you want to be notified the next time we post and

I will see you next video!

Bye brains!

But did he ever find the tomato?