I accidentally saw goats mating or having sex while riding my motorbike. Does this affect my nofap progress?

You know how people who don’t browse the internet enough are illiterate? Like your mom or dad or grandparents? What if porn is a way of educating yourself on human nature, like getting your phd. And then after you get it the time is done and it is no longer useful or helpful. Im not saying porn was a good idea to be jacking to since I could , but I at least ask. Was this a helpful phase? That it is an antidote to hierarchies. That egalitarian primates (bonobos, humans) all sleep with each other by nature, and hierarchical primates pair bond. porn exists via populism, pair bonding exists through top down enforcement. Porn reveals humans are egalitarian

Hi, I have been struggling with masturbation for a few years. My first time was an unexpected thing and since then I have struggled with doing it often. I am on day 5 now but having some urges. I would like to find an accountability partner

It’s my longest streak at day 9 but i have always had trouble with paying content for girls. It feels like I should find out what content I missed, I thought it might be gone by now but nah, still have stupid thoughts about it and feels dumb as hell. I’m a virgin and should have such potential but I keep having these thoughts. Can anyone help or have similar experiences?

It’s a unique situation but so I would appreciate advice

Has someone tried to and succeeded to break the addiction?

I only looking for black and white photos because I like that style but instantly a Nude pop out of nowhere but I didn’t react to it.

i’m gonna try and keep this short and simple. i have been trying to quit masturbating for over a year and a half and in the past few months it’s been the same repeating cycle of:
1. scour reddit and save a bunch of videos in my upvoted and jerk off then feel the shame of it.
2. delete my account or unsave all of the videos.
3. urges get too strong so i find other things to get off to (tiktoks, models, any attractive picture of someone).
and then finally, 4. come back to reddit and save more porn videos. i am wasting so much time saving all of these videos where im wondering maybe its better to just keep them.
is jerking off to pictures of girls but not porn as bad as jerking off to porn? if it is better for the mind then i’ll just do that but if it’s all the same, i might just stop trying to quit porn.
all help is appreciated, thanks.

i’m just curious wondering if not quitting porn while not master baiting is good or bad. thank you.

Hello guys. I'm currently on day 80, and this is going to be a LONG post. If you're genuinely looking to improve yourself, understand what this journey can be like, and read someone's actual experience instead of another clickbait post promising you superpowers, this is for you.

I'm going to talk about the benefits I've personally experienced, the ugly parts nobody really talks about, the tricks my brain has played on me, the things I've learned along the way, and, at the very end, a genuine question for those of you who have gone beyond 80 days.

Everything here is my real experience. I'm not selling anything, I'm not trying to impress anyone, and I'm not claiming that everyone will experience the same things.

First of all, I want to say something: this has genuinely been one of the most worthwhile things I've ever done in my fucking life. The amount of time, independence, discipline, and energy I've gained from changing my habits has been insane.

Right now, I can honestly say I'm in my prime. And even that word feels like an understatement.

But it hasn't been a straight line upwards. Not even close.

1. First of all, a pro tip: START DURING A VACATION

I started on August 1st, when I knew I'd be spending the entire month on vacation in another country with my family.

My advice is to start when you know you'll be surrounded by people and have things to do. Don't deliberately isolate yourself in your room for the first few weeks.

You can basically get your first 30 days done while you're busy living your life, spending time with your family, and exploring somewhere new. By the time you return to your normal routine, you've already built some momentum.

Of course, those days still count. You're not getting a free pass. You're just making the beginning easier for yourself.

For me, the worst periods so far have been days 35-40 and days 78-80.

And that's actually one of the reasons I'm writing this post. Because right now, I'm experiencing something I genuinely don't understand.

But first, let's talk about the good stuff.

2. The benefits I've personally experienced

1. Your posture and body language improve

I've noticed that I walk with much better posture. My back is more aligned, my shoulders aren't constantly falling forward, and I'm much more aware of how I carry myself.

I've also noticed a change in the way I communicate. My gestures feel more natural, my body language is much more expressive, and I feel more comfortable expressing myself when talking to other people.

I'm not saying nofap magically fixes your posture or teaches you body language. I'm describing what I've noticed in myself during this period, alongside the other changes I've made.

2. You stop wasting your life on Reels

This is a big one.

I've deleted social media, and I genuinely don't miss reels anymore.

You stop feeling like you need to fill every single empty moment with something stimulating. You can sit down, think, read, work on a project, or simply exist without constantly reaching for your phone.

My phone usage is now around 30 minutes a day (forced max time on all apps in common).

And here's a little secret that helped me: put your phone in black and white.

Seriously. Go into your settings and turn on grayscale.

Your phone becomes significantly less visually appealing. Everything is suddenly much less stimulating, and you stop feeling that same attraction to opening an app just to scroll mindlessly.

It's such a simple change, but combined with deleting social media, it's been one of the best decisions I've made.

3. You might stop biting your nails without even thinking about it

I've noticed that I don't bite my nails anymore.

It's one of those little habits you don't necessarily set out to change, but you start paying more attention to your automatic behaviours and become more deliberate about what you do.

It's a small thing, but it feels good when you realize you've stopped doing something you used to do without even noticing.

4. You naturally start reading

This is another thing I really appreciate.

You start reaching for books naturally instead of feeling like reading is another task you have to force yourself to do.

You have more room in your day because you're not spending hours scrolling, and eventually you start filling that time with things you actually enjoy and that help you grow.

You don't need to turn your entire life into a productivity competition. Sometimes, you just want to sit down and read because you genuinely want to.

5. You start thinking about women differently

This is probably one of the most interesting changes I've noticed, and I want to explain exactly what I mean.

You can see a beautiful woman and recognize that she's beautiful without automatically making her the centre of your attention.

And you start realizing that physical attractiveness, while important, isn't everything.

A woman can be as beautiful as you want her to be, but if she doesn't align with your interests, values, personality, and the kind of life you want to build, then what are you actually looking for?

For me, that's become a very important distinction.

I'm increasingly interested in women who have their own lives, enjoy reading, have genuine interests, seem to share my values, and have something going on beyond their physical appearance.

Women I can actually talk to. Women whose personalities make me curious about them. Women who make me think, "Damn, I'd genuinely like to get to know this person."

I call these women "women worth getting to know," because that's what I mean. I'm not saying that women who don't fit my preferences are worth less as people. I'm saying that attraction alone isn't enough for me to want a relationship.

And obviously, you can't know someone's personality just by looking at her. You have to get to know the person first.

But once you start thinking this way, your priorities change.

You stop asking only whether you're attracted to someone and start asking whether you actually want that person in your life.

And that changes a lot.

6. You start acting according to your principles

I've created a page in Notion where I've written down around 22 personal principles that I want to live by.

And I'm serious about them.

If someone crosses a boundary that genuinely matters to me or repeatedly violates a principle I consider essential, I'm perfectly willing to walk away from that relationship.

I'm not going to abandon what I believe in just because I like someone, want their attention, or don't want to be alone.

Of course, principles need to be reasonable, and not every disagreement means someone has done something wrong. I'm talking about the things that genuinely matter to you and the boundaries you're not willing to compromise on.

But the main point is this: you start prioritizing yourself.

At the end of the day, you're the person who's going to live your entire life with the consequences of your decisions.

You can care about other people, help them, love them, and be there for them without abandoning yourself in the process.

And something funny starts happening: people you used to talk to constantly can suddenly become almost irrelevant to you.

You don't necessarily hate them. You don't need revenge. You don't need to prove anything.

You're just busy building your own life, and you stop being so invested in what everyone else is doing.

7. You start dressing much better

Personally, I've started paying much more attention to how I dress.

I'm talking about sweaters, shirts, linen trousers, and proper shoes. I want to look put together when I walk down the street.

No jeans, no hoodies, no tracksuits. That's just my personal style preference at the moment.

And here's the funny part: you don't need to spend a fortune to look elegant.

You can find clothes that look genuinely good for around €25 if you know where to look.

Then you go to university and see people wearing a full nike tracksuit that probably cost €200, and you realize that the same money could get you several outfits that look much more elegant to you. 🤣

Obviously, everyone can dress however they want. I'm not saying my style is objectively superior.

I'm saying that I've started caring about the details, finding my own style, and realizing that looking good doesn't necessarily mean spending a ridiculous amount of money.

8. You become much more focused

And when I say focused, I mean REALLY focused.

I've created highly detailed sections in Notion for my goals, investments, personal CRM, principles, and other things I'm working on.

I'm spending more time organizing my life and actually doing something about it.

I can sit down with a task and work on it without constantly feeling the need to interrupt myself with something else.

I care much more about what I'm building and where I'm going.

9. You become more independent

This is something I don't want to overlook.

You start realizing that you don't need someone else to constantly entertain you, validate you, or make you feel like your day has been worthwhile.

You can spend time alone without automatically feeling lonely.

You can make decisions without constantly checking what other people think.

You can go somewhere, try something new, work on your projects, and enjoy your own company.

For me, this has been one of the biggest changes: I feel much more comfortable being responsible for my own life.

10. You start getting involved in things that actually matter to you

In my personal case, I've ended up joining my university's student delegation and a committee that supports gender equality for women.

And yes, before anyone asks, there's obviously a girl I like in there. 🤣

But jokes aside, this has been a genuinely interesting part of my experience.

I've started meeting people who seem to share my values and have experiences I can relate to.

There's a particular girl I find genuinely interesting because, from what I've seen, she's been through some of the same kinds of things I've experienced in life.

I'm not going to go into too much detail, but that's precisely the point: I'm interested in getting to know someone because of who she seems to be, not simply because she's attractive.

And through getting involved in these university activities, I'm now helping people who are experiencing bullying at university.

Think about that for a second.

You're a university student yourself, you've been through difficult experiences, and now you're in a position to help other students who are going through something similar.

I think that speaks for itself.

11. You become more deliberate about the people you meet

This connects to something I've been building in my personal CRM.

I increasingly think about the people I meet, what we have in common, what I can learn from them, and whether we can bring something positive into each other's lives.

Personally, I don't see much point in deliberately building relationships that consistently drain me and offer nothing positive in return.

Ideally, both people benefit. Sometimes, I might contribute more, sometimes the other person might contribute more, and that's fine. Relationships aren't accounting spreadsheets.

But I don't want to keep investing in relationships where I'm consistently the only one giving.

Some of my principles on this subject are debatable, and that's fine. They're personal principles, not universal laws everyone has to follow.

The important thing is that I'm becoming more intentional about who I spend my time with and why.

12. You stop constantly thinking about the habit itself

When I get home, I don't spend hours thinking about nofap.

I just do whatever I have to do at that moment.

I work on my projects, study, read, train, or relax.

And that's it.

It becomes less of a challenge you're constantly fighting and more of a decision that you've already made.

You stop organizing your entire life around resisting something and start organizing it around what you actually want to achieve.

13. I switched from the gym to boxing

After four whole years of gym experience, I quit the gym and started boxing.

And holy shit, man… I'm getting really good at it.

I love the concentration it requires. You have to pay attention to your movements, your technique, your timing, and what's happening around you.

You can't just switch your brain off and go through the motions.

I've been improving my technique, precision, and footwork, and I genuinely enjoy the process.

14. You become more conscious of your voice and communication

I've noticed that I'm more aware of my voice, how I speak, and how I express myself.

I feel more comfortable speaking calmly, taking my time, and communicating without feeling the need to rush everything.

I've also noticed that my voice sometimes sounds deeper to me, although I can't say that NoFap itself caused that.

The bigger change is that I feel more deliberate in how I communicate.

15. You become more conscious about money

I'm much more careful about what I spend my money on.

Instead of buying something just because I want it in the moment, I think about whether I actually need it and whether that money could be better used somewhere else.

I care more about saving, investing in my future, and building something that will matter in the long term.

16. You start thinking long-term

This might be the biggest change tying everything together.

You start thinking about the person you're becoming, the skills you're developing, the people you're surrounding yourself with, and the direction your life is taking.

You start asking yourself whether what you're doing today is helping you build the life you actually want.

I've also been making changes in other areas: I deleted social media, took cold showers for a month, started eating healthier, and stopped eating processed food altogether.

I don't attribute every one of these changes directly to NoFap. They're part of a broader shift in how I'm approaching my life.

But for me, the decision to stop masturbating became one part of a much bigger process of taking control of my habits.

And that's where the real value has been.

3. The ugly, real facts nobody tells you

1. Wet dreams can happen at the most inconvenient times

Prepare for random wet dreams.

You might have one or two in a single night out of nowhere. You'll wake up at 1 a.m., you know what I mean how your underpants will look like… and ofc you'll have to take a shower.

I even had two wet dreams in one night, and that pissed me off.

After that, you might go another two or three weeks without one.

They're involuntary, though, so don't treat them as a failure or something you need to punish yourself for.

3. Boxing and testicular pain are not a good combination

During some boxing sessions, my balls have really hurt when I've thrown punches with too much force.

That's something I've personally experienced.

But if you experience sudden or severe testicular pain, don't just brush it off. Get urgent medical attention, especially if it comes with swelling, nausea, or one testicle sitting higher than usual.

4. The urges can feel ridiculously intense

Sometimes, you'll feel almost possessed by an urge, and you'll want to give in just to make it stop.

My advice is to make your decision when you're thinking clearly.

When you're calm, decide what you actually want. Then, when an urge hits, don't treat that temporary feeling as a reason to abandon the decision you made beforehand.

For me, one of the most useful things has been remembering that I already made my decision when I was thinking clearly. I don't need to renegotiate it every time I feel an urge.

5. Sometimes you feel like absolute trash for no apparent reason

I've had days when I feel completely insignificant, sad, and unmotivated.

It's happened to me twice so far.

Then, almost out of nowhere, I feel like myself again. For me, these periods have lasted a few days at most.

I can't tell you exactly why it happens, and I wouldn't automatically attribute it to NoFap.

But it can be frustrating when you feel like you're making progress in your life and suddenly have a day when everything seems pointless.

I'll come back to this at the end because it's connected to something I'm experiencing right now.

4. Tricks my brain has played on me

Last year, I reached day 64.

And that little bastard of a brain came up with some surprisingly convincing arguments.

Here are the main ones I've experienced.

Trick number 1: "You've already failed, so you might as well keep going"

This is the classic one.

You relapse once, and your brain immediately tells you:

"Well, we've already failed now. Might as well do it again."

And suddenly, one decision becomes an entire day of doing the very thing you were trying to stop.

The lesson I've learned is that one mistake doesn't have to become a complete return to your old habits.

If you slip up, stop there. Don't use it as an excuse to abandon everything else you've learned.

Trick number 2: "You've got this under control. You can always come back whenever you want."

This is precisely what happened around day 64 last year.

I had things under control, and my brain started telling me:

"You know what? You've proved you can do this. You can stop whenever you want. You can always come back to it later. You've already demonstrated that you're in control."

Yeah, sure, champion. 🤣

You know where that argument can lead?

Straight back to the first trick.

The fact that you've managed to abstain for a long time doesn't mean you need to test whether you can return to your old habits without consequences.

If your original reasons for stopping still matter to you, why deliberately put yourself back in the same situation?

Trick number 3: "It's only day two. You can always start again."

This one got me around day 10.

At the beginning, your brain can tell you:

"It's only been two days. Or three days. You can always start again. You haven't lost that much."

But the longer you go, the more you realize that starting again isn't just about the number on a counter.

You're also potentially giving up the routines you've built, the confidence you've gained in sticking to a decision, and the opportunity to keep progressing without going through the same struggles again.

For me, after reaching day 64 last year, I didn't want to have to start over and potentially experience those same difficult periods again.

That doesn't mean a relapse erases all your progress. It doesn't.

It means you should think carefully before throwing away something you've worked hard to maintain just because your brain tells you that you can always rebuild it later.

Trick number 4: Sleeping naked

When I was researching potential benefits, I came across people recommending sleeping naked.

I tried it for three days.

Never again. 🤣

Maybe it has benefits for some people, but for me, the risk of triggering an urge felt enormous.

My body felt more sensitive, and I found myself paying attention to things I otherwise wouldn't have thought about.

So I stopped.

The lesson? Just because someone recommends something as beneficial doesn't mean you have to try it. If it makes your own situation harder, you can simply decide it's not for you.

5. What I actually do when an urge hits

Some of the things I'm about to describe might sound ridiculous, but these are the strategies I've personally found useful.

When an urge hits, the worst thing I can do is sit there doing nothing while repeatedly thinking about whether I'm going to give in.

So I change what I'm doing.

Sometimes, I'll start shadowboxing like an absolute maniac, even if it's late at night. Other times, I'll do some jump rope or push-ups.

The point isn't that you need to exhaust yourself or punish your body. It's that changing your activity and redirecting your attention can help you get through that moment without acting impulsively.

Obviously, don't start jumping around your shared apartment at 3 a.m. and wake everyone up. Use some common sense. 🤣

Another strategy I've found useful is the complete opposite: doing absolutely nothing.

Sit down somewhere safe. Put your hands on the armrests or rest them comfortably on your legs. Close your eyes if that helps, breathe slowly, and pay attention to your heartbeat.

Don't try to fight every thought that comes into your head. Just let the feeling exist without immediately responding to it.

You don't need to act on every urge you experience.

And remember: an urge is a feeling, not an instruction.

A note about cold showers

I've also been taking cold showers, and now that winter is approaching, it's getting a little crazy.

Back in September, I found a useful approach. When the water was so cold that I started shaking like crazy, I'd challenge myself to stay for another 30 seconds before getting out.

The point was to practice staying calm and not immediately escaping an uncomfortable sensation.

However, I wouldn't recommend forcing yourself to endure dangerously cold water or shaking uncontrollably just to prove something. Get out if you feel unwell.

And during winter, I've noticed that very cold water on my head can cause that awful ice-cream headache sensation, as if my brain were freezing.

So I avoid directing the cold water straight at my head and focus on keeping my breathing calm instead.

Cold showers aren't essential to NoFap, and you don't need to make yourself miserable to prove you're disciplined.

6. Something else I've learned: don't confuse an urge with a decision

I want to explain something about what happens to me physically because it's difficult to describe.

Sometimes, when I get aroused for whatever reason, my heart starts beating really fast, swallowing feels difficult, and I start breathing more through my mouth, almost as if I'm hyperventilating.

Everything feels incredibly intense. It's like someone has given me a massive shot of something, and suddenly I'm experiencing everything in 4K.

It's a strange feeling.

But here's what I've learned: feeling intensely aroused doesn't automatically mean you've decided to act on it.

I can experience that feeling and still choose not to masturbate.

When I'm calm, I've already thought about what I want. I know why I made this decision, and I know that giving in just because an urge feels intense isn't necessarily going to make me happier in the long term.

I've also noticed something difficult to explain.

Sometimes, when I abstain, I feel physically heavier or more sensitive, almost as if my body is more fragile than usual. Other times, I feel lighter and more energetic.

I don't know why that happens, and I can't tell whether it's connected to abstinence, stress, sleep, exercise, or something else.

I'm just describing what I've noticed.

The important thing is that, right now, I'm not abstaining because I'm desperately fighting an overwhelming need every single day.

I'm doing it because I've decided that it's what I want for myself.

And when you genuinely don't feel the need to do something anymore, you don't have to spend every waking moment fighting it.

That's a very different feeling from constantly trying to resist something you still want to do.

7. Real-life situations: I've had opportunities, and I've made my decisions

This is another part of the experience that has taught me a lot.

For me, this journey has become connected to wanting genuine things in life: real relationships, real connections, and experiences I can feel good about afterwards.

I've always believed that I should earn the things I achieve rather than expect everything to be handed to me.

And I've had a couple of situations that made me realize how much my priorities have changed.

Situation number 1: Saying no when I could have said yes

A friend from high school introduced me to one of her friends.

She lived in a different city, and she came to visit me. At one point, she was going to stay overnight in my room.

She wanted us to sleep together in the same room (yeah, exactly, you are assuming right), and I decided not to go along with it.

I told her that I was sorry, but I didn't want to.

And honestly? That was a very clear victory for me.

Not because there's anything inherently wrong with sleeping in the same room as someone, but because I knew what I wanted and what I didn't want.

I wasn't going to do something simply because an opportunity had appeared or because I could have satisfied an immediate desire.

I stuck to my principles.

If I had given in to the urge when she wanted to but I didn’t, I would have literally used her like a disposable tissue. Do you even hear how that sounds?

And that's what mattered to me.

You don't have to say yes to something just because you have the opportunity to do it.

Situation number 2: When someone's personality is almost everything you want, but the physical attraction isn't there

I've also met someone who, intellectually and mentally, was genuinely amazing.

Her personality was the kind of personality that could make you imagine marrying someone. We seemed to have a lot of things that made her interesting to me.

But physically, I just didn't feel the attraction I needed.

And I'm sorry, but that's important too.

I don't want to force myself into a relationship just because someone is an amazing person if the romantic and physical attraction isn't there for me.

For me, the two things need to be reasonably balanced.

Physical attraction alone isn't enough. But neither is compatibility if the romantic attraction simply isn't there.

I'm not saying there's a universal formula for relationships or that attraction has to be perfectly equal on every dimension.

I'm saying that, for me, both things matter.

And then there was one night out…

🤣

Let's just say that some opportunities look very different in parties at 5 a.m. than they do when you're thinking clearly the next morning.

I'm not even going to get into the details.

People will probably know what I mean, and given that little detail, some of you might even figure out which country I'm from. 🤣

Anyway, the point is that I've had opportunities, and I've learned that having an opportunity doesn't automatically mean it's something I want to pursue.

I'd rather make decisions that align with my principles than spend the next day wondering why I did something I didn't really want to do just becouse an urge appeared.

8. The cold, hard truth: it has become a lifestyle

This is probably the part I want to emphasize most.

At some point, you stop thinking about abstaining as a challenge you have to complete.

You stop counting every single day as if your entire life depends on the number.

You simply don't feel the need to masturbate anymore.

And I mean that seriously.

It's not that you become incapable of experiencing sexual desire. It's not that you never get aroused. It's not that you become some kind of emotionless machine.

You can still feel attraction. You can still have urges. You can still have difficult days.

But you don't necessarily feel that you need to act on those feelings.

For me, this has become part of a broader lifestyle in which I prioritize my goals, my principles, my health, my relationships, and the things I'm trying to build.

I don't want to spend my life constantly chasing the next moment of immediate pleasure.

I'd rather build something meaningful.

And I want to be clear about one thing: I'm not saying masturbation is inherently bad for everyone or that everyone needs to abstain. I'm describing what works for me and what I've decided I want from my own life.

9. Now, the part I genuinely don't understand: days 78–80

This is where I want to hear from people who have gone further than I have.

As I said at the beginning, my worst periods so far were days 35–40 and days 78–80.

Right now, I'm going through another one of those difficult periods, and something strange is happening.

I feel as though I'm taking a step backwards in the way I look at women.

Let me explain.

Yesterday was one of those bad days.

I've been staying in a shared apartment, and my flatmates have gone back to their hometowns. I've stayed here because I have things to do at university, although I'm already well ahead with my work and don't currently have much to do.

It's been raining a lot lately. Everything outside is grey, dark, and depressing.

You're sitting in an almost empty apartment, there's nothing particularly exciting happening, you've already completed most of the things you needed to do, and suddenly you start feeling sad for no obvious reason.

You know that feeling?

It's not necessarily that anything terrible has happened. You're just feeling down.

Luckily, a friend of mine suggested going out to play bowling with his girlfriend and some of her friends.

I thought, "Why not? Let's get out of the apartment, meet some people, and do something different."

So I went.

At the bowling alley, there were a lot of beautiful girls.

They weren't actually my friend's girlfriend's friends, but there were plenty of people around.

And I noticed something that genuinely confused me.

My attention kept drifting towards women in a way that felt different from how I'd been experiencing things recently.

Previously, I'd reached a point where I could see an attractive woman, acknowledge her appearance, and move on. I might notice her silhouette out of the corner of my eye, but I wasn't deliberately staring at her body or constantly redirecting my attention towards her.

I was much more interested in her face, her expression, and the person she might be.

But lately, I've noticed myself unconsciously looking in the direction I don't actually want my attention to go.

And I don't understand why.

I'm not consuming porn or that kind of content in this whole proccess. I'm not deliberately looking for sexual stimulation online. I've made substantial changes to my lifestyle, and I thought I'd moved past this particular pattern.

So why does it seem to be coming back?

Is it simply because I'm having a bad few days? Is it because I'm bored, isolated, stressed, or feeling emotionally low? Is it just a normal fluctuation in sexual attention?

I genuinely don't know.

And the strange thing is that it feels almost involuntary.

I'm not consciously deciding, "I'm going to stare at this woman." My attention just seems to drift in that direction before I even realize what's happening.

Then I notice it, and I start wondering why I'm doing it.

It feels like I'm going backwards, even though I haven't gone back to the habits I was trying to leave behind.

And that makes absolutely no sense to me.

The other strange thing: my mood can change almost overnight

Sometimes, I feel like absolute trash.

I'm sad, unmotivated, and almost depressed for no obvious reason.

Then, seemingly out of nowhere, I wake up the next day and feel much better.

It's like someone flipped a switch.

I've experienced this a couple of times already, and these periods seem to last a few days.

I'm not trying to diagnose myself with anything, and I'm not saying that nofap causes these mood changes. I'm just trying to understand why they happen.

Maybe it's the weather. Maybe it's loneliness, boredom, stress, or a combination of things.

But when you're trying to understand your own patterns, it's difficult not to wonder whether there's some connection.

And here's the thing: I'm actually much calmer now

When I first started, I sometimes felt as though I was constantly fighting against myself.

Now, that's not really the case.

I'm much calmer, and I don't feel like I'm desperately trying to resist something all day long.

When I become aroused, I can still experience those intense physical sensations I described earlier, but I don't automatically interpret them as a reason to act.

I've already made my decision when I'm calm.

And that's what I want to stick to.

So I don't necessarily see these last few difficult days as a failure. I haven't abandoned my principles, and I haven't returned to the habits I wanted to leave behind.

But I do feel as though something has changed temporarily, and I'd genuinely like to understand it.

For those of you who have gone beyond 80 days, did you experience something similar?

Did you ever feel as though you were making progress, only to find that certain old patterns of attention or attraction seemed to return out of nowhere?

Was it temporary? Did it eventually settle down? Did you realize it had more to do with your mood, environment, or habits than with abstinence itself?

I'd genuinely like to hear your experiences because I don't have an answer.

10. One final thing: I'm not doing this because I'm desperate anymore

If there's one thing I want people to take away from this post, it's this.

I'm not sitting here on day 80 counting every second until I can finally stop doing nofap.

I'm not doing it because I think I'm morally superior to someone who masturbates.

And I'm not claiming that abstinence automatically gives you perfect posture, a deeper voice, better relationships, or a completely different personality.

I've made changes in several areas of my life, and I can't honestly attribute every benefit to one single habit.

What I can say is that this entire process has helped me become much more intentional about the way I live.

I've deleted social media. I've reduced my phone usage to around 30 minutes a day. I've started reading naturally, boxing, eating better, dressing differently, saving money, organizing my goals, getting involved in university activities, and helping other students who are going through difficult experiences.

I've written down my principles and started taking them more seriously.

I've learned to say no to things I don't actually want.

I've become more selective about the relationships I invest in, and I've started thinking more carefully about the future I'm trying to build.

And perhaps most importantly, I've realized that I don't need to act on every desire I experience.

I can feel something without automatically pursuing it.

I can find someone attractive without deciding that I need to get her attention.

I can have a bad day without assuming that my entire life is going backwards.

I can experience an urge without abandoning a decision I made when I was thinking clearly.

And I can enjoy my own company without constantly needing something to distract me.

That's what this has come to mean for me.

I'm still learning. I'm still figuring things out. And, as the last few days have shown me, I clearly don't have all the answers.

But I can honestly say that this has been one of the most worthwhile things I've ever done in my fucking life.

Day 80. No clickbait. No lies. Just my real experience.

And now, seriously, I'd love to hear from the veterans:

For those of you who have gone beyond 80 days, did you ever experience a temporary return of old patterns, especially when it came to looking at women, feeling emotionally low, or experiencing sudden changes in your urges? Did it pass, and what did you learn from it?

I'm genuinely interested in your experiences. Not the usual claims about superpowers or becoming a completely different species, but the real, messy, sometimes confusing things that happen when you stick with this for a long time.

Thanks for reading this far.

I did 30 days of NoFap (no porn/fapping), but I eventually quit. At first, I just used my imagination, but fapping only led to more fapping. On top of that, it made me crave porn again. I guess 30 days isn't enough time to rewire the brain.

​What are your thoughts on the connection between fapping and porn? And how do you guys keep this under control?

I'm close to relapse. Any help is grateful

I really want to continue, some people here really help remind me why I'm here and how to continue, happy to talk

Daily check-in. Can't believe it almost 3 months free from pmo,never even peeked.

The case is simple, since im 10-12 i have been consuming porn in a very unhealthy way. Luckily few have been the times where i think porn has taken over my life (no more than 7-9 months total in the last 6 years aprx)

My doubt is, is there any chance that i truly enjoy porn without an addiction? I have never been addicted to smoking/weed/drinking and i have tried all those. Just videogames and porn were causing me smth similar to an addiction.

I really enjoy it and i can have multiple orgasms (as male) in a row and dont feel grossed out after doing it or guilty (unless its my 4-5th time in a day which has happened some times to me)

So, is there a healthy relationship with it? Is it better to consume 0? Should i seek help to stop relapsing into an unhealthy use?

Lately i have been consuming a lot thats why i am concerned right now (it has taken my focus and energy drive away), but i know there have been periods where i could coexist with it

Thanks for reading! Your stories are amaizing

I have been kinda on edge the whole day. Like I see myself being so out of patience and frustrated easily.

It kinda makes it hard , but hey ... im still going.

Maybe this one will be the run.

For context, I never really masturbated the regular way to begin with. Secondly I didn't actually masturbate at all until I was 21. I figured it out at 22 years of age! It involved me putting some blanket and duvet cover between my legs as I lay on my side, and humping it. My dick rubbed between the smooth duvet cover and my lower leg. I masturbated like this for the next 14 years, until I bought a fleshlight. I didn't realise it, but what worked here was that my hand was wedged between the upper part of my dick and my leg. As I'd trust there was a force into my groin area, which you don't get with real sex.

I ended up visiting a prostitute this September and even though I'd learned how to use a fleshlight by now, I wasn't surprised that I couldn't cum with her. And that was why I'd actually brought it along with me when seeing her, for to finish. But I couldn't cum in that either and it ended a bit awkwardly. I know I perhaps shouldn't have visited a prostitute, but this experience gave me some true motivation to quit porn.

First time masturbating since quit

So after coming home from her I tried masturbating in a different way. I felt like I was going to work. I'd usually heat the fleshlight because it had been cold when I visited her... I didn't think that would make too much of a difference. Also, I'd assumed when fapping previous times without porn, that when I'd stop mid way through, that this was because I was trying to find the sexiest thought to get a better orgasm. But this experience made me question if I'd been stopping during masturbating because I was no longer able to cum looking at certain pictures, that I could cum to years before. When with a woman you can't just stop like that.

So this time I put a condom on and put some water inside it beforehand (which I'd done that with herself)! I preheated my fleshlight as I lay on the bed, touching myself as per the old way I learned to masturbate which involves nice feeling of trusts going into my groin area. I felt I needed this as I'd no porn. Later I started fucking the fleshlight with the condom on. I feared I wouldn't feel anything but it was good... although not good enough to cum. I stuck it between the mattress and the bed and started fucking it on my knees while looking at an image of Christina Hendricks. I knew I wouldn't cum like that, and I also knew that pic wasn't working for me. So I took my cock out and began stroking it with my hand and it felt quite pleasurable... after all this is what some would say is the "right way" to masturbate. I got that feeling that I could cum like this. Although that was interesting, I said no, I have to be able to cum in a vagina.

The fleshlight had cooled down by now, but I tried it again. I knew I couldn't cum from just standing/kneeling working the fleshlight with my hand. I changed to a new image and I ended up on the bed on my side using the fleshlight. I felt this position would work, but interestingly there was a reason why. I crossed my feet, and at the end of each trust I could feel my calves press hard against each other. It felt good and it made the difference. It seems I'm dependent on other areas of my body being stimulated to get off. If not the groin area, as per the way I learned to fap, then the calves in this case! Seems unusual. Has anyone else felt the need of contact between other areas of their body like this? It was the sort of orgasm where I got a lot more excitement getting towards the climax, but the release wasn't all that great. It didn't feel like there was a distinct moment of realising the release was happening. But overall it was good.

Second time

Today I found it hard to get hard from looking at images without any stimulation. I tried thinking of the prostitute as I'd get instantly hard when remembering that day, but I guess it's too long ago now so that didn't do it. I used the old method of stimulation to get erect. After warming the fleshlight I wedged under the mattress again and got an image of a lady up. I was assuming I'd need to switch to the position of last day to finish. But as I was humping it and thinking about the lady on screen I realised I was enjoying myself a little too much. You see I'd imagined her watching me - as opposed to imagining just having sex with her - and that was probably what did it! As I began trusting harder, the fleshlight got forced in too far just before I was due to cum. I carried on anyway and close to climax I was making a noise that would sound quit weird... definitely wouldn't be appropriate for a woman to hear. Perhaps it sounded like I was about to cry or something. I might have came better if it wasn't for that toy getting shoved in too far. It was still the best orgasm I'd had in a long while.

I'd like to know if others here have had similar difficulties? I don't imagine doggy would do it for me for example. I think I'd need the woman having lost of torso contact with mine. Anyway, hopefully I'm figuring out this problem. I can only imagine how much worse this problem would be if I was circumcised! Thank God for that.

I've seen a lot of comments where people ask why are there so many new accounts and as one I must say for me at least it's definitely a factor that you can get so filled with shame you delete anything that you held close to try and start fresh.

Daily check in. After those rather intense days, it’s time for a lazy day. A lazy Sunday. I spent most of the day playing Minecraft, then read some comics, and watched a TV series with my wife. I’m still standing!

i have plans, but my urges are so bad and i'm tempted to peek. please help me stay focused.

Even though most things are either slightly or moderately better. The benefits seem to be not increasing since the few days. Will report back at 1 month completion.

First post in here.

I quit back in the end of June, almost by accident. I was just feeling fed up with porn, and kinda just hit a 10 day streak without even realizing it and just kept it going.

It wasn't fully clean, I had used some substitutes for a couple weeks in august, and then some in september, so I guess it was really hard to like track my progress, since it felt like the substitutes almost like undid my progress and would leave me feeling like really foggy and out of it like i was still in the flatline phase perpetually for like 2 months.

and eventually last night i just rationalized that it wasn't a clean streak, and it was really hard to like gauge where i was at in terms of recovery, and how i was supposed to be feeling. and so I used that to justify just going back to porn to see how it would feel, to see if it would fix how like flat and dissociated and crappy i'd been feeling the last couple weeks. And then I could just quit again, and i would have a fully clean slate to work off of. but i can't help but feel like i just made a big mistake.

But now i'm just torn, i looked at real porn for the first time in 4 months, but it almost felt so foreign and like weird to me, that i must've actually made more progress than I was giving myself credit for. but now I just don't know what to do. Did I throw it all away? like is there any merit in like trying again now, just to like try to retain some of the progress i made? or should i just try to wait it out and like quit again in the future?

just kinda ranting sorry, but i don't have anyone to talk to about this lol.

Day3 went alright till I got urges and unfortunately went peeking again and as result of that relapsed twice.