The Itch Experiment
Scratch an itch and stop the moment it starts to feel good. Sitting with the wanting, without fighting it or feeding it, is where choice begins.
Next time you feel an itch, try something strange. Scratch it. And the moment it starts to feel good... stop.
Now watch. That unfinished itch grabs all of your attention.
And your mind starts bargaining. Who the hell is this guy to tell you what to do? Go on. You've earned it. This exercise is pointless anyway.
Notice that. Your mind is working this hard to keep you scratching. That is exactly why you stop.
Don't fight it, don't feed it
Don't fight the urge. Don't feed it. Just let it stay.
This will help build tolerance to being okay with not being okay. You'll be dying to scratch that itch a bit more, but I think your willpower grows, because you get to look that pleasure dead in the eyes and say no.
It was never about the itch
Because it was never really about the itch. It's the notification. The likes. The fear of missing out. The fear of losing someone.
Even the next video. Finish one, and your thumb already wants the next.
So ask yourself. What are you feeding, that you should be starving?
Every time you stop while you still want more, you get a little freer to choose.
Being okay with not being okay. That's where choice begins.