Odysseus was curious as to what the Sirens sung in their song to him, so, on Circe’s advice, he had all his sailors plug their ears withbeeswax and tie him to the mast. He ordered his men to leave him tied tightly to the mast, no matter how much he would beg. When he heard their beautiful song, he ordered the sailors to untie him but they bound him tighter. When they had passed out of earshot, Odysseus demonstrated with his frowns to be released. The Odyssey, 8th century B.C.
Background: 34/M married. Hard mode (no sex). PMO addict of 20 years. No ED issues, but found nofap through YBOP. Had gone a couple of streaks in the past, max being around 30 days, so we’re definitely in “personal best” territory.
Benefits: Improved clarity of mind. Music sounds better. I have dreams every night (up from like once a year before). I can recover from bad moods faster (think hours, not days). I have a greater enjoyment of everyday things (especially exercise). My self care is better (flossing, shaving). Single biggest benefit? Not living a secret life after hours.
Most unexpected effect: Nofap is now a way of life for me. I’m not going to try to reintroduce fapping “in moderation,” because I know exactly how that will end up. The weird thing is that it makes me kind of sad to say goodbye to it. It was fun in the moment. If only it were safe to do without it taking a wrecking ball to the rest of your life.
How I succeeded: I changed my environment. Willpower is overrated. Stay offline, get outside, be around other people. No careless browsing, no fantasizing. Easy on the video games and YouTube. Keep the blinds open. Know when you’re in enemy territory and be extra careful in those times. Remember Odysseus and the Sirens.
A word on Hard Mode: it’s actually easy mode. After a few weeks without any sexual excitement, your brain kind of gives up on it. Some call this flatlining. Urges can still strike, so stay on guard, but for those of you thinking you gotta have sex to “get it out of your system,” I didn’t experience that at all. By avoiding sex I avoided the chaser effect, and got a more thorough reboot. If you decide to do it this way, your partner has to be on board, which means having The Talk. Either that or you can try faking headaches for three months straight.
TL;DR: Even a mythical badass like Odysseus needed support to overcome temptation. Thanks everyone for being that for me.
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