Using Analog to Douse Digital Dopamine

How to find calm and add years to your life using Heart Rate Variability

You know that feeling - something isn't quite right but you can't put your finger on it.

My HRV (Heart Rate Variability) is sliding backwards. Yes, the number will slide as I age but not now, not like this! My numbers normally match those of a 30 year-old-demographic, and now I am sliding to a 40-year-old level, only 25 years instead of 35 years better than my actual age.

I do a quick scan - I eat well. I exercise daily - cardio, strength, stretching, yoga, and meditation, Check, Check and Check.

Meh! feeling still there. I wake up unexcited for the day. Feels like languishing, the term coined by Adam Grant in a New York Times article - not depressed but not thriving either.

Should I blame it on the sultry February weather?

A poke in the ribs...

My online library dropped a reserved book yesterday - non-fiction amongst the sea of fiction piled up around me. I hope it doesn't slow down my GoodReads Reading Challenge of 50 books this year - three books ahead of target right now. Pretty pleased with that accomplishment so far?

'How to Calm Your Mind' by Chris Bailey was published in December 2022. Mr Productivity is now saying that we should calm down rather than 'Hyperfocus' our way to achieving more with 'proven ways to become more awesome'. You have my attention.

As I speed-read the book, I realise he is talking directly to me.

He discusses the mindset of accomplishment, the mindset of more is better, and the mindset of hit-the-wall-with-burnout productivity. Check, check and not quite.

How could this be me? I am comfortably retired. I have all the time in the world to do anything I want. I choose to write. I choose to commit to daily journaling. I choose to commit to publishing on Substack weekly. I have a vague plan to have a book on Amazon by the end of 2023.

My writing is technology driven.

I have spent a year developing workflow systems to scan for interesting, filter what resonates, distil it and put it into my words so I can access each piece easily as I craft my ideas. I love the technology I have mastered to make it all happen. I spend a lot of time on devices.

Do we see where this is going? Good because I didn't.

What is underlying this burnout?

Mr Productivity hits me with the D word - dopamine, and I listen. I love dopamine. I thought it was OK to channel it into a productive outlet.

We all want to accomplish more; be more, do more, and have more. Productivity and digital technology promise us faster results.

However, Bailey says the delusion of wanting more and the overstimulation of digital drives dopamine. Dopamine drives dissatisfaction and, ultimately, burnout—a vicious cycle

Digital is Dopamine.

Calm is Serotonin. Calm is Oxytocin. Calm is Analog.

According to him, calm is in-the-moment contentment and joy. Calm is savouring. It's basking, marvelling. Calm is where life is lived, that life we are all striving to get to. Calm is the feeling of satisfaction, enough, the world of meaningful and memorable. The happiest people know how to do calm.

He also says we don't have to wait until we reach our goals to live with calm. Instead, we can build it into our lives right now.

Back to HRV, my canary in the coal mine.

It seems that my lower HRV might indicate Sympathetic dominance driven by digital overstimulation.

Ahh! I knew it. I’ve allowed my calm to be highjacked!

I can do something about that.

I launch a digital audit. What exactly do I do online during a typical day?

• Before my feet hit the floor, I take a digital HRV reading using a chest strap and my iPhone. I check my email and notice it is filling up with ads. Next, I check socials, which are also jammed with ads. Then I check the news site, just stories of pain and suffering—no wonder I don't want to get out of bed.

• Onto exercise on my Peloton bike before brekkie.

• I open my laptop, update my fitness stats spreadsheet, check my calendar and planner app, and check my Readwise account for RSS feeds. At the same time, I eat breakfast. By now, morning television is blaring out the daily horror stories worldwide. There's constantly breaking news. The low-level anxiety seeps into my bones.

• This anxiety triggers far too frequent checks of email and socials during the day. But I am just looking for good news, fun dog or kid stories, and random acts of kindness. So it is OK, isn't it?

• Text messages and pings demand attention.

• I tick off tasks in my daily online planner and tell Siri to add to the never-ending list.

• I save late afternoons for reading, but even that is on a device—a book to read or listen to or maybe an online magazine or podcast. Devices are easier to read from, I tell myself.

• A recent purchase of ear pods means I am digital all day. I convince myself I am listening to a classical music station. Still digital.

• Dinner requires a digital recipe.

• After dinner, I open my device again, maybe some YouTube videos - educational, of course, or the book I am whizzing through to meet my target. Am I enjoying it

• Get the picture.

I think for a minute. Can I digitally diet or do I need a total detox?

Can I sort my digital activity into what supports my writing and away from mindless scrolling to someone else's tune?

Email could be batch processed once a day. Socials could be time-limited and late in the day. Mindless scrolling must cease. I have turned off the news before; I can do it again. Let’s start with that.

Build Analog Calm into every day...

These activities stimulate the vagus nerve, improve the Parasympathetic mode and in turn raise my HRV:

• Breathing deeply

• Moving my body in nature

• Walking barefoot on the beach to ground

• Reading physical books

• Enjoying the 'Yum' of a simple meal

It takes one activity a day to make a difference according to Bailey.

Stay awake and aware. It’s so easy to get sucked into the world of mindless digital.

This morning...

I decide to walk outside instead of clipping into Peloton. I even chose to leave my pods at home to engage with my environment.

The humidity is building, and dark storm clouds threaten from the South, but I set off.

The ocean thunders to my right, echoing off the beachfront homes to the left of the path. The kookaburras announce morning has broken. I notice leaves saturated by last night's rain are slip hazards on the path. A runner passes, dripping in sultry sweat and smelling like he is at the end of his run. I greet my fellow walkers. Groups of owners and dogs stop to chat and sniff. I pass a man walking back from his swim, blue and white resort towel over his shoulder, shirt open to the waist, thongs squelching, post swim ciggie between his fingers wafting. So much to engage with.

I arrive home before the storm hits. As I eat a leisurely breakfast, I watch the pitter-patter of light rain on the pool and marvel at the deep green of the trees under the overcast sky. I’m eager to mindfully engage in my day's work.

Tonight...

I open a paper journal to jot down experiences of the day.

What did I accomplish? What was most satisfying about my day?

How will I deliberately invest in calm tomorrow?

Tomorrow...

HRV responds.