Phone Craving & Emotional Urges
Understand why phone cravings happen and how they reflect unmet emotional needs.
When the System Asks for Another Hit
The system asks
for another hit.
It arrives
like a ping,
not a thought.
This demand
is not you—
it’s a signal.
Seeing it
as external
reduces pressure
to respond.
Let the pulse
pass
without escalation.
Externalize demand with DojoWell.
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Articles exploring the psychology behind these patterns.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why does the demand for another "hit" feel like an external force pushing me?
Dopamine demand is a physiological signal that can feel like an "external command" because it originates in the subcortical brain, bypassing your conscious logic. By separating the "signal" from the "self," you realize that the urge is just a data point from your Reward system, not a core part of your identity. This detachment gives you the agency to observe the demand without feeling obligated to fulfill it.
How do I separate my "self" from these intense neural signals?
Practice naming the sensation as a structural event. Instead of "I want this," try "My Reward system is signaling for a hit." This shift in language moves the experience into the Narrative & Identity system, where you can evaluate it objectively. When you view the urge as a biological weather pattern rather than a personal command, the internal pressure to react begins to dissolve.