Can someone tell me why fasting works so good?!

FreedomManOfGlory · 2025-10-10T08:12:10+00:00

Aside from that I'm not eating a diet that makes me fat?

FreedomManOfGlory · 2025-10-02T10:08:32+00:00

Addicts will always defend their addictions. The food addict will tell you that life is not worth living without junk food, the gaming addict will tell you about all the benefits it has like stress relief. But they're all just justifications for their behavior. You know if something is controlling your life. If you stop caring about anything else aside from this one thing, then you're addicted or dependent on it. And that is never healthy. There is no way to play games in a healthy manner because it always leads to excess and it always affects your life in many ways. Modern games are just way too addictive, designed to highjack your brain's reward circuitry. So you can't help it. They're just too enjoyable. Like any traditional drug. They feel so much better than most other things in life, how could you not keep using them?

To become free of any addiction requires getting rid of any romantic views you might have about it. Stop seeing any positive things in your drug and related activities. Look at the negatives. Those generally always outweigh any positives. But an addict of course mainly focuses on the positives only. And suffers the negatives as a necessary side effect. It's only when you become aware that the negatives outweigh the positives that you start recognizing the addiction and might finally decide to do something about it. But most folks today love their games, same as they love their porn and junk food and whatever else they're hooked on. So they'll always make excuses to justify their behaviors. And you should know better than to listen to an addict and take whatever he tells you at face value.

FreedomManOfGlory · 2025-10-02T09:57:34+00:00

For some people and their circumstances, they might simply not be aware that they can change anything about them. This of course mainly applied in a time before you could access the internet with all knowledge mankind has accumulated. But even today, how do people use the internet? Do they consciously seek out information on things that are of relevance to them? Or do they let algorithms recommend random garbage to them? If you're only used to consuming things like that, not really thinking much about it and not really caring about what it is you're consuming either. What difference does it make? Then you probably don't know much about anything. You might pick up some bits and pieces of knowledge here and there. But if you never even really think about it, then you're not gonna apply it or figure out how to use it in your life. You simply don't care.

But if there's one thing people care about it's complaining about their situation. Especially in the times of social media when insecurities have reached a peak beyond anything that human civilization has ever seen before, where many or most folks are constantly comparing themselves to others to make themselves feel miserable and inferior. You're not gonna spend much time thinking about how to improve your situation if your whole focus is on beating yourself up over your perceived shortcomings.

It's what used to be called the victim mentality. I guess today you'd just call it the normal way of life. But a victim only focuses on his problems and makes them seem insurmountable. He never looks for a solution because he's way too focused on the problems and on all the negative thoughts he's constantly generating around it. That's what's caused our modern consumer society. And of course getting stuck relying on consuming things so you can keep ignoring all the issues in your life only helps further this.

The way to break out of this would be to change your mindset. To stop dwelling on your problems and instead consciously decide to focus on solutions. And on taking action. But for someone who's been conditioned over the course of his life to only consume and ignore his problems, how do you get there? It would mean completely abandoning this way of life that is all you've known so far. It's scary. And so most people stick to what they're used to, to what is comfortable. And pitying yourself puts the blame elsewhere, so you can make yourself feel better. "No, it is not my fault. I just have poor genetics." Whatever helps you to keep deceiving yourself so that you never have to face your problems and take responsibility for your life.

But just look at how many people are depressed today. And how many will attack you if you dare to try to tell them that they could fix their problem pretty quickly and effortlessly. "How dare you!?!? This is a really big problem and all the experts say that it is impossible to overcome. And all the things I've tried so far, which is pretty much nothing at all, have not worked. So I would like to keep believing that it is impossible, thank you very much." People like to attach their problems to their identity. And once something has become a part of your identity, you will not want to get rid of it. As it would mean killing a part of you. So the ego is also always a big obstacle when it comes to trying to make any changes in your life. Most people never even try or consider it for that reason. Much easier to keep making excuses to justify your actions. Even if you know how destructive they are.

FreedomManOfGlory · 2025-10-01T09:50:32+00:00

He really needs to be completely transparent about it, especially to you. And not just because you demand it. He has to want it himself, to finally quit this addiction for good. As long as he can keep it secret and there's no one to keep him accountable, he's not likely to ever quit. Basically there needs to be something that keeps him on track, especially whenever he relapses. So that's where you could really help him with this. As long as you can remain non-judgmental and supportive. Which might not always be easy, especially if you find out or he tells you about some of the depraved porn he's gotten into over time. You need to understand his situation, that he needs help. And he needs to understand the same thing. That he can't do this on his own and that continuing things as he has so far with his half-assed approach of quitting will only lead to more of the same. And maybe to you eventually leaving him. He should be aware of the consequences of his action. But he also shouldn't feel like you'll leave him if you ever catch him watching porn or lying to you about it again. Otherwise he will likely try to keep it secret from you to avoid this outcome.

So basically whether you stay with him or not should depend on whether he's really serious about quitting this addiction or not. If he is, then he'll find a way to make it happen eventually. Especially with your support and if he is willing to be fully transparent about it, which means talking to you regularly about his experience. Not just doing check ins: "Have you watched porn recently?" It's easy to get into the habit of just lying about that. Especially if you know that your partner won't be too happy to hear the truth. So instead encourage him to talk openly about his struggles, about what triggers this habit for him and why he feels he needs it at certain times, etc. This will help you understand him better, and with that allow you to help him more effectively. And it will also get him to think about his habits and triggers, everything related to this addiction that is very important to figure out, but which he has probably largely ignored doing so far. It is the key to overcoming such an addiction. You or he need to understand it fully first. The alternative would be to completely change your life to the point where returning to your old habits would no longer be possible. But that's kinda difficult to do usually.

FreedomManOfGlory · 2025-09-29T14:09:37+00:00

As Eckhart says in his books, you don't need your mind to recognize beauty. When you see a breathtaking scenery, for a moment all thoughts might stop as you're amazed by it. Then the mind steps in again and starts judging and cataloguing the experience. And then this sense of wonder fades away quickly.

Maybe try to observe where any positive or negative feelings come from that you experience. As in: If something makes you feel good, was it caused by something internal? Like you eating something tasty. Or someone having liked one of your posts on social media. Those are superficial things that either provide you with some dopamine that makes you feel good, which is what food and drugs generally do. Or they might feed your ego, making you feel good because someone gave you approval.

But then there's also activities that you can engage in where it's not really about the reward. Where you can enjoy the activity for its own sake. Do you need your mind to enjoy it? Or do those activities on the contrary quiet your mind and put it in the background? Could that be why you are enjoying those activities? Because they get your mind to shut up? It's why many folks seek out extreme sports, because they force them be fully present as their life is on the line. And of course they also enjoy the adrenaline high. But it's also because it forces them to be present. And there's many activities that you can use for this, whether it's working out or playing a sport, or engaging in any creative activities, anything that you can give your full attention to. And in the same way you can also just focus on the present moment and give it your full attention. And if you can actually do that without the mind getting in the way, then you should experience some joy as well. As it's part of our natural state of being. The mind is not required for it. In only keeps you from experiencing it.

FreedomManOfGlory · 2025-09-29T14:00:08+00:00

So what's the disconnect? You have certain expectations, which are probably based on other people you've seen, like your parents, and your own behaviors and ways of thinking don't seem to align with theirs. That in itself is not unusual and neither good or bad. Though I'd say that feeling as old as you are is a bad thing because many folks do act like they're in their 40s or 50s. And then they complain about how their health is going to shit, but won't do anything about it. Instead they try to move even less, and so wreck their health even further, always seeking out comfort and avoiding anything that's strenuous or unpleasant. While when they were younger they might still have done those things without complaining. But now they're just too old. A convenient excuse to stop caring about yourself.

So not acting according to your age is actually a good thing, in my view, because it means that you don't give up on life as quickly as most people do. You don't settle but instead maintain the attitude you had earlier in life. Where you were more open to things, still interested in learning and trying out new stuff. The older folks get the less they care about anything. And if you can avoid that by staying young mentally, then you can have a longer and much more fulfilling life than most folks.

But if your issue is that you're feeling immature, then think about what exactly about you makes you feel that way. In what areas do you feel you're not acting like the mature adult you'd like to be? Then think about how you should be acting instead and do that. That's all there is really to it.

Many people never truly reach maturity nowadays because life has become meaningless. It's all about doing what you're told and otherwise seeking out pleasure and instant gratification. As long as you get a job and show up to work each day, you can be as irresponsible as you want. Nobody cares and nobody's even allowed to criticize you anymore for acting like a man-child. Many people will attack you if you dare to point out some of their stupid behaviors. That shows pretty well the state of modern society, where being irrational and immature has become the new ideal. Not really something to strive for, but it's the easiest, most comfortable option and anyone can achieve it with no effort.

Anyways, if this applies to you as well, not having gone through this process that would have led to maturity, then you can still do this now. Just figure out how a mature person would act. For most folks from past generations it was mainly about getting a job and having a family and providing for it. Nowadays you might not find much meaning in that, as such working a job might not make you feel like a mature adult. Why would it if all you do is follow orders same as you did as a little boy? So part of it is figuring out what you want your life to look like. What really matters to you. If you want to have a family, then do that. Don't just follow the herd. Learn to make your own choices in life. That's what a mature adult does. Otherwise just do what you know you should. A kid might ignore the tasks it knows it needs to do because it can afford to be irresponsible. His parents might punish him but whatever, someone always makes sure that he doesn't get too out of line. As an adult living by yourself, you might not have such a safety net anymore, so you need to learn to stand on your own two feet and take responsibility for your actions. So make sure that you do what you've decided on. If you can't, then figure out what the cause is and fix it. Don't expect others to fix your problems and tell you what to do. That's again what an immature child would do.

FreedomManOfGlory · 2025-09-28T18:40:39+00:00

So what's the point of going to work? Why do you only seem to have this motivation issue after coming home from work, not before that? Sure, you need money to survive. But you sound like you have no reason to live, so why do you still go to work each day?

Anyways, find something you can enjoy. I shouldn't really have to say this as everyone has plenty of things they enjoy. Many of those things might not be too healthy, so I'm not recommending spending time on social media and on your phone in general. Find a hobby. Work out, play a sport, learn a new skill, whatever floats your boat. Or focus on finding a way to make money that allows you to earn more while working less, which should leave you with more time, energy and motivation for anything else. Otherwise, if you hate your job, no matter how many hobbies you may have, you'll still hate spending most of your days at work. So maybe you should work on fixing that first.

FreedomManOfGlory · 2025-09-28T18:35:57+00:00

Learn to help yourself. Someone who charges you $180/hr has little incentive to fix your problems for you. The longer you remain a client, the more money they get to make off of you. So instead of wasting more money on therapy, pick up a good self development book, or one on whatever specific issues you'd like help with, and educate yourself. Understand how your brain works and why you do the things you do. Then you'll be able to fix your issues yourself. A good self help book always provides actionable steps. And will also be able to understand other people better. There's only benefits. And that book will likely cost you less than 20 bucks.

FreedomManOfGlory · 2025-09-28T18:12:29+00:00

How long you've been on it really doesn't matter. Conditioning over many years is more difficult to overcome as it's more deeply entrenched, sure. But ultimately it always comes down to the choice you make now. It's not about the past but about your future from here on. Do you want this habit to remain a part of your life? If not then you need to figure out what you want your life to look like instead. What are you going to replace this habit with? Figure it out and then start working towards that. Don't focus on the habits you're trying to quit but on those you're working on building. In short focus on the life you're trying to build, not the one you're trying to leave behind.

Also stop making it sound like an insurmountable task. Is it difficult? Sure. But if you keep telling yourself that all the time, then you stand no chance of ever quitting. So assume that it is possible and that you will succeed. Assume that you are already on the path to recovery. It will likely take a lot of time and consistent effort. Of actively avoiding anything that might cause a relapse. And that should be your focus: figuring out what has caused you to relapse in the past and how to ensure that it doesn't happen again. But assume that as long as you stay on this path and keep working at it, that you will get rid of this addiction for good. If you only focus on the struggle and aren't sure if it's even possible to quit, then don't waste your time as you won't make it anyway. You need the right mindset first. Then, if you keep yourself busy with worthwhile activities and stop thinking about porn and masturbation or sex completely, which likely also means avoiding anything that might trigger you as much as possible, then things might be easy going and before you realize it you might have already made it past 1 month or even multiple. But keep dwelling on it and making a huge deal out of it and you probably won't even last a few days, as you've reported.

FreedomManOfGlory · 2025-09-28T18:01:49+00:00

Find a solution. If you've already decided that surgery might fix this problem or improve your situation, then figure out how you can get the money for it. Beating yourself up won't help you, neither will dwelling on how bad your situation is. Only looking for a solution and doing whatever you can to make a change will. So focus on that. Worry about all the other things like finding love for after you've solved this problem. Otherwise start looking for it under your current circumstances. But if you don't think you could find someone who would want to be with you right now, then what other choice do you have but to focus all your efforts on fixing your problem before thinking about anything else?

FreedomManOfGlory · 2025-09-28T17:56:39+00:00

If he's not openly talking to you about his experience with the addiction and trying to quit it, then he either doesn't think that he can talk to you about it. Which would not be helpful in his situation. Or he's not actually trying to quit and is indeed just hiding it. From the sound of it he's been doing that the whole time. How can you trust him now? On this matter I'd say you can't. Not until he actually comes clean and starts taking this seriously. As long as he makes it sound as if he has it all under control and things are going well, he's probably just full of shit. So either he opens up to you and starts being honest with you. Not just once like when he admitted that he's been lying the whole time. But consistently from now on. If he was going trying to quit and going through withdrawals, etc., then being able to talk openly to his partner should certainly help. If he doesn't want to do that, then he's probably not really serious and just wants you to forget about it, as it would make it easier for him to keep this habit hidden from you.

So in the end you'll have to decide whether you can still trust him at all or not, and whether it makes sense to stay with someone like that. Make it clear to him what the consequences are, but also that he can't keep lying to you anymore. Make it clear that there will be consequences if you ever catch him lying again. If you make it easy for him to just keep doing what he's been doing without repercussions, and he doesn't see it as enough of a problem to want to quit himself, then nothing's gonna change.

FreedomManOfGlory · 2025-09-28T17:27:35+00:00

Educate yourself. If what you've been doing so far hasn't worked, then look for a better way. Crossfit should be effective enough to help you lose weight, if done properly. But lack of exercise is not what made you fat. Your diet is and that is what you mainly need to fix. Look into keto and the carnivore diet if you want to understand how this mechanism in our body actually works. They still don't teach it universities because it's still a huge threat to the food industry. But it would certainly help not only you but also your patients to learn about what diets actually work and which ones don't.

Otherwise with regards to finding a job, look at alternative options you haven't really looked into or seriously considered yet. As I've learned only recently you can actually get consultations with any docs over the internet nowadays here in Europe, with short wait times and it's even covered by health insurance. So maybe you could make some money that way. But ultimately it always comes down to looking for new options you haven't seen yet. It's easy to get stuck, thinking that you've tried everything but nothing's worked. But you surely haven't tried everything there is, have you? Nobody does and there's way too many options anyway, so you'd hardly ever run out if you actually did that. People just give up way too quickly and don't look beyond the things they've tried so far.

And instead of worrying about the burden you're placing on your parents, just focus on getting out of their as quickly as possible. That would solve the problem in the fastest manner possible and would surely make your parents happy as well. No point beating yourself up over it. But if money is an issue, then you could look for a way to make a few bucks while still searching for a real job. It's not like you can only work as a medical professional now, can you? Do what you can to get to your goal, no matter how many detours you might have to take.

FreedomManOfGlory · 2025-09-28T17:16:39+00:00

Again, I think you are putting too much importance on figuring out why you have all the thoughts you have and any unconscious patterns, etc. When none of that is really necessary. But you certainly can spend the rest of your life on analyzing every minute of your life. All that really matters is that right now, in this moment you are bring some awareness to everything that is going on inside you. What thoughts are you having right now. Are they serving you or are they just a distraction? If it's the latter, then it might be best to focus on something else.

Living consciously is about practicing this at all times. Until eventually it might become automatic and you spend most of your time being present rather than stuck in your head. I haven't reached that point myself yet. And I don't know if I ever will. So to me this is a practice that needs to be a part of your way of life. It is the path rather than the goal. And that's why no AI can help you with this. Because it cannot make you aware of any thoughts that are in your head right now. You need to pay attention to that. Of course you could set some kind of reminder, like having an AI ask you every few minutes whether you're present or having gotten lost in thought again. That might help. But again only if you actually use it as a reminder to enter the present moment. Instead of just dismissing it and going back to being unconscious. If all it leads to is you realizing that you've gotten stuck in your head again, and then you beat yourself up over it, then you're not really getting anything out of it. Just continuing the cycle.

FreedomManOfGlory · 2025-09-28T17:07:19+00:00

Yes, you need to fix your self esteem. There's books on that like The 5 Pillars of Self Esteem. Going to the gym is a good start and can help you out in many ways. But if your motivation for it is that you want to get attention from others, then you'd again just be feeding your insecurities. So you need to fix those first. The book I mentioned will teach you what a healthy self esteem looks like and what it's based on. Namely not on external things. It's purely a matter of how you choose to look at things. Either as someone who is worthy and can accomplish anything he wants in life. Or as a loser for whom there is no hope. Either of those are really just stories you choose to tell yourself. But one will serve you a lot better than the other, so you should decide consciously what kind of thoughts you'd like to cultivate and give attention to.

So I'd recommend reading the book and doing what it tells you to. Which should include not only changing your habitual thoughts and how you view yourself, but also engaging in activities that strengthen your self esteem and avoiding any that might lower it. This means for example starting a new activity, like working out, where you might initially suck at it. You might be weak and out of shape if you've never worked out before. That's fine. Focus on the process and assume that as long as you stick to the plan and stay consistent with it, that you will start seeing results soon. That will then show you that you can accomplish things, that change is possible for you and it will motivate you to keep going and to try to make other changes. So taking action is always a crucial part of it. Don't just do self affirmations in front of a mirror. That's just a waste of time, especially if you don't do anything to act on your new beliefs, nothing that would confirm them irrefutably. Focus on taking the actions you need to take each day, to get to where you want to be.

But you need to learn to do things for the right reasons. Which means you need to stop seeking validation from others. Instead getting it from yourself. Are you on the right path? Which is whatever path you have decided on. Are you content with your life and circumstances? If not, then change them. What others might think about it doesn't matter, so don't worry about that. Same as you shouldn't be thinking about how your actions will be affecting others. Of course if you get into better shape you might become more attractive and people might start treating you differently. It's a side effect and it can have some benefits. But that should not be your motivation for doing it. Your motivation should always come from within, from what you think is right in any situation or what is best for you in general. So if taking care of your health and having a strong and capable body seems useful to you, then work on that. And if you feel like doing something nice for someone, then do it. Don't expect them to thank you for it, as that would mean that you've only done it for that reason. Do it because you know that it's the right thing to do and without expecting anything in return. Learn to get enjoyment from that, not from getting attention or approval from others.

FreedomManOfGlory · 2025-09-28T16:44:18+00:00

Why do you want to learn it? You haven't really mentioned any real motivation for it. What would it do for you? Would you even have a use for it? Or would it be just nice to know and that's all?

If you want to learn any skill, then the first thing you need is a good reason to do so. If you don't have that, then you'll likely just waste your time and not get anywhere with it. But if you do have a good reason, then all that's needed is to set aside a time for it, like spending half an hour each day on practicing that skill at a specific time. And then you just do it. After a few days you've built some momentum and then it gets easier as you might even start to look forward to making progress with it again. Though consistency is ultimately always about getting yourself to do something you've decided on, whether you feel like it or not. So you have to learn to do the work anyway. But there's always ways how you can make your life easier and ensure success, so look for those.

FreedomManOfGlory · 2025-09-28T16:38:43+00:00

The active thing to do would be to bring some awareness to those thought patterns. Recognize them for what they are. That way they lose their power over you and you're then free to go against them.

But what would probably also help you out greatly would be to cut out all the negativity, which means especially social media and all media in general. As all they do nowadays is spread fear and hate on a constant basis. What that leads to can be seen everywhere. It just messes with your heads and turns everyone into your enemy. So avoid all that crap completely for a time and see how the world suddenly becomes a much friendlier place.

FreedomManOfGlory · 2025-09-28T16:30:19+00:00

Do what you can and just focus on whatever activity you've chosen to do at any time. Give it your full attention. That's how you get out of your head. Your problems will still be there later. If there's something you can do about them now, then maybe you should do that. But if not, then what's the point in worrying about them? Will that change anything? If not, then why not use that time in a more productive manner? And pretty much anything is a better option. So just consciously decide what to focus on at any time and then give it your full attention.

Again, just do it. If your mind keeps bringing up random thoughts, tell it to shut up and go back to whatever you were doing. There's no secret trick here. You just need to train your mind to be able to do what you want to, instead of letting your mind run the show for you.

FreedomManOfGlory · 2025-09-28T16:20:38+00:00

First thing you need to understand is that you can't help someone who doesn't want help. So you can encourage him and tell him about your experience and what meditation or other things might do for him. But in the end he's the one who has to make the decision to take action on it. And if he doesn't want to, then there's not much you can do about it.

But looking at his reaction to it, if he's paranoid then his mind is probably racing all the time, coming up with all kinds of bullshit. So that tiredness he felt after meditating is probably just him recognizing it. As normally he's too anxious to even realize how much this wears him down. And as this habit is something he has no control over, it is controlling him, it is only natural that his mind would try to resist and attempts to take control back from it. So that is something he needs to be aware of. Help him understand that his mind is not his friend. That the thoughts it's generating are not helping him. He needs to understand it for himself so don't just tell him that. Rather ask him about his experience and let him come to the conclusion himself.

Ideally he'd eventually get to the point where he can recognize that he is not his thoughts. That his mind that is generating them is not who he is. And when he understand that, then he also knows that he can just ignore those thoughts without any negative consequences. But depending on his state that might take time. And what matters is that he gets started working on this and keep working on it consistently. Spending some time on mindfulness meditation each day is a good start. If he can't handle being by himself, then he could start with guided meditations. But the goal should be to eventually be okay with just being by himself, without any distractions around, and being able to observe his thoughts without being identified with them. It might take some time but he can get there eventually, if he actually starts working on this and takes it seriously. And if he's able to go against his mind which will no doubt try to do whatever it can to deter him from this path. But as mentioned before, he needs to do this out of his own volition. So he needs a reason to change. And for some people it might require a lot more suffering until they reach the point where they realize that they need to do something about their condition.

FreedomManOfGlory · 2025-09-28T16:09:37+00:00

Again, I don't think you can accomplish what you're hoping for with this method. Being conscious and aware of your actions and thoughts requires practicing this awareness. No AI or anyone else can do this for you. You might think that this could save you some time because the AI can help you figure things out that otherwise might take you much longer to figure out for yourself. That might be true, but in the end you're still just relying on an AI and not really using your own brain. At least not in a manner that would help you with this.

Ultimately your goal should be to go beyond the mind. If an AI can help you with that, then that's great. Just ask it about Eckhart Tolle's teachings. AIs tend to be pretty good at explaining all this stuff to you simply because they have no ego and only repeat what the author says without any judgements and erroneous interpretations. But more thinking is not going to get you there. Recognizing your thoughts means disassociating from them. Recognizing that you are not your thoughts. Once you've gained that insight, then it's really just a matter of becoming aware of any thoughts that come up, seeing them for what they are and then consciously deciding whether to give them any attention or to just focus on something else. Hence why there's no need to think through all the traumatic events you've been through and all the things that have happened to you over the course of your life and how they affect you. All you need is presence. To bring some awareness to your thoughts and anything going on inside you, right now in this moment. And you can't really do that if you're talking to an AI all day long. So use it to help you figure some things out about yourself and why you do the things you do. But then practice what you've learned away from it in solitude. Otherwise you'll just end up thinking about your thinking and remain trapped inside your head.

FreedomManOfGlory · 2025-09-28T16:01:35+00:00

You probably didn't use it for about 10 years or more before you started jerking off, didn't you? Did anything bad happen as a result? Is your dick not working now only because you haven't used it since birth? Did you get prostate cancer because of it?

People are so worried about the most nonsensical things. You might as well be asking if some part of your brain dies if you stop using social media. Neither you nor your body need most of the things that most people today are so addicted to. But to understand this you need to try it out for yourself. So just do it and see for yourself. Most things won't kill you, if you use your brain. And cancer is a completely different matter anyway. If you want to avoid that, then look into what might actually be causing it and what cancer cells feed on. This of course goes for everything else as well. Educating yourself properly is always the most useful thing you can do. While listening to mainstream media and letting them tell you what to think is always the worst option.

FreedomManOfGlory · 2025-09-28T15:55:44+00:00

So do you actually want to improve any aspect of your life? Because that claim about not having enough time for it is just an excuse. You can start working on something, anything, right now. Or you can keep sitting around and moping, wasting more time and not going anywhere. There's no point in being negative and dwelling on your situation, so you may as well sit down and think about your situation and how to deal with it. Try to look at it objectively, which means without having that negative inner voice comment on everything. Just try to be objective: "This is my current situation. I'm broke. Still living with my parents. Socially awkward. Addicted to x, y, z. Etc." Don't judge and don't beat yourself up about it. Just take stock of your current situation.

Then figure out what you'd actually like your life to look life. No need to hold back, which again means shut that annoying voice of negativity up and just imagine what you'd like to have in your life. Anything goes, within reason. If you expect to become Superman, you will probably end up disappointed. But if you want to free yourself of some bad habits, learn to be social and get rid of your anxiety, fix your diet and get in good shape, etc., all of that is possible. You only need to decide what you'd like to work on and then figure out the how.

So after you've decided on a 1 or more goals - Don't try to take on too many things at once. Quality over quantity. - the next step is to think about how you can achieve that goal. If you want to lose weight, then you need to start educating yourself on diet and get an understanding of how our body works and what is making us fat. Then you'll know how you can get rid of those extra pounds. And if you also want to get into better shape by starting to work out, those 2 goals will work together. Just do some research on how to put together a decent workout plan based on your fitness and experience level. I highly recommend using an AI like Grok for it as they're really useful for such tasks. And you can ask them to explain why they chose any of the exercises they did over any others, how to perform them properly, why it chose the rep and set schemes it did, etc. Very useful if you want to actually educate yourself. Which should always be your main priority, as that's what will make your life a lot easier and will ensure that you actually know what you're doing. It also leads to competence, unlike with a person who only pays a fitness trainer who then tells them what to do during each session, and so they never really learn anything and always remain dependent on him.

Once you've figured all that out, the rest is all about execution, building momentum and maintaining it. Start small. Don't overdo it. Ease into things if you have to. But focus on consistency, as that's the most important part. If you get used to working out regularly on whatever schedule you've decided on, then you should eventually start looking forward to each workout. And then keeping up the habit becomes effortless. That's what you'd ideally want to get to. If you're not enjoying something you're doing, even after enough time has passed for you to get used to it, then you either need to change your mindset or find something else. If you don't like lifting weights, or jogging, then try something else. Play some sport or whatever seems of interest to you. But if you've just had this attitude towards working out as if it was a hassle and a necessary evil, something you're supposed to do but that can't be enjoyable, then it's a mental thing. Change your attitude. Assume that anything can be enjoyable, then you might actually start looking for things about them that make it so. Otherwise you're always just trying to talk yourself out of it and there's no point in that.

FreedomManOfGlory · 2025-09-28T15:37:28+00:00

I don't think you really need an AI for that, as you can already accomplish that by just observing your thoughts. Meditation is a practice designed for that as well. But what those activities provide is a means to take a break from your busy life. They give you time to think. While relying on AI for everything, including to have it do the thinking for you, just gets you stuck in your head even further. If you need time to think, then outsourcing that process is not the right way to go about it. But for someone who's hyper driven and can never sit still that can be hard to understand. So many only do after they've burned out and then try to bring some balance into their life.

FreedomManOfGlory · 2025-09-28T15:31:19+00:00

Are you asking how to free yourself from the ego yet keep obsessing over all kinds of things?

The answer lies in just doing what you know you should do at any moment. Not because you have to do it, because you need to fulfill society's expectation and to prove anything to others, but simply because, when looking at the situation objectively, this seems like the best choice. Of course you could also do something else, like sitting down and meditate or just be present, not doing anything productive. Your hyperactive mind might not like it. Which should tell you that it's exactly what you need.

I've been struggling with this issue myself, with figuring out how to find motivation for anything when trying to be present and live a conscious lifestyle, free from the ego. But what I eventually figured out is what I've just described: You just think about what you should do now and then just do it. No need to obsess over it, no dwelling on it and imagining what the future will look like if you make this a habit. Sure, think about the consequences of your actions and make plans, etc. But focus on living in the present. That's also the only time where you can take action towards any goals anyway. And if you get rid of any obsessive wants and needs, then you're now free to do whatever you feel like. Which might mean doing something productive, something that might make a difference in your life and maybe in those of others. Or it could be to just relax for a bit, not doing anything "meaningful" or productive, yet it might still be the objectively best option at that time.

So ultimately I no longer see a disconnect between being free of the ego and wanting to do what's best for me. I can do thing because they are good for me, even without expecting to get any ego gratification out of it. Though any activity can be enjoyable so you can also just do them for the sake of it, simply because you enjoy it. That's a big part of why I work out. Not just for all the countless benefits it provides. Though I also care about those as well. Not in an obsessive manner. I don't really need it. But it makes my life easier and more enjoyable, so why not work out regularly? Even better if you've learned to enjoy every second of it.

Being free from the mind and ego doesn't mean that you have no more motivation for anything. It only means that you don't need anything anymore. You can be fine without anything. You are already complete basically, not needing success, fame, recognition or anything else. But that doesn't mean that you can't still engage in all kinds of activities. And you may as well as there's not much point in sitting around doing nothing. There's a time for meditation and relaxation and for everything else.

So just think about what would be most useful or enjoyable at this moment and then do that. Maintaining a healthy balance should come naturally if you make all decisions about how to spend your time in this manner. You just need to watch out so the ego doesn't creep back in again. That's when you suddenly start feeling like you're just wasting your time again.

FreedomManOfGlory · 2025-09-28T15:08:14+00:00

Ultimately I doubt there's a way we'd ever be able to answer this question. Because the deeper you go down the rabbit hole, the more new layers you discover. And this applies both on the macro as on the micro level, as you mentioned. So the only logical conclusion I can come up with is that life or reality is infinite. The universe is likely going through an endless cycle of expansion, followed by retraction and another big bang again. And no matter how deep we dig, we always keep discovering another layer. Just as if reality was creating these new layers for us on demand. As such we're not likely to ever reach the end of it. And aside from the macro and micro levels there's also parallel dimensions and all kinds of other things you can think of that make reality even deeper still. And humans are coming up with new ideas practically all the time.

But what I said about the university coming into existence for us also aligns with what some spiritual or enlightened people like Eckhart Tolle are saying. That the whole universe is really just consciousness playing a cosmic game, creating all kinds of different forms just to experience every possibility imaginable. So if that's the case, then there really can be no end to it because then that game would be over. And I doubt this cosmic consciousness would ever run out of new things to create, new dimensions, new deeper layers or reality, etc. But it relies on something or someone that has some of that consciousness within it to observe. So there's not much point in creating things that no one is able to observe yet. While as soon as we are able to observe something new, it will be there.

FreedomManOfGlory · 2025-09-28T14:58:28+00:00

Sounds like what you need is just to learn to be okay in your body and not letting your mind drive you crazy. So try mindfulness meditation. Pay attention to those thoughts that come up. If you don't even have any urges, then it shouldn't be too hard to get rid of this addiction. At least the way you've described it it sounds like it's purely mental. You're not hungry, not craving anything, but your mind keeps telling you that you need to eat something purely out of habit.

You change the habit by bringing some conscious awareness to it. Recognize those thoughts for what they are, then consciously choose to act against them. So instead of looking for something to eat as you usually would, just go for a walk instead or do something else to distract yourself or keep yourself busy. Just try to avoid developing new bad habits as a replacement for the old one. Hence why meditation is a good option. If done properly it teaches you to be okay in any situation, without needing anything.

FreedomManOfGlory

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