{"id":8788,"date":"2026-06-30T11:58:28","date_gmt":"2026-06-30T09:58:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bettina-bonkas.com\/?p=8788"},"modified":"2026-06-30T12:14:51","modified_gmt":"2026-06-30T10:14:51","slug":"keine-motivation-was-dopamin-damit-zu-tun-hat","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bettina-bonkas.com\/en\/keine-motivation-was-dopamin-damit-zu-tun-hat.html","title":{"rendered":"(Deutsch) Keine Motivation? Was Dopamin damit zu tun hat"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/p>\n
\"Laufschuhe Dopamine & Motivation<\/h5>\n

No Motivation? What Dopamine Has to Do With It<\/strong><\/span><\/h1>\n

by Bettina Bonkas \u2013 English | Coaching | Resilience + Improvisation | Hypnosis Reading time: approx. 8 minutes, Video: 12 minutes (English)<\/p>\n

Sounds familiar?<\/strong> You want to exercise. Or finally get started on that project. Or go to bed earlier. But instead you scroll through Instagram, watch another episode on Netflix, or reach for some chocolate – even though you didn’t really want to.<\/p>\n

And then comes that uncomfortable feeling: Why do I have so little discipline?<\/em> You carry on and feel even worse.<\/p>\n

Dr Anna Lembke – psychiatrist at Stanford University, Medical Director of Stanford Addiction Medicine, and bestselling author of Dopamine Nation<\/em> – has a clear answer:<\/p>\n

“You’re not unmotivated. You’re overstimulated.”
\n<\/strong>Dr. Anna Lembke, psychiatrist at Standford University<\/em><\/p>\n

In an interesting interview with Mel Robbins, bestselling author and podcast host, Dr Lembke explains what happens in our brains – and how we can find our way back to motivation, energy and genuine enjoyment.<\/p>\n

And exactly this question – how to move from knowing to doing \u2014 comes up again and again. Miriam from Dublin put it like this recently:<\/p>\n

“Hi Bettina, I know it’s better for me to go for a run than to scroll on my phone. Why can’t I just do it?”<\/em><\/p>\n

A powerful question that many of us can relate to. In my video I address exactly that: dopamine, brain basics, why social media can outsmart us so effectively – and what actually helps to get us moving:<\/p>\n

Video \u2013 approx. 12 minutes, in English<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

No Motivation? What Dopamine Has to Do With It<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

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\"Eine<\/h2>\n

Dopamine and Motivation: What’s Happening in Your Brain<\/span><\/strong><\/h2>\n

Dopamine is not a “happiness hormone” – that’s a widespread misconception.<\/p>\n

Dopamine is the motivation<\/strong> hormone<\/strong>. It’s the signal our brain releases when it identifies something as important and worth pursuing. It tells us: I want that again. I need that.<\/em><\/p>\n

Scientifically speaking: the more dopamine an experience triggers, the more strongly it’s stored as meaningful – and the stronger the urge to repeat it.<\/p>\n

\u21d2 Dopamine doesn’t make us happy – it makes us hungry for more.<\/strong><\/p>\n

And that’s exactly the problem in today’s world.<\/p>\n

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The Pendulum: Pleasure and Pain Balance Each Other Out<\/span><\/strong><\/h2>\n

Dr Lembke explains this principle through a vivid image: imagine a seesaw. On one side sits pleasure, on the other side discomfort. I prefer the metaphor of a pendulum – the principle is the same.<\/p>\n

Our brain is designed to keep the pendulum horizontal: it constantly seeks balance.<\/p>\n

Neuroscientists call this homeostasis<\/strong> – the natural resting state our brain continually strives to return to.<\/p>\n

Like a thermostat that keeps a room at a steady temperature, our brain constantly regulates our internal states – body temperature, heart rate, hormone levels, and yes, our mood too.<\/p>\n

What happens when we experience something pleasant? The pendulum swings towards pleasure and dopamine is released.<\/p>\n

But then the brain steps in to correct: it sends little “gremlins” – Dr Lembke’s term – that settle on the pain side of the pendulum to bring it back into balance. The result? We feel worse afterwards than we did before. Restless. Empty. Slightly irritable.<\/p>\n

And what do we do then?<\/strong> We reach again for the thing that gave us a brief good feeling.<\/p>\n

The cycle starts over. What I’ve described above is, of course, a simplified version.<\/p>\n

\u21d2 Important to note: this doesn’t apply equally to every pleasant experience.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Let’s look at that now.<\/p>\n

\"Pendel
\nAI generated<\/p>\n

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But Does This Apply to Everything – Even a Good Meal or a Film?<\/span><\/strong><\/h2>\n

This is something I find really important.<\/p>\n

Yes, the pendulum principle applies to all pleasant experiences in general. After a good meal or a film you’ve enjoyed, the brain returns to homeostasis. That’s normal and healthy – it’s what it’s built for.<\/p>\n

\u21d2 The crucial difference lies in intensity.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Dr Lembke puts it this way: science uses dopamine as a kind of currency to measure the addictive potential of experiences. The more dopamine is released, and the faster it happens, the stronger the pull towards repetition.<\/p>\n

A good conversation, a delicious meal, a film that moves you – these moments tend to leave a lasting sense of wellbeing, because the pendulum swings back gently and naturally.<\/p>\n

The gremlins make themselves heard most loudly when we reach for fast, intense stimulation: more and more wine, the next video, the next purchase. The further the pendulum swings in one direction, the harder it swings back. The result? We feel worse afterwards than before. Restless. Empty. Slightly irritable.<\/p>\n

A home-cooked meal that leaves us satisfied. A film that touches us. A good conversation that stirs something in us. These are natural rewards – they trigger moderate amounts of dopamine, the pendulum finds its balance quickly, and we’re not automatically left craving more.<\/p>\n

Highly processed stimuli are a different matter: crisps seasoned so perfectly you can’t stop. Short video clips that get faster and more surprising with every scroll. Social media feeds algorithmically designed to keep you hooked. These stimuli activate the dopamine system with an intensity our brains simply weren’t built for.<\/p>\n

The brain can actually tell the difference between a fulfilling evening with a good film and a reels loop – not morally, but neurologically. Our sense that one is somehow different from the other is scientifically correct.<\/p>\n

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Overstimulation: When the Brain Goes Numb<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n

I find this particularly important.<\/p>\n

When we repeatedly push our pendulum hard towards the pleasure side through fast, intense stimulation, the brain adapts. Over time, it needs more and more<\/strong> to generate the same feeling. Experts call this tolerance<\/span>.<\/p>\n

At the same time, our baseline shifts. What once felt “normal” now feels empty. What once brought joy now feels flat.<\/p>\n

Our brain becomes increasingly addicted to novelty<\/strong>. Research shows that unpredictability and surprise activate the dopamine system particularly strongly. That’s precisely how social media algorithms are built. The thrill of the new. And because we become accustomed to ever more intense stimulation, we get bored more quickly – in real life too.<\/p>\n

The result: concentration, genuine joy, motivation for tasks that require time and patience – all of it feels increasingly difficult.<\/p>\n

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\"Aufgeschlagenes<\/h2>\n

Dr Lembke’s Own Story<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n

What makes this interview special: Dr Lembke shares her own story.<\/p>\n

The psychiatrist who works with addiction every day developed one herself –\u00a0 to romance novels. In her book Dopamine Nation<\/em> she writes about it: it started with the Twilight saga – “my gateway drug,” as she calls it. When she got a Kindle, she was grateful that no one could see the embarrassing covers. She read between patient appointments and stayed up later and later at night. What began as a harmless habit became, over more than two years, an increasingly consuming pattern.<\/p>\n

Dr Lembke’s story shows: these brain mechanisms affect all of us. Even those who understand them best.<\/p>\n

Source: Anna Lembke, “Dopamine Nation”<\/span><\/a> and “Addicted to Dopamine” \u2013 UNSW Centre for Ideas<\/span><\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

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Why “Easy Dopamine” Becomes a Problem<\/span><\/strong><\/h2>\n

Our brains were never designed for a world of constantly available, high-intensity rewards<\/strong>. In the past, pleasure required effort: foraging for food, hunting, building social bonds. All of that took time, energy, and commitment. But that’s exactly what humans were adapted for: making an effort was how you survived and moved forward. From an evolutionary perspective, the way our brains work makes perfect sense.<\/p>\n

Today? A swipe of the thumb. A click. A scroll.<\/p>\n

Social media, box sets, junk food, online shopping – all of it delivers fast, easy dopamine<\/strong>. And the more of it we get, the more we need to generate the same feeling. It’s like crisps or chocolate: stopping is hard.<\/p>\n

At the same time, our capacity to find pleasure in simple things<\/strong> quietly diminishes – a conversation, a walk, quiet work that moves us forward.<\/p>\n

The result: Everything important feels like an effort. Everything easy no longer feels quite good enough.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Dr Lembke calls this a kind of collective anhedonia<\/strong>: we unlearn how to feel joy.<\/p>\n

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Please note<\/strong> This post is not a substitute for therapy. Sometimes exhaustion or lack of drive runs deeper, and professional support is what’s needed.<\/p>\n

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Dopamine Detox: What It Does and How It Works<\/span><\/strong><\/h2>\n

Dr Lembke recommends what she calls a “dopamine detox<\/strong>“: a deliberate break from whatever triggers your dopamine spiral.<\/p>\n

This doesn’t mean<\/strong> stripping all pleasure from your life. It’s about targeted, time-limited pauses – ideally three to four weeks.<\/p>\n

In practice, this might look like:<\/strong><\/p>\n