How Long Does It Take to Recover from Porn Addiction? Unchained Series, Part 2

Welcome back to Unchained: The No-BS Guide to Reclaiming Your Mind.

If you didn’t catch Part 1, grab the last resource you’ll ever read about quitting porn.

Upon quitting porn, you may be asking:

• I feel like shit—is this normal?

• How long until I feel normal again?

• Did I do irreversible damage to my brain?

• How long does it take to recover from porn addiction?

If you're quitting porn, you're taking back control of your brain.

But withdrawal is real, and it can feel brutal.

This guide will walk you through exactly what to expect, how long it takes to recover, and what life looks like on the other side.

Want to quit porn for good? The Unchained Mental Rebuild is a free eBook with 34 hard-hitting journal prompts to help rewire your mind, rebuild your confidence, and take back control. Get it sent straight to your inbox—free.

In This Guide

• How Long Does it Take to Recover from Porn Addicti …

  • FAQ

• The Quit Porn Timeline

  • Days 1-7: Acute Porn Withdrawal Symptoms

  • Weeks 2-4: Post-Acute Porn Withdrawal Symptoms

  • Months 1-3: Dopamine Recalibration

    • Benefits of Quitting Porn

  • 3+ Months: Life in Color, A New Identity

• Your Recovery Plan

I went through this full process multiple times. I’d go three months, six months, two months without porn. But I’d relapse… until I decided to be free.

Historically, porn was thought to be harmless. Research has confirmed this is far from the case.

We’ve learned that behavioral addictions like porn are very similar to substance addictions when it comes to the brain.

After repeated super-normal experiences (stimulation higher than anything found in nature), the brain must balance itself. It does so by down-regulating its natural production of dopamine.

The effects of a dopa deficit?

• Decreased motivation

• reduced pleasure and reward feelings

• difficulty concentrating, brain fog, forgetfulness

• mood swings

• fatigue / low energy levels

• impaired motor skills

• and potential symptoms of depression.

When we cut the stimulation (porn) and begin to heal the brain, it needs time to return to a state of healthy, resilient dopamine production.

How Long Does it Take to Recover from Porn Addiction?

The recovery timeline depends on:

• the severity of your porn use/addiction

• whether you replace porn with other addictions

• your health and habits during recovery

Let’s briefly address common concerns before getting into the detailed recovery timeline.

FAQ: Answering Common Questions

How long does it take to quit porn?

The general timeline is:

• Phase 1: about a week of acute withdrawals

• Phase 2: then, 2-4 weeks of post-acute withdrawals (PAWS)

• Phase 3, the final stage of recovery: 2-4 months of symptoms tapering off—becoming less frequent and benefits become more pronounced

A full recovery is usually achieved within six months from the final use of porn.

What are the benefits of quitting porn?

Following the withdrawal period, increasing benefits will be experienced such as improved:

• focus and mental clarity

• mood

• energy levels

• sleep quality

• motivation

• desire and ability to socialize

• hormone and neuromodulator health (e.g., testosterone and dopamine)

• ability to form relationships

• sexual function and libido

• skin and hair follicle health

• self-esteem

Recovered users also report increased happiness, joy, gratitude, and life satisfaction. I can vouch for this.

What happens if you stop watching porn?

Most people experience an initial shock and acute withdrawals for about a week. Anxiety, brain fog, and depression may occur.

On average the second stage of PAWS (Post-Acute Withdrawal Symptoms) lasts a few weeks.

Symptoms include irritability, emotional instability, cravings, and sleep disturbances.

Following these symptoms, the benefits of quitting porn will begin to emerge.

Can I watch porn in moderation?

In short, no.

Studies on alcoholism show that any drinking, regardless of quantity, undermines recovery progress.

Addiction science tells us that exposure to any amount, no matter how little, of our substance or behavior undermines our recovery.

Recovering alcoholics that drink a beer during their recovery are set back. The same goes for porn.

‘Slips’ happen in recovery. Show yourself grace, and move on. Slips bring increased cravings and risk of full relapse, so be mindful of this.

It’s also important to remove triggers. There’s a new term trending around this: “de-sexualizing your brain.”

This can take shape in the form of:

• unfollowing sexual social media accounts

• staying off YouTube if you have triggers there

• moderating dating apps

• generally cleansing your devices, content, and environment of sexual triggers

Is watching porn in a relationship bad?

Whether it’s good or bad, morally, is up to you.

In terms of brain health, porn simply makes us show up as less desirable partners.

Our moods, sexual health, motivation, ability to connect, and willingness to go the extra mile are greatly reduced.

Porn also drains our sexual energy and makes sex with a real person less appealing.

When we remove porn, our sex lives and relationships improve tenfold.

It’s less about worrying whether your partner will find out and disapprove, and more about choosing to be the greatest person, and partner, you can be.

The Quit Porn Timeline

Days 1-7: Acute Porn Withdrawal Symptoms

Depending on the frequency of your porn use, the initial days upon quitting can vary greatly.

In general, this is the initial shock and onset of acute withdrawals.

Now without its customary dopamine flood, the brain is thrown off. It’s not getting the super-normal rush of dopa it expects, and it’s pissed.

Which shows up as…

Porn Withdrawal Symptoms

The first week can be accompanied by anxiety, seeking stimulation in other forms (social media, gaming, etc.) to offset dopamine loss, brain fog, and cravings.

The exact timing depends on the amount of dopamine your brain has come to expect.

Given my repeated attempts to quit, I went through this initial phase countless times.

Normally, I’d be suffering from the hangover of a porn binge—anxiety and depression—then suffer more anxiety from the initial withdrawals.

This podcast with Dr. Anna Lembke (addiction and dopamine expert) and Scott Galloway (young men’s advocate) sheds TONS of light on this topic.

They dive into the specifics of porn addiction around minute 35:00.

Weeks 2-4: Post-Acute Porn Withdrawal Symptoms

Withdrawal symptoms peak. Desperate to get its dopamine fix, the urges come on strong.

Odd things happen, like:

• Sleep disturbances (troubling falling asleep or random awakenings at 3 a.m.)

• Mood swings and emotional instability

• Periods of suffering/feeling like shit for seemingly no reason (the dopamine crash)

• Cognitive distortions, in which your mind tries to convince you to watch porn.

My first few weeks after quitting porn, I’d wake up at 3 a.m. every night. Falling asleep was harder, too.

The mind plays some sinister tricks on us, pulling out all the stops to try and get us to crack.

You might be depressed as hell and hopeless on a random morning after feeling quite good the prior day. “Maybe a little porn to cheer us up…” your mind says.

PAWS

A term to know: PAWS (Post-Acute Withdrawal Symptoms). This is normal with addictions like alcohol, drugs, and porn alike.

Instead of the initial withdrawals that rush in, PAWS are more gradual and tricky. They come and go at random—some days are great, others are hell.

Two weeks after I’d quit porn, I was on a farm in the beautiful countryside with a lovely woman. Everything was perfect—on the outside.

Despite the pleasant environment, my internal world was caving in. My dopamine was crashing, hard.

At breakfast, she read me a passage from her book as the sunlight hit our faces. To her, it was a happy moment. And it should’ve been to me too.

Instead of the overwhelming joy a moment like this should bring, all I felt was anxiety, sadness, and anger.

I went to the bathroom and tears exploded from my face. I was in withdrawal hell. It’s real, my friends.

It may be tempting to reach for porn or a replacement addiction to soothe ourselves. We must resist.

There is light at the end of the tunnel.

Months 1-3: Dopamine Recalibration

The cravings have subsided. PAWS may pop up occasionally but are fewer and further between. The majority of our days are good.

Benefits of Quitting Porn

Our mental clarity, confidence, self-respect, mood, and well-being are beginning to take flight.

You may find yourself preferring to socialize over being alone in the house.

It turns out that pornography use numbs our social and romantic instincts—compelling us to stay in the house way more than we normally would.

Once you’re free—it hits you that this is not normal, and you’re pleasantly suprised to see how much drive you have to go out and engage with the world.

You’re leaning into life—striking up conversations, meeting people, and practicing your hobbies.

We are starting to see the world ‘in color’ again—where the simple things bring us outsized satisfaction. Things like sunlight, nature, reading, writing, and a cup of coffee.

I’d have a stretch of days where life was simply… good.

Then, out of nowhere, the PAWS would return for a few hours, and I’d be anxious, irritable, and depressed.

My partner wouldn’t understand, and I’d do my best to explain this little-talked-about phenomenon.

This is temporary.

3+ Months: Life in Color, A New Identity

 At this point, assuming we haven’t simply replaced our former addiction with a new one (more on that later), our brains are nearly fully recovered.

This is when life truly takes flight, in every area.

Having purged our preference for virtual relationships/sex, our real relationships and sex lives improve drastically.

Women you see in the real world are simply more appealing.

Previously, numbed by porn and addicted to novelty, a cute girl may not pique our interest so much.

But now, it’s interesting… as it should be.

Porn addiction kills our self-esteem and creates a mindset of worshipping women. Having recovered, you can now speak to this woman—this human being—normally, without such anxiety.

It gets better.

Given our renewed motivation, focus, and clarity, we often experience greater career success, relationship quality, and life satisfaction.

Our thirst for life and adventure returns.

Everyday life (even the less exciting days) is enjoyable.

I remember working out outdoors and then sitting in nature afterward, just reflecting. I’d been porn-free for three months.

This experience, despite its simplicity, brought overwhelming joy.

I had a sense of euphoria I didn’t know was possible with such little stimulation. “Is this how people that have never watched porn feel all the time?” I asked. My body was buzzing.

With our dopamine and serotonin on point, we squeeze all the juice out of life. We’re no longer trapped in the dull, lifeless state that porn brings.

Addiction Replacement

I can’t emphasize it enough: we cannot simply replace our addiction with another one, as this delays brain healing.

One of the times I went a few months porn-free, I’d simply replaced the dopamine with other artificial sources. Instagram, mindless YouTube, sex, excessive coffee, and high-intensity music.

We must limit these things and allow the brain to truly recover.

What’s that mean? Sitting through the shitty withdrawals, and doing things that replenish dopamine.

Accept it now—you WILL suffer a bit. But it’s a trade—you’re exchanging temporary suffering for the greatest life you could ever imagine.

Replacement addictions slow you down, whereas living life normally despite the withdrawals speeds up recovery.

There are activities that are dopamine replenishing and ones that are dopamine draining.

Dopamine replenishing activities:

• Cold showers (250% increase in dopamine with no crash)

• NSDR (research suggests 65% increase in baseline dopa)

• Sunlight

• Foods high in tyrosine (what the brain uses to manufacture dopamine) like nuts, avocados, meats, cheeses, and seeds

• Nature

• Exercise

• Sleep

• Journaling

It’s important that in our recovery, even while experiencing porn withdrawal symptoms, we lean into the replenishing activity.

This has the dual effect of speeding up recovery and making this period more enjoyable.

These activities can also serve as an outlet and replacement if you’re feeling intense urges.

Your Recovery Plan

To truly quit porn forever, we need the right mindsets and tools. Below is a battle-tested plan to do just that.

1. Get Educated and Drop Mindsets That Ensure Failure
   
   The fact that you’re here proves your willingness to educate yourself. You may have mindsets that you think are helpful, but have failed you thus far, and are actually unhelpful.
   
   That said, I highly recommend reading The 10 Mindset Shifts Required to Quit Porn (Part 1 of this series).
   
   Further resources that help (and don’t hurt) your mindset are: the free Easy Peasy book and this Reddit post.
   

2. Build a Dopamine Replenishing Routine
   
   Critical to your successful recovery will be the ability to replace the dopamine gap you’ll create by quitting porn.
   
   So accustomed to getting inundated with dopa, let’s just say your brain won’t like it when you take that away.
   
   We’ll suffer a bit, that’s for sure. But we can build habits that expedite recovery and make it less painful.
   
   In this phase, health is of utmost importance. Sleep, exercise, and nutrition need to be on point.
   
   As the brain rebalances, it’s more vulnerable and less resilient, so a poor night of sleep will have a bigger impact than it would normally.
   
   On top of that foundation, incorporate journaling, sunlight and nature exposure, cold showers or ice baths, and meditation or NSDR.
   

3. Remove Triggers Under Your Control
   
   Triggers in our external environment are inevitable. We see a beautiful woman walking down the street, okay. No problem.
   
   Many triggers, however, can be avoided.
   
   This may be difficult for some, and many resist doing this critical step, rationalize it, and fail, but…
   
   You must remove all sexual content from your phone, computer, TV, and environment.
   
   That means unfollowing the sexy Instagram girls or ideally deactivating social media.
   
   It could mean making a new YouTube account, no matter how logical it may seem to keep your current one and just ‘ignore’ the algorithm suggestions.
   
   It also means an end to “peaking”, tempting yourself, or “just one video/photo.”
   

4. Decide To Quit, and Commit
   
   Not like the last time you said you’d quit. But deeply and truly deciding. Then sticking to it.
   
   When I’d “quit” in the past, I’d be so strongly disgusted by my relapse that I’d vow to quit. But somewhere, deep down, I knew that wasn’t true.
   
   It wasn’t until I truly decided to move on to a better life, leave the tempting but destructive habit behind, and choose myself.
   
   Accept the challenge you’ll face, take full accountability for your life, and commit to never watching porn again…
   
   No matter what happens externally, no matter how shitty you feel, and no matter how convincing your distorted thoughts may be at a given moment.
   

5. Start Living Your Amazing Life, Today
   
   Meaning, don’t wait until you’re fully recovered to start living.
   
   As our 10 Mindset Shifts article points out, this is a destructive mindset. The “one day I’ll be recovered and life will be great” mindset.
   
   Your life is amazing… shit, you’re free from the chains of porn addiction right now.
   
   Go outside, go on dates, make friends, start businesses, and lean into life, regardless of your status in recovery.
   
   It’s not about a number of days clean or trackers—it’s about knowing deeply that your life is amazing already, and it’s getting better each day.
   
   As this great post says:
   
   “Be too goddamn busy winning to go back. Work out, walk a lot, build a business, talk to people, be outside. You are not a victim of this anymore (you never really were.)”

What Happens When You Stop Watching Porn

Life happens. Miracles happen. You become yourself again.

As I said before, the fully recovered, fully winning version of you isn’t some next-level beast that’s just built different. It does feel and like that way, though.

You’re simply living at the normal baseline you’re naturally supposed to be at.

[In Part 3, we dive into rewiring the brain after years of porn addiction and what that looks like. Part 4 taps into the power of dopamine detox.]

Porn just fucks up the overwhelming majority of modern men, keeping them below their baseline. It’s so common and normalized we think this is the natural state.

Welcome to a new reality, where you never knew life could be this rich.

Don’t forget the grab the free eBook that will ensure you never watch that bullshit destructive stuff again.

I want to hear your story—reach out on Instagram or here on the site.

To your growth,