The Rat Park Experiment - revealed

I promised to reveal the scientifically-backed reasons why moving to Mexico has been so good for me.

So, without further ado…

There's an experiment that was run that radically transformed our understanding of compulsive behaviors and addiction. One that radically transformed my understanding of myself, too.

The first round of experiments was simple.

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They put rats in plain cages — one rat to a cage — with two water bottles in each. The first water bottle was regular water, while the second had a special twist; it was laced with Morphine. You can probably see where this is going. The rats had an infinite amount of an addictive, dopamine-spiking substance and they started using it. A LOT. Many of them overdosed and died, in fact, their self-preservation instincts not even kicking in before it was too late.

And if we were to draw some conclusions on this...

We might say that when left with infinite means to use something addictive, rats (and likely people) will just use it infinitely regardless of the consequences. (Can you see how there could be some issues when nothing is more "infinite" than porn, given it's never more than a few seconds away and you don't even have to buy anything?)

Yet, one Canadian psychologist named Bruce K. Alexander knew that was an incomplete analysis.

What about the other environmental factors?

Those cages were boring.

There was nothing for the rats to do except drink morphine and chill.

So Bruce set up a more thorough experiment called Rat Park.

He had a control group that was set up exactly like the first round — one rat to each boring cage, with a morphine bottle and a regular bottle.

But he introduced Rat Park too.

A park built specifically for them, filled with the things a rat might love. They had toys, running wheels, fountains, slides, mazes, obstacles, other rats to socialize and mate with, and yes… morphine and normal water, too.

What happened next was rather telling:

The rats showed a strong preference for normal water in these circumstances. They usually ignored the morphine-laced bottles altogether, and even when they did go for an occasional sip, it was less and not a single one of them overdosed.

In other words:

When they were living dynamic and interesting lives where their needs were being met and they were satisfied socially, sexually, etc… those compulsive tendencies went way down.

And that, dear reader, is why

moving to Mexico was so good for me.

I knew about Rat Park about a year before I moved here.

And I'd been working on creating my own personal "rat park" by building a lifestyle I found more satisfying.

Moving to Mexico just fasttracked that whole process by launching me into an ever-changing, dynamic situation filled with new people and experiences, more intimacy, better weather where I wear T-shirts and shorts every day, more fun, and a generally much more satisfying lifestyle.

Which made it a LOT easier for me to curb my compulsive behaviors.

Because I've been happy.

And growing.

That said, you don't have to move to another country to create your own Rat Park.

You just need to create a vision of how you want to live, and identify your underlying needs and desires that are currently going unmet, and then ruthlessly dedicate yourself to moving toward those things. Build a lifestyle that's so satisfying you don't want to escape from it anymore. Figure out what your personal Rat Park looks like, then create it.

This general principle is a powerful one.

I know it'll help you.

I don't know your specifics, though. Which is why when we work together 1-on-1, this is a major part of what we'll work on together — it's my job to get to know you, how you want your life to be, and then help you bring that vision into reality by pouring the time and energy that was being wasted by porn and compulsive behaviors into healthier things instead.

Download the BeFree App today and start building your personal "Rat Park."