Phoenix Relapse Protocol

You relapsed. Again.

You're here not because you're weak—but because you're human. Shame tells you to disappear. But that just repeats the cycle. So I built this: a 24-hour protocol to restore dignity, dopamine, and direction. No fluff. Just actions that work, grounded in neuroscience.

🔹 Step 1 – Get Outside

Get out of your room. Even for 5 minutes. Look at the world again.

It breaks the loop of isolation and restores emotional regulation.

Watch: The Social Brain and Its Superpowers
Dr. Matthew Lieberman explains how the human brain is hardwired to connect—and how isolation can shut down key emotional functions.

🔹 Step 2 – Help Someone Else

Send a kind message. Share something helpful. Give attention.

Helping others shifts your brain out of guilt and into value.

Watch: The Science of Kindness
The Random Acts of Kindness Foundation explains how kindness physically and mentally changes your brain chemistry.

🔹 Step 3 – Clean One Thing

Doesn’t matter what. A dish. Your phone screen. Something.

It proves you can change your state. Builds momentum fast.

Watch: Behavioral Activation
Dr. Ali Mattu explains how simple actions can interrupt depressive spirals and boost forward momentum.

🔹 Step 4 – Write Honestly

What happened. What you're feeling. What you still want.

Journaling externalizes chaos. It restores clarity and self-trust.

Watch: Expressive Writing and Mental Health
Dr. James Pennebaker discusses how journaling after trauma or setback improves emotion regulation and cognitive clarity.

🔹 Step 5 – Walk for 20 Minutes

Get your body moving. Put on headphones. Just walk.

Walking releases BDNF, resets dopamine, and breaks paralysis.

Watch: Movement Changes the Brain
Professor Grant Schofield explains how walking supports neuroplasticity, calm, and long-term resilience after setbacks.

Phoenix Relapse Protocol Poster

Print this out. Hang it in sight. Use it when you forget who you are.

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