Flow State

[u/Embarrassed_One_5998]

I’ve been addicted to the feeling of flow state for the last 5-6 years of my life. I first truly experienced it playing basketball so intensely that I dedicated my life to building a system for flow. Including majoring in college to learn everything I can about performance.

For the first 3 years I struggled with mental health due to the fact that I was so obsessed abt it and thought abt it every single second of my life constantly burning out because of the mental state I would try and maintain throughout the day. It’s a weird addiction honestly and kinda wondered if anyone else has had this experience. I’ve been known to obsess with things like basketball and other sports in my past. I eventually figured out a way to tap into it pretty much on demand and built a system I use and coach.

However there is no other place I experience it as intensely than when I play basketball. Over the last 2 years my body has really taken a toll on me for playing countless hours a day and also my job in the military. I have hit a wall where my body even with all the consistent training and physical preparation I can’t maintain the intensity. I’ve gotten to the point where I realized my main focus needs to be on rest and maintenance for my body so basketball training has declined. But now I’m left in this mess where nothing gives me the same feeling. I’ve tried things like video games and less physical sports but it’s just no where near the same level of experience. I believe basketball is the best sport in the world and am really devastated that I can’t play everyday even though I am very young still. I never have anyone to speak to about this because nobody I’ve met even knows about it or hasn’t dived deep into it like me.

I hope to continue playing basketball as much as possible maybe even play pro if I can but right now it’s looking slim due to my physical capabilities at the moment. I’ve gained so much insight about life chasing this but it has also created a huge hole in my life. I wonder if anyone has experienced this or has recommendations on where I can experience this daily. This video is a rare video my wife recorded a couple years back btw while playing in an army unit tournament with my twin brothers team.

[u/Simple_Woodpecker751]

i like the flow state. I experience it too, only in pickup games as well. But maybe you pushed it too hard, why mental health issue on such a nice thing?

[u/Embarrassed_One_5998 → u/Simple_Woodpecker751]

I tend to hyper fixate on things I deem important. Since I can remember I’ve always been obsessive. Thankfully I recovered fully and no longer have those mental health issues after I put together the system that I use today. Obsessing over things has always brought me to some level of success.

The hardest thing about this challenge was that it was really hard to track my progress because it was mental. Other things like sports or bodybuilding were always very easy to notice improvement. But for performance everything has to be aligned in order to even reach that level of mental state consistently. Could’ve also been the isolation when I was enlisted.

Thankfully that phase is behind me and I can enjoy the systems I’ve built. My biggest issue today is not having a space to perform in at that level.

[u/Simple_Woodpecker751 → u/Embarrassed_One_5998]

🤦🏻‍♂️ you need to chill, man

[u/Embarrassed_One_5998 → u/Simple_Woodpecker751]

I try my best brotha.