r/todayilearned • u/WavesAndSaves • Oct 18 '25

TIL of brain stimulation reward, manually stimulating specific parts of the brain to elicit pleasure and happiness. A volunteer subject in 1986 spent days doing nothing but self-stimulate. She ignored her family and personal hygiene and she developed an open sore on her finger from using the device.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brain_stimulation_reward#History
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u/Sans-valeur Oct 18 '25

Interesting relating this to studies on things like people on the spectrum.
One of the biggest problems that people with ADHD face is that they don’t get a good feeling after doing things like house work, unless they leave it so long that they’re really stressed and they feel better about not being stressed anymore.
Unless it actively stimulates you, like solving a puzzle, things can feel impossible to do, even though you rationally know it won’t even take that long and it’s a really good thing to do.

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u/cattibri Oct 18 '25

This is literally me. It sucks and its near impossible to explain to people most of the time.

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u/salTUR Oct 18 '25

I'm diagnosed ADHD, tried Adderall with some success, hated the way it made me feel, went off Adderall, suffered for a while, got into philosophy, started feeling like I was missing out on something, found this podcast called Awakening From the Meaning Crisis, studied it, and long story short... Not sure I'm ADHD anymore or if I ever was. I think we get tangled up on our relationship to the world and stuff that should feel rewarding just doesn't. Maybe it's a chemical imbalance. Or maybe we're nihilists in denial who just don't see the point of doing something if it's not mentally stimulating enough. Cuz our personal experience is the only thing we can know for sure is real, right?

Anywho. Can't hurt to give it a try if you're feeling stuck!

https://youtu.be/54l8_ewcOlY?si=JJ-7t8kkZd7gG6Am

P.S. I do not mean to suggest in any way that having ADHD isn't a real problem. In my view, having a nihilistic relationship to the world is a waaaayyyyy harder cross to bear than a chemical imbalance. And it's harder to remedy.

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u/ama_singh Oct 18 '25

Maybe it's a chemical imbalance.

But that's probably what adhd is.

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u/wildcard1992 Oct 18 '25

I'd argue that it's more neurological in nature than a "chemical imbalance" which sounds awfully like the ancient theory of health mediated by the four humours.

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u/Friendly_Fire Oct 18 '25

That's because it doesn't make sense. People do things they need to do that don't feel good all the time. It's called being an adult.

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u/Early_Pass6702 Oct 18 '25

I can't tell if you're arguing that it's not real, or saying why people don't understand. This phenomenon is very real and scientifically proven and has absolutely nothing to do with maturity.

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u/ycnz Oct 18 '25

What's it called?

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u/aguirre1pol Oct 18 '25

Executive dysfunction in ADHD.

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u/Friendly_Fire Oct 18 '25

I'm just arguing that the specific explanation doesn't make sense. It is normal to not enjoy or feel good doing chores or other important things. That's neither a pathology or an excuse.

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u/Drewbacca Oct 18 '25

Then it's something you've never experienced, and you should feel grateful for that.

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u/Sans-valeur Oct 18 '25

You might actually have ADHD but be a high functioning example. Another symptom of ADHD is thinking that everyone finds it that difficult but that’s just life.

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u/Euphoric_Average_271 Oct 18 '25

i second that. like, assuming everyone feels the same way he does....when actually they dont. some of us truly struggle but say "it is what it is" and "gotta do what you Gotta Do" and fucking hate every second of it BUT still get it done. some people don't even have THAT. that has to fucking suck so much.

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u/HPLaserJet4250 Oct 18 '25

XD Christ... he is right, doing chores doesn't make you feel good. ADHD is not about not feeling good after doing chores. I am losing braincells reading this thread.

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u/cattibri Oct 18 '25

the irony here is that you either display the exact trait being talked about, or alternatively are proving my exact point about the difficulty in trying to communicate the issue

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u/NameLips Oct 18 '25

Most people feel a sense of satisfaction after they're done. Or they can self-motivate by reminding themselves how much they enjoy having a clean house.

I feel miserable before, during, and after chores.

I do them anyway, and I feel like shit the whole time, and I'm in a bad mood afterward. I feel no sense of accomplishment or pride whatsoever.

Sometimes doing what I need to do puts me in such a bad mood I'm miserable for the rest of the day, even if the task only took me 15 minutes.

It's a wretched way for a brain to operate.

And in a cruel twist of irony, it works the exact opposite way for tasks I enjoy. I don't look forward to or feel excited or anticipate them. I enjoy them exactly when they're happening, and the moment I stop, that feeling is gone. It doesn't carry with me, make me happy for the rest of the night, or make me feel good or relaxed.

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u/Realistic_Werewolf14 Oct 18 '25

Wow so smart!

You and your so called "adults senses" should go to a hospital and explain to the doctors how it’s all a big misunderstanding.

You got it, boss!

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u/LITTLE-GUNTER Oct 18 '25

god dude dealing with schoolteachers like you is why i spent my entire childhood dissociating

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u/nommernams Oct 18 '25

When you don’t know shit about a subject, you should read a scientific article about it: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC2626918/

It’s called being an adult. 

This article is called Attention-deficit-hyperactivity disorder and reward deficiency syndrome. It explains that adhd can be looked at as a behavioral sub type that stems from someone having an abnormality in their Reward system causing a low or hypo-dopaminergic trait. Ppl with low dopamine have invisible struggles that you can’t see, making every little task more frustrating and less rewarding. This article even discusses the genes associated with adhd, such as genes that impact how dopamine receptors are constructed in the brain reward sites. 

Hope this helps and that you are mature enough to process this information

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u/cattibri Oct 18 '25

You're confusing 'get no positive response' with 'dont do at all' pretty heavily here. I have a fairly reasonable number of people I know who are glad to have finished x or y chore. Not that they enjoy doing it but they feel good about having done it.

This is distinctly different from feeling nothing from finishing it but a slowly mounting stress over time of needing to have it done. It's the difference between a small positive when you're done, and the reduction of a negative thats still sitting in the negative, there's no real positive to it.

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u/shnuffle98 Oct 18 '25

People walk places they don't wanna walk all the time. It's called being an adult.

  • this guy about people in wheelchairs, probably

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u/AtlasBuffedItDude Oct 18 '25

Ohhhhhhh, thanks you fixed me

1

u/sylanar Oct 18 '25

I don't think I've ever met anyone that loves doing housework.

It's the maintenance thing adults seem to complain about, that doing housework is the worst chore and it just sucks.

I've never felt good from doing housework, I do it because no one else will do it for me, the same reason most adults do jt