Why Is It Difficult To Unlearn Bad Habits?

It can be difficult to unlearn bad habits because our brains are wired to repeat behaviors associated with pleasure or reward. When you perform a behavior, your brain releases dopamine, a neurotransmitter that makes us feel good. The more you do something, the more dopamine your brain releases, and the connection between the behavior and the pleasure you feel becomes stronger. So, when you’re trying to break a bad habit, you’re fighting against your brain chemistry. 

Bad habits can be challenging to unlearn because they often provide temporary relief or gratification. For example, smoking cigarettes provides an immediate sense of relaxation and pleasure, and eating junk food can make you feel good at the moment by satisfying your cravings. Unfortunately, these short-term rewards come at a cost in the long run, as both smoking and junk food consumption can have negative health consequences.

“You leave old habits behind by starting out with the thought, ‘I release the need for this in my life.” – Dr. Wayne W. Dyer

Habits are things you do often repeatedly and unconsciously. They can be helpful, like brushing our teeth each morning, or harmful, like chain-smoking. We’ve all acquired behaviors or patterns that haven’t served quite well in our pursuit of pleasure or success during our lifespan. We frequently face resistance free from such habits, even though they have prevented us from reaching our objectives.

These harmful habits can become so habitual that we don’t even realize we’re doing them. On the other hand, bad habits will inevitably become hurdles, weighing us down and compelling us to admit that these are not beneficial for us. We’ll soon feel compelled to break free.

Warren Buffett stated it quite nicely when he said:

“Chains of habit are too light to be felt until they are too heavy to be broken.”

You often find it difficult to break bad habits, even though you know they’re not good for you. But why is that? And more importantly, how can you go about changing them? This post will explore the science behind habit formation and breaking and give you some tips on unlearning bad habits.