Something is being reported, by a lot of people, consistently. A qualitative analysis of over a hundred rebooting journals found this kind of experience described repeatedly. That is worth knowing about.
What nobody can tell you is how long it lasts, whether it happens to everyone, what causes it, or what it means, because it has never been the subject of a formal study. "Days 14 to 45" is forum lore delivered with a confident face.
- If it happens, it is commonly reported and not evidence that something is wrong with you.
- Do not treat it as proof of damage requiring more extreme abstinence. That logic runs in a bad direction.
- A flat stretch during a behaviour change is one thing. Two weeks of not caring about anything is depression, and it wants a GP, not a streak counter.
- If arousal difficulties persist beyond the change in habits, see a doctor. Erectile problems have plenty of physical causes, and attributing them to porn without checking is how people miss something treatable.
Where this comes from
Read the full lesson: The flatline, and what we honestly know →
Sources and how strong they are (3)
- AnecdotalThe "flatline" — a period of dropped libido, mood or arousal during abstinence — is consistently reported in abstinence journals but has never been formally studied.Fernandez et al. 2021
- AnecdotalA qualitative analysis of 104 rebooting abstinence journals found abstinence felt impossible at first and became attainable with cognitive-behavioural strategies plus social support. Self-report only; third variables not ruled out.Fernandez, Kuss & Griffiths 2021, Archives of Sexual Behavior
- Mixed evidencePorn-induced erectile dysfunction is a real clinical hypothesis with supportive case reports and clinician reports, but frequency-based population studies have not produced consistent associations. It remains contested.Park et al. 2016; JMIR 2021 international survey; Kirby 2021
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