Dopamine Menu Builder
A dopamine menu is a list of things that lift your mood, laid out like a restaurant menu, so you pick from it when you're bored or stuck instead of reaching for your phone. Tap the ideas you like, add your own, then print it or copy it. Your menu stays saved in this browser.
Where the idea comes from
The "dopamenu" started in a 2020 conversation between Jessica McCabe of the How to ADHD channel and ADHD coach Eric Tivers. It's popular with people who have ADHD, but anyone who loses evenings to scrolling can use one. It's a planning tool, not a treatment.
The five courses
- Appetizers: five minutes or less. A quick lift that won't pull you off track: stretch, step outside, one song.
- Entrées: the things that leave you better off: a workout, a walk with a friend, cooking, a hobby.
- Sides: things that make a dull task easier: a podcast while you clean, music while you work.
- Desserts: fun but easy to overdo: social media, TV, games. Keep them on the menu, just not as the main meal.
- Specials: once in a while: a concert, a day trip, a new book.
How to use it
- Keep it where you'll see it: on the fridge, by the desk, or as your phone's lock screen.
- When you notice you're restless or stuck, pick an appetizer or an entrée before anything else.
- Once a week, cross off what you never chose and add what worked.
Make the desserts something you earn
A menu tells you what to pick. It doesn't make the entrées happen. One way to tip the balance is to turn desserts and specials into rewards you earn with the habits you want more of.
That is how Habit Rewards works. Each habit you check off pays you coins. You list your rewards, like an episode of a show, a takeaway or concert tickets, and give each one a price in coins. When your balance covers it, you claim it, guilt free. More on that in how to make a reward chart for adults and a token economy for adults.
