If your idea of a break is doomscrolling until you feel worse, a dopamine menu can help. It is a simple list of activities that give you a genuine lift, sorted so you can pick one on purpose instead of defaulting to the phone.
The idea caught on in the ADHD community because it works with how our brains chase novelty and reward. Here is how to build one, with low-effort ideas that will not swallow your whole afternoon.
What is a dopamine menu
A dopamine menu is a written list of activities that reliably make you feel a bit better, organised like a restaurant menu. The point is to decide in advance, while you are calm, so that in a low or restless moment you can just pick something instead of negotiating with yourself.
How to build your dopamine menu
Borrow the restaurant idea and sort your activities by effort and time:
- Starters: quick, one to five minute lifts (a calming game, ten star jumps, stepping outside, a glass of water).
- Mains: longer, more satisfying activities (a walk, a hobby, cooking, a proper workout).
- Sides: things you pair with a boring task (music, a podcast, body-doubling with a friend).
- Desserts: the moreish stuff that is fine in small doses but easy to overdo (social media, games with no end, snacks). Label these so you spot them.
Low-effort starter ideas that actually help
- A short breathing or focus game (a one-minute reset, not an hour-long grind).
- Step outside for two minutes of daylight.
- Stretch, shake out your arms, or do ten quick jumps.
- Tidy one small surface.
- Text someone a quick hello.
- Splash cold water on your face.
Keep the desserts off the starter list
The trap with ADHD is that the endless-scroll and no-end-game activities feel like starters but behave like desserts: easy to begin, hard to stop, and often a worse mood afterwards. Keeping a few genuinely quick, satisfying starters on hand makes it easier to skip them.
Ponoki as a dopamine menu starter
Ponoki is designed to be a healthy starter: a quick, satisfying lift that actually ends. Pop a spiral, catch some fireflies, or take a slow breath with your companion, and you get the little hit of reward without the bottomless-scroll aftermath.
Because it opens in your browser and each game is a minute or two, it slots neatly onto the starters section of your menu, right next to stepping outside and drinking some water.
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Ten calming games and a companion that grows when you show up. No download, no ads, free to play.
Open Ponoki, it is freeFrequently asked questions
What is a dopamine menu?
A dopamine menu is a pre-made list of feel-good activities, sorted by effort and time, so you can choose a healthy pick-me-up on purpose instead of defaulting to the phone. It is popular in the ADHD community.
What should I put on a dopamine menu for ADHD?
Mix quick starters (a calming game, daylight, water, a stretch), longer mains (a walk, a hobby), sides to pair with chores (music, body-doubling), and clearly labelled desserts (social media) to enjoy in small doses.
Are games good for a dopamine menu?
Short, satisfying games that end cleanly make great starters, since they give you a real lift without the endless-scroll trap. Ponoki is built for this, with one to two minute games and no bottomless loop.