Doomscrolling is Ruining Your Mental Health — Here’s How to Stop
Wondering why you can’t stop doomscrolling? It’s probably because of this one myth: that you always need to be informed and in the loop or you’re missing out (FOMO). The problem with FOMO is that staying informed is a complete myth.
Not only is it now impossible because of the daily information overload that would probably break our ancestors’ brains, but it’s terrible for your physical and mental health.
There’s this pervasive and ongoing pressure that you need to stay informed, be involved, keep up to date, always know what’s going on, etc. You’ve probably heard it so many times and never realized what that kind of impossible pressure does to your nervous system.
In this modern and ever changing world, protecting your energy and health is of the utmost importance. It’s time to take a step back from social media and the news and let go of the myth that you have to be informed and in the loop all the time.
Give yourself permission to be (temporarily) out of the loop. Here’s how to finally break free from your social media and news doomscrolling addiction.
Table of Contents
Reduce Your Screen Time by Training the Algorithm
How to Stop Checking the News All the Time
Choose Local, Inspiring, & Uplifting Content Instead of Rage Bait
Set Better Boundaries with Friends and Family
How to Set Digital Boundaries Without Feeling Disconnected
Reduce Your Screen Time by Training the Algorithm
Don’t let the algorithm dictate what you consume. You have the control to curate what you want to see and not what it wants you to see.
Pick your favorite social media platforms and start searching for content that energizes, entertains, or educates you – without angering or stressing you out. Unfollow or mute creators that post clickbait or ragebait content and start following anyone that resonates with you.
Stop clicking on anything that upsets or enrages you and only click on things that seem interesting or unique. You’ll start to train your algorithm to show you less garbage. Same for whenever you’re doomscrolling the news.
It’s unfortunate that news organizations and content creators thrive on engagement, which means a proliferation of ragebait and clickbait news stories and content. There are lots of positive things happening in the world, but they don’t get as much engagement (and therefore you won’t see it unless you actively look for it).
Example:
I noticed that over the last few years Reddit has become non-stop, wall-to-wall American politics (even when a subreddit has nothing to do with it). The daily barrage of enraging information is not good for anyone’s nervous system. I decided to do a complete overhaul and unsubbed from anything negative or ragebait-y and started seeking out subreddits that promote curiosity, playfulness, and camaraderie.
Since Reddit tends to show me the same 10 or so subreddits (despite joining more than 100 of them), I have taken control of what I’m consuming.
Here’s what I did to train my algorithm:
I stopped going on the main r/all page
I focused only on my personally curated subreddits
Every day I set a timer and scroll through my list of subreddits until something jumps out at me. I visit and scroll through the newest posts. I upvote things I enjoy, read the comments, and then move on to another subreddit
Once the timer goes off, I move on to a different activity
I’ve done the same thing on Instagram and have pretty much given up on Facebook.
Now when I log into Instagram, I see interesting designs, cool architecture & historical homes, gardening & plants, cookie and cake decorating, plus other kinds of wholesome and cute content. It’s completely changed my social media experience.
Related: How to Stop Wasting Your Free Time
How to Stop Checking the News All the Time
The best way to stop that constant urge to check the news (or social media) is to create what’s called a time boundary.
A time boundary is your best friend: it simply means creating a start and finish to an activity, and then holding yourself accountable to respect that boundary (whether you feel like it or not).
Your brain can’t handle this level of daily input, but it can handle smaller doses of summaries and wrap-ups. So instead of up-to-the-minute updates that keep you in a state of fight-or-flight, you’ll set aside a certain amount of time each week to “catch up” on what’s been happening that week.
This could be an hour or two on a Sunday afternoon, or 20 minutes each day. It’s entirely up to you.
The most important thing is to decide ahead of time, try it out, and be willing to adjust. And have a cope ahead plan for when you feel the urge to look something up or check in before your time boundary starts.
Example:
Start noticing when you’re mostly likely to doomscroll. Is it when you’re bored, feeling upset, or is it just autopilot? If you’re waiting at the doctor’s office, mindlessly scrolling the news, Instagram, or TikTok really isn’t that big of a deal. But if you’re sitting at home, it’s no longer healthy or sustainable.
Have a cope ahead in place so that instead of immediately giving in to the urge to doomscroll, have a list of energizing activities to choose from.
doomscrolling Alternative activities:
Practice a new skill or hobby (or freshen up on an old one)
Text a friend something funny
Check in with a loved one
Learn something new about a subject that interests you
Watch cute or funny videos
Take a walk/get some fresh air
Read a book or magazine
Then when your allotted “check in” time arrives, figure out which news sources provide good summaries that inform you, not enrage you. Adjust as needed.
Choose Local, Inspiring, & Uplifting Content Instead of Rage Bait
You might feel a lot of guilt for not staying informed, especially when it comes to current events. Your brain might even tell you that it’s wrong and makes you a bad person. If you’re struggling to stay off national and global news, try local!
Here in Austin, we have a local news source called Community Impact. I love getting my little newspaper in the mail so I can read what’s going on locally.
Not all of it is positive of course, but there’s a lot of interesting information about my community that does actually impact me (hence the name, ha). I specifically seek out interesting events, new restaurants, and local developments.
Look around to see if your city or town has local news sources so you can stay up to date on what’s going on in your area.
You can also find news sources that share wholesome and uplifting stories from around the world that you can immediately connect with. This way you’re “staying informed” in a healthier way. This could be anything from the latest images from a distant telescope, positive news about an endangered species, or an interesting sounding festival in another country.
Remember that most national and global news doesn’t impact your immediate day-to-day, so it’s OK to wait a bit before informing yourself. This will help you save energy for things that you do need to stay up-to-date on.
Need to Set boundaries but aren’t sure how?
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Set better boundaries with friends and family
Boundaries are an essential part of showing up sustainably in your relationships. They’re the best way to protect other people from your frustration and resentment.
This is because good boundaries mean other people’s behavior don’t need to negatively impact you because you have a sustainable way to respond.
Along with good boundaries, it’s also important to acknowledge and recognize that certain people in your life will energize you, while others drain you with overly negative energy.
Think about anyone in your life that you dread talking to or brings you down. Maybe they’re constantly complaining about something, only wanting to discuss negative news, or something else that leaves you drained.
Clarify whatever it is they’re doing and ask them to do something different. For instance, you might ask them to refrain from sharing only negative news or complaining, and then have a boundary around how you’ll respond in the future.
Boundary Setting Examples:
“I no longer want to talk about (negative subject). If you bring it up, I’m going to change the subject.”
“I’m doing a social media/news/other detox and want to stick with topics that are interesting instead of enraging.”
“No politics or negativity at the dinner table please, let’s keep it light and fun. The world is hard enough as it is, and I’d rather hear about things that interest you.”
“I can’t hear any negative news without first hearing something uplifting or positive. If you can share something cool or interesting, then I’ll be happy to listen to what you want to talk about.”
This isn’t meant to be a form of toxic positivity where you pretend everything is great and ignore the negative (good vibes only, anyone?). It’s meant to protect your mental and emotional energy and actually bring you closer to that person.
And if they’re struggling to respect your request, create a boundary that you’ll change the subject, hang up the phone, or limit your communication. Setting the expectation ahead of time means it’s not punitive, it just protects your energy so you can actually enjoy time with that person.
Related: How to Deal with Negative Friends
How to Set Digital Boundaries Without Feeling Disconnected
You can absolutely still care about the issues in the world, and you can still take meaningful action without being informed of everything all the time.
You need to make space for difficult thoughts and feelings, and you can’t do that when the noise is too loud and too pervasive. Think about how much more effective you are when you’re calm, grounded, and confident.
If you don’t currently feel any of those, you need a news and social media detox.
Take a doomscrolling break so that you can come back to issues that matter to you with clarity and determination.
This will also help you recognize the news sources that thrive on your anger because it increases their ratings, clicks, and views. It is not designed to educate or inform you.
Make space for the discomfort of being out of the loop so that you can choose where to put your energy. This will give you time to consider what you want to do and how to do it. For instance, joining a community organization, attending a rally, or donating money to a cause that matters to you.
Taking a break isn’t an all-or-nothing deal, it’s entirely up to you what it needs to look like. For some, it might be a complete detox for a week, two weeks, or even a month. For others, it’s a detox from specific issues for a set amount of time. Experiment and see what works for you!
Cutting back is a process, not an overnight quick fix. If you go completely cold turkey, you’ll likely return worse than ever.
Treat this like an experiment if you’re concerned about not being able to consistently follow through. Think like a scientist collecting data: whether you feel like it or not, you’ve committed to seeing what the end results are and will continue, even when it’s hard.
Try it for a few weeks and then check in. It’s more than likely if you commit to daily action, you’ll be so much more calm, clear, and collected than you were before. I hope these tips will help you disconnect and detox from a news and social media addiction so you can feel less stressed and dysregulated on a regular basis.
