We all know by now that social media is mostly terrible for us. However, that knowledge doesn’t always prevent us from feeding our dopamine receptors and scrolling aimlessly throughout the day. The term “doom scroll” has been coined for just this behaviour, where you pick up your phone not because you want to look at anything specific but just to refresh your feeds. If you find yourself scrolling a lot and it’s not very much fun anymore, it might be time for a detox. Here are some strategies that will allow you to give your brain a break and detox from social media for real.
Start small
Don’t be too overambitious when you’re starting out. Try a detox for a day or two before you commit to anything longer. Social media is addictive, and by setting your sights too high, you are less likely to set yourself up for success. Once you’ve completed this first round, you can try to go for five days or a week.
See also: How Social Media Impacts Your Job Prospects
Set up new activities
Before you start your detox, it can be helpful to set up activities that you can go to when you have the instinct to go on your phone. This could be a crossword, a book, or something tactile like knitting. You can also opt for exercise, such as stretching or a quick yoga session. Find something you enjoy normally and put it to the forefront of your attention.
Turn off notifications
You can do this manually for the apps that distract you or simply put your phone on airplane mode for a given amount of time. Switching your phone to silent mode can also help alleviate some of the stress of the dings and buzzes we get accustomed to. Chances are, most of the notifications you get on a daily basis aren’t super important to begin with.
Learn to be unavailable
Apart from emergencies, no one needs to be able to contact you 24/7. When you receive a text or an email, it is completely okay to leave it and respond another time. Just be sure to give your contacts a heads up that you might be less responsive than usual.
Delete the apps
Especially if turning off notifications isn’t working, it may be worth it to delete your social media apps altogether. It may seem a little drastic, but your accounts will still be there to log into whenever you want to return to them. Plus, your phone layout will be tidier and less cluttered. You might even find that you don’t feel like re-downloading them afterwards.
So many times we’ve said we want to take a break from our phone. However, with these simple tips, you can actually detox from social media for real.
See also: Five Ways To Cheer Up A Friend Because We All Need It Sometimes
