Six months ago I made the decision to purge my phone of all social media apps in order to address my “doomscrolling” addiction. At one point I was spending 10 hours per day jumping back and forth between IG and FB. I was unable to control how much time I spent scrolling, exactly like I was unable to control my use of drugs and alcohol. Scrolling gave me a chemical reward with each new post seen and new calamity viewed.
My feed was a constant stream of tragedy, outrage, heartbreak, and disasters. I told myself it was important to stay informed, but absorbing that much pain every day weighed on me. It made the world feel darker and more hopeless than it actually is. Even on good days, I’d open an app and feel my mood shift within minutes.
Worst of all, I began tying my self-worth to engagement. A post with a lot of likes meant I mattered. A post that didn’t perform well felt like rejection. I’d check notifications like I was chasing a high. I’d analyze captions and delete posts that didn’t “do well.” It became less about expressing myself and more about being validated. My value started to feel quantifiable.
Stepping back helped me see how much space it was taking up in my head. My confidence shouldn’t fluctuate based on an algorithm. My worth isn’t determined by hearts or comments.
For those struggling with doomscrolling/social media addiction just know that it is possible to separate yourself from that toxic cycle! From my experience it took purging all social media, finding something healthy to fill all the time I had been spending online, and openly discussing my problem with supportive people.
Grateful for half a year of less stress, less judgment, more self-worth and more time to commit to activities that are based in reality and have lasting worth!
I relate and can respect you for that shere. Sometimes i see no1 likes a comment even on here and think that my advice was ignored. I actually made a post about it. Lol it didnt do too well but anyway that was because i hounestly assumed; and had shame because of that assumption; like because of the “mind reading” mental dissorder and/or mental fog info you gave me to help me understand this dissorder which was actually very very helpful for me and even cleared up my mental insomnia a lot and yess my friend mr @Alexh666 my communication has gotten better with my wife because of this info and i ask questions more about key facts insted of fixing the problem based on my assumptions
On facebook i hounestly just try to prove a point that fb is just social media to my whole 50 or less friends lol but that aside i just post stupid sentences i make up lmao. Sometimes i get pist and post my emotions but i delete those sooner or later and if i dont i hounestly just think it kinda pointless to even worry about. Sometimes my posts on facebook are so odd that i get questioned if im having a weird like, kinda like mental breakdow by some people that are still dont get how i am a bit. One post i made was, “my lips are chaffed” lol i got 0 likes. I like the irony
Now the thing i want to say about if anyone did this type of thing is just make sure the people on your social media know your safe. Being questioned about a joke ligit ruins everything the joke is for and can even ruin a completly new day , the joke is for a stupid, no point of a (i would hope someone) to forget about life and just sit there like, wtf. Yes i troll family a few friends of facebook through facebook posts but because im opened with absolutely everyone about my mental illness of schzophrania and because others take facebook more seriously i get kinda asked by these people, (only one in perticular but not latley) if im ok because of my troll post. No worries im sure its out of my facebook persons good heart (or there trolling me lol). But it did ust to hurt my ego being questioned about my stupid post about my mental health.
Hounestly if my mental health was getting out of control, it would be because of mind made lonliness. Mind made lonelyness was the start of everything bad for me
I don’t have any social media outside of YouTube and…well this.
I became a different person. I’m inherently a troll. I’d post things even if I didn’t personally agree or believe in, just to get people going. It passed the time!
But, I couldn’t handle all of the pettiness, the drama, and the constant pursuit to be better than so-and-so. I thought: there was a time we’d be mortified if someone read our journals, and now we’re posting them online for everyone to read! I began to feel more disconnected the more connected I was; and like you, I tied my value and worth to an algorithm. Meta has faced numerous ethical lawsuits over the years because of how they’ve manipulated what certain people see and when. I thought: what would Ayn Rand do?
She’d definitely disconnect from the tyranny of social media. So did I.
The effects were immediate.
I haven’t looked back since the last time I signed up for one of the multifarious platforms. I don’t miss it.
Call. Text. Email. Send me a letter.
If you don’t want to do either of those four things, sucks to suck— I’m not signing up for an account so you can message me on it.
I advocate for deleting social media. I had a flip phone for a long time until I needed to upgrade it for the shelter I was working at (we used GroupMe to intercommunicate). And honestly, I miss my flip phone.
Amazing to hear that! DBT tools are so useful for me, I’m glad you are seeing improvement already!
Sometimes it’s hard to know when people are being authentic or trolling! Depending on the structure, tone and vocabulary of a post it can be really confusing for someone like me, I try “mind reading” and wind up being totally wrong about it what I assumed. Hopefully your Facebook friend is being authentic with their concern. Always good to have someone willing to ask if we are ok!
Loneliness is rough, I can relate to it being a cause for some of my issues as well! Just remember, even if you feel lonely, you’re not alone
Yeah I guess I should have addressed that in my post. This forum may be social media, but it’s so drastically different than the toxic BS I was participating in on a daily basis that it doesn’t even feel like the same thing.
When I open this app, I’m not worried what people think of me, how many likes I get, or concerned that I’ll fall into a rabbit hole of conspiracy theories interacting with people in an authentic, supportive manor instead of surface level small talk is a huge reason I’m ok with spending time on this app.
Same! I have no plans to return to any of them. I’m definitely more willing to nudge friends and family to deleting socials nowadays!
My Touchstone isn’t a journal, per se; it’s exactly what it sounds like—my sobriety Touchstone. But it’s also my way of reaching out into the 0s and 1s and pray that someone reaches back. It’s my place where I can be so imperfectly me without stigma or worrying about the theatre of it all.
I have a deep faith…and I get so annoyed when people post statuses like: silent prayers needed.
Okay. God knows. But I don’t know. Give me more details.
Then all of a sudden they’re modest. Okay b****, that’s not how that works for me.
Or when someone says I don’t want to go into details… okay…then don’t post anything. They know what they’re doing. Luckily I don’t care enough anymore to ask probing questions.
Or fishing for compliments!
When I write something here. It’s how I feel or what I think in the moment. I am not looking for external validation. I don’t want to hear compliments or whatever. I’m extending myself past my comfort zone to be publicly vulnerable to let someone know where I am in my headspace in that moment. If I’m feeling ugly, I’m feeling ugly!
So, I agree, this forum is very different — and I am so very grateful for that!
Well said! Definitely agree, glad you’ve found a place to be authentic without expectation of validation!
Also really important! Growth requires struggle and effort, and pushing myself beyond my safe bubble has most certainly strengthened my confidence and ability to understand myself more deeply!
Social media is designed to be addictive, hence the reason authorities around the world are banning or seeking to ban their under 16s from using it.
I’ve been in the doom scrolling phase too but I’ve finally seen it for what it is and it goes against a lot of my values so it’s been easier to relinquish . My screen time is nothing compared to what it used to be.
I quit social media (except TS) back in 2019ish. I didn’t keep a timer for it so really don’t remember.
It was a good choice for me. I too was placing too much focus on the striving to be liked. IG also fed into my issues with porn. Too closely related imo.
In some ways it good in that we can share ideas there but also bad in seeking validation or objectification.
I still get sucked into screens at times but it is the world we live in. Anyway, just wanted to acknowledge our shared struggles.
Great thread!
As I can get lost in scrolling through gardening content and ikea hacks, your thread reminds me to close my eyes and nap to be rested for real garden work
I’m grateful I never had the patience to learn how to navigate social media properly. If I don’t find what I’m looking for within a minute I’m back to good old google and keywords that work. I don’t even know how to use facebook properly
That’s a lot of time away from platforms! Glad to hear you were able to prioritize your sobriety over ”staying connected”
I definitely agree that it can be a great place to communicate and share amazing things like art! I also agree that it dos tend to feed into some less than savory thought patterns and can lead to some serious negative self talk!
I appreciate your post Mitch, this is exactly the reason I love this forum
Glad to hear you can take a step back and refocus on getting your hands dirty! I love gardening too, for me it’s a great way to feel connected to nature!
A good google search usually can get the job done! “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” is a saying I grew up with, and I think it can pretty useful when trying to not over complicate things as well!
My list is essentially the same, plus text messaging for communicating with family/friends, listening to audiobooks and the occasional google search when I’m asked something I don’t know the answer to!
“Keep It Simple, Stupid” is one of the more memorable AA phrases I’ve heard in the rooms
It passed the time!
advocate for deleting social media. I had a flip phone for a long time until I needed to upgrade it for the shelter I was working at (we used GroupMe to intercommunicate). And honestly, I miss my flip phone.
interacting with people in an authentic, supportive manor instead of surface level small talk is a huge reason I’m ok with spending time on this app.
