7 Ways I Avoid Doomscrolling on Social Media

Ah, doomscrolling, the phenomenon of consuming too much negative social media content. It's tricky to avoid, but by combining a few tactics, your social media interactions can be filled with positivity and optimism. Here's how I avoid doomscrolling.

1 I Have A Morning and Night Ritual

Most times when I wake up, I sit quietly for about 30 minutes before engaging with my phone. That way, I am not immediately bombarded with social media notifications that can lead to doomscrolling. It lets me think about what I want to achieve during that day so that I start on a positive note.

When my doomscrolling is at its worst, I also put my phone in Do Not Disturb mode (a feature that can help you spend less time on social media) and put it away an hour before I sleep. That way, I am not sucked in, causing me to stay up late scrolling through social media and exposing myself to negative content.

2 I Set A Timer

Setting a timer helps me avoid doomscrolling by limiting my time on social media at any given time, reducing the amount of negative content I see. Also, knowing my time is short helps me focus on important and meaningful content and interactions. Furthermore, the alarm snaps me out of it when I unintentionally start doomscrolling.

The timer is useful when I have work but still want to check my social feed between breaks. I usually set the timer on my iPhone or use an online timer (when I don't want to touch my phone).

3 I Avoid the Most Toxic Social Media Platforms

Some social media platforms tend to attract more negative discourse than others, leading to extended and unhealthy scrolling. For example, I found that most of my negative interactions were on X (formerly Twitter), Facebook, and Reddit. You would have to audit the ones you visit to find this out for yourself.

I now prefer platforms with the most positive-to-neutral content to avoid negative or heated interactions. For me, these are places like YouTube, LinkedIn, and Pinterest. These platforms make it less likely for me to start anxiously scrolling.

4 I Avoid Negative Accounts

One thing I started noticing when I was getting a handle on my doomscrolling is that many accounts I followed didn't focus on positive messages. So, if I saw a post from someone who shared triggering content constantly, I unfollowed them.

This greatly improved the quality of my feed by making it more balanced and skewed toward positivity instead of things that made me anxious.

5 I Avoid The Comments Section on Controversial Posts

It used to be that when I saw a controversial post, I would jump to the comments section after reading it. I thought that was where the "fun" was.

The sheer amount of comments that these types of posts can attract made me invested in the many replies, debates, and conflicts. The continuous scrolling made it hard to stop, and I often spent an unhealthy amount of time going through everything due to the FOMO effect. I even joined in from time to time.

Now when I see a controversial post, I avoid the comments section. This has made me more mindful of my scrolling habits and broke the cycle of getting lost in emotional conversations.

6 I Do Things That Make Me Happy

Another great tactic I use to avoid doomscrolling is to shift my focus. If it's not work, then it's something I enjoy, such as playing video games, spending time with my family, drawing on my Android tablet, or taking a walk.

There is nothing fulfilling about doomscrolling. The longer I am away from my device doing things that make me happy, the more my mood is lifted, and I feel less stressed and anxious. Doing this often helps me build up positive habits that keep me away from doomscrolling.

7 I Disconnect Completely

Despite all these tactics, I can sometimes fall back into the routine of doomscrolling, especially on extremely busy and stressful days. To break the cycle, I usually disconnect to reduce temptation and mentally reset. This helps me find the time to refocus and reinstate my good habits.

Disconnecting will be different for you than it is for me since we probably have different lifestyles and needs. However, here are some steps I take to disconnect:

• I put my devices in Airplane Mode for a set period.
• I intentionally leave my phone behind when I'm going into another room or leaving the house.
• I do a social media digital detox over the weekend.

Before I got a handle on my situation, I started noticing signs that doomscrolling was affecting my mental health. If you're feeling any of them, such as sleep disruption, anxiety, stress, and losing yourself in the doom and gloom of the world, it's time to take a step back and do something.