by
Block Party
June 4, 2024
Ever feel like your phone is running the show? You're not alone. Our devices are full of addictive apps designed with features like bright colors, loud alerts, and endless feeds, all working together to give our brains a hit of dopamine, the ultimate feel-good chemical. In his book Hooked: How to Build Habit-Forming Products, Nir Eyal breaks down how social media apps use sneaky psychological tricks to keep us coming back for more and ultimately get us hooked.
But it doesn’t have to be this way. Eyal concludes that "being indistractable is the most important skill for the 21st century," so we’ve compiled actionable steps you can take to maintain a healthier relationship with social media and develop better self-control in our technology-driven world.
Your devices show you how much time you’re spending on your phone. Experts say the healthy limit for screen time for adults outside of work is two hours a day — but only 16% of U.S. smartphone users say they maintain that limit. You can use this information as a starting block for creating a better relationship with how you engage with your devices.
On an iPhone:
Android devices have a “Digital Wellness” section with screen time information.
You can also set time limits for different apps. Once you hit your quota, the app will alert you.
However, these settings can be easily overridden — if you set a 45 minute time limit for Instagram and hit that limit, you just need to plug in your password to get around it. You may want to consider employing some third party help.
It might sound ironic to consider using yet another app to curb your social media addiction, but apps like ClearSpace, Opal and Freedom set more firm time limits for apps, while other apps like OneSec and ScreenZen make you wait a set few seconds to open apps like Instagram, curbing your instinctive reflex to open apps mindlessly.
Some social media apps show you how much time you’ve spent within that app specifically. Navigate to the “Settings” section of Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube for breakdowns of time spent on those respective apps.
Social media platforms thrive on hijacking our attention, exploiting our desire for instant gratification with endless scrolls of content, and spammy notifications to keep you hooked. Push notifications you get about new messages on Instagram or retweets on X may seem innocuous, but their constant presence can profoundly impact our mental health.
Getting a constant barrage of notifications can contribute to higher levels of stress and anxiety. Whenever we get a new alert, it’s by design a drain on our attention, taking us away from whatever we were engaging with before and contributing to our mental load. Research has linked these constant pings to depression and anxiety, and they may even increase symptoms associated with ADHD.
When your phone buzzes with a new notification, your brain releases dopamine, the neurotransmitter associated with pleasure. That neurological response keeps us coming back for more, anticipating the next notification that will have us experiencing that same sensation. This dopamine cycle can become addictive, leading us to compulsively check our phones. Eventually, this constant stimulation desensitizes our brains to dopamine, so we need even more notifications to achieve the same level of satisfaction.
Keep in mind that not all notifications are bad — some are truly time-sensitive or important. For example, you probably don’t need a notification from Instagram telling you a footwear account just went live, but you might want a Venmo notification letting you know your roommate paid you their half of rent for next month.
Set aside time to review your notification settings across platforms, and disable notifications for non-essential apps or accounts.
You don’t need to delete your social media accounts, but one way to prevent yourself from being glued to your phone is by taking the social media apps where you spend the most time off your phone. You can still check your accounts for these platforms by using the desktop version. It’s a little more annoying than checking your phone, but that’s the point.
Deleting the apps from your phone can also be used as a temporary solution. Maybe you need to focus before a big job interview or minimize screen time during midterms. You can always redownload the apps later, though the old adage “out of sight, out of mind” rings true here — you might discover you don’t miss the digital noise and mindless scrolling.
All social media apps show you who you follow, and some, like Instagram and YouTube, give you more specific information like which accounts you interact with more or less than others, and which you’ve followed the longest. Take time regularly to comb through your following lists across platforms and weed out any you don’t engage with, don’t know personally, or those that only post low-quality content.
By slimming down your following list, you’ll fill your feed only with people you know and like engaging with — and fewer posts from viral video accounts, people you vaguely remember from high school, or accounts that you don’t remember following in the first place.
If you’re looking for more intensive solutions, consider stepping away from your devices yentirely. A 2021 study found that students who did a social media detox reported positive effects on their mood, sleep, and anxiety, while another study concluded that women who quit Instagram reported higher life satisfaction and more positive effects than women who kept using it.
It’s probably not realistic for you to ditch technology altogether, but there are some steps you can take to limit your social media usage.
If setting limits on certain apps doesn't work for you, physically remove yourself from your devices.
If you find yourself staying up late or waking up in the middle of the night just to spend time on your phone, consider banning phones from the bedroom. Keep your phone charger in a different room of your home than one you spend time in, so you can’t be on your phone while watching TV and sitting on the couch, for instance. If you have to go into a different room or part of your home to use your device, it may be annoying enough to keep you from mindlessly scrolling.
Replace your phone with one that does only what you absolutely need it to do. This might sound extreme, but using a phone that can’t support apps and only has basic functionality — like phone calls and SMS texting — can eliminate the distractions. The Light Phone includes tools like directions, a calendar, an alarm, and a music player, so you won't be without all your creature comforts.
It’s not a perfect fix, but turning the colors off on your screens so you only view content in black and white can curb your impulse to look at your phone. By disabling colors, your phone will be way less interesting, without meaningfully reducing usefulness.
Android users can activate “bedtime mode” to turn it on.
On an iPhone:
If you work at a computer, it’s difficult to avoid screens, and that’s all the more reason to prioritize taking breaks. If you do desk work, schedule time with a phone alarm or your calendar to go for a walk and eat lunch away from your work. And when you do, leave your phone behind so you don’t just swap out the bad screen for the good screen.
If you can, try powering down your devices from nighttime until you wake up in the morning. Many phones have built-in features to help with this. Alternately, consider using Apple and Android’s “do not disturb” features, which mute alerts, notifications, and calls.
Social media isn’t all bad — but too much can quickly take over your life. Following these steps can help you re-enter a healthier relationship with social media.
Our browser extension, Block Party, can support your digital wellness efforts. Scan your social media accounts and get expert recommendations to update settings that pose a higher concern for your digital wellbeing. Manage your social media wellness, security and privacy all in one place.
