Have you ever found yourself scrolling for hours on your phone, while you could’ve been using that time more productively? This is known as doomscrolling, the tendency to continuously and obsessively scroll through negative or disheartening content online, mostly on social media. Platforms such as TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, and X (formerly Twitter) are all used to feed into this habit.
It’s easy to fall into a seemingly endless doomscrolling cycle. Reading news with a negative connotation activates a part of your brain called the amygdala, which triggers your stress or a “fight-or-flight” response. This makes you feel the urge to scroll for an indefinite amount of time, which then distracts you from the task you should actually be completing. This cycle can create a feedback loop that turns doomscrolling into a habit that, if left unattended to, could lead to various consequences.
There are several downsides to doomscrolling. According to Harvard Health, doomscrolling may contribute to headaches, neck and shoulder pain, difficulty sleeping, and elevated blood pressure. It can also have more severe health implications, such as loss of appetite, nausea, and anxiety. A study done by the American Psychological Association (APA) in 2024 shows that the average teen spends 4.8 hours on their phone. Additionally, a study done by the University of Arkansas found that seventy-five percent of college students doomscroll, which is an incredibly high and concerning number. The 2024 APA study also showed that forty-one percent of teens with a high social media usage reported poor mental health, seventeen percent reported having body image issues, and ten percent reported having suicidal thoughts. This study clearly communicates how daily social media usage is directly linked to the state of one’s mental health.
The effects of doomscrolling vary from person-to-person; some might be less affected from the effects of constant scrolling, while others may be heavily impacted. Doomscrolling can also lead to a reduced attention span, diminished critical thinking, emotional fatigue, and social isolation.
Experts recommend a few strategies to reduce the urge to scroll. For one, keep your phone out of reach when you sleep, so you don’t immediately feel tempted to pick it up whenever you have a spare moment. Additionally, turn off unnecessary notifications, set daily time limits, and even completely power off your phone when doing homework to create healthier device usage habits. Another way to decrease the amount of time you doomscroll is by filling that time with other activities, like sports and clubs.
Overall, doomscrolling is an unhealthy behavior that can severely impact mental and physical health. It’s easier than you might assume to fall into this trap, as platforms are often designed in a way to make users inclined to spend more time on them. You must be conscious and cautious not to excessively succumb to this habit, understand when you must put their devices down, and implement solutions to reduce screentime and the distractions it brings.