You look up from the phone a while later: eyes tired, evening gone, world feeling terrible. These seven practices are for what comes after.
1. Do not add the shame scroll
The first move after surfacing is often a second scroll: how could I waste the evening AGAIN. Notice the shame and let it pass with one breath.
2. Put the phone in another room, physically
Put the phone in another room or a drawer. Then notice what happens over the next two minutes, such as the urge to reach for it.
3. Wake the body the feed froze
Scrolling usually means sitting still. Stand, shake the arms, roll the neck, walk to another room.
4. Orient to the room you are actually in
Orient: look around and name what is actually here, such as your chair, your light, your street.
5. Let the absorbed feelings move through
News can leave you feeling frightened or angry. Name the feeling – “I feel frightened by things I can do nothing about tonight” – and try a long exhale, a shake, or a short walk.
6. Plan something else for that time
The scroll may have filled a gap, such as decompression or boredom. You could fill it with tea, a chapter, a call, or a stretch.
7. Check what the scroll was avoiding
Sometimes – not always – the scroll is shelter from something: a task, a feeling, a quiet too quiet. Hand on the chest, one honest question: what was I not doing just then? Write the answer if it comes.
If the scrolling is eating your life
If hours daily go to feeds you do not enjoy, and stopping has failed repeatedly, consider talking to a doctor or therapist. If low mood or anxiety is affecting your daily life, or you have thoughts of harming yourself, contact your doctor or a crisis line.
Related: practices for notification overload.
