Look, we’ve all been there. It’s 11:47 PM, you’re lying in bed, and somehow you’re five years deep into a Reddit thread about impending economic collapse while simultaneously checking if that wildfire update from three hours ago has changed. Your thumb’s on autopilot, scrolling through an endless feed of climate disasters, political meltdowns, and algorithmic rage bait that makes you feel progressively worse about… well, everything.
Welcome to doomscrolling. And if you’ve clicked on this article at 2 AM while doing exactly that, don’t worry. I’m not here to lecture you about screen time like some wellness influencer flogging overpriced blue light glasses.
What Actually Is Doomscrolling?
Doomscrolling is that compulsive behaviour where you endlessly scroll through negative news and social media content, even though it’s making you anxious, stressed, or just generally feeling like the world’s going to hell in a handbasket. The term took off during COVID-19, but let’s be honest. The behaviour existed long before we had a catchy name for it.
Your brain’s getting a hit of anxiety-driven dopamine every time you refresh that feed. It’s the same neurological loop that keeps people checking poker machines or refreshing their email inbox obsessively. The algorithm knows you’ll engage with content that triggers strong emotions, and negative emotions are sticky as hell.
Why We Actually Do It
Before we get into the “how to stop” part, it’s worth understanding why your brain keeps dragging you back to this digital hellscape.
The illusion of control: When everything feels uncertain, consuming information feels like preparation. If you know about every potential disaster, maybe you can somehow prevent it from affecting you. Spoiler: you can’t.
FOMO on steroids: What if something monumentally important happens and you miss it? The fear that you’ll be the only person who doesn’t know about the latest political scandal or natural disaster keeps you scrolling. Here’s the thing though. If it’s genuinely that important, you’ll find out. Trust me, someone will tell you.
Negativity bias: Your brain is literally wired to pay more attention to threats than positive information. It’s an evolutionary hangover from when missing the “there’s a tiger in that bush” signal meant you became lunch. These days, the tiger is algorithmic content designed to keep you engaged, and you’re feeding it every time you scroll.
Practical Ways to Actually Stop
Right, enough theory. Here’s what actually works, based on real-world application rather than some productivity guru’s monetised morning routine.
Set Specific Times for News Consumption
Instead of grazing on bad news all day like some kind of depressed cow, schedule specific times to check the news. Maybe 15 minutes over your morning coffee and another 15 minutes in the evening. That’s it. When you feel the urge to check outside those windows, actively acknowledge it and do something else.
This isn’t about being ignorant. It’s about being intentional. The world will still be there in three hours, probably in roughly the same state of controlled chaos it was before.
Turn Off Non-Essential Notifications
Seriously, why are you getting breaking news alerts from seven different apps? Unless you’re a journalist on deadline or your job genuinely requires minute-by-minute updates, you don’t need notifications for every minor development in stories you can’t control anyway.
Go into your phone settings right now and turn off notifications for news apps, social media, and anything else that pings you with anxiety-inducing updates. Keep the important stuff: messages from actual humans you know, calendar reminders, that sort of thing. Everything else can wait.
Use App Timers
Both iOS and Android have built-in tools to limit app usage. Set a daily limit for social media apps. Say, 30 minutes total. When you hit that limit, the app becomes harder to access. You can override it, but that extra friction point often makes you pause and think, “Do I actually want to keep doing this?”
There are also third-party apps like Freedom or StayFocusd that can block specific websites or apps during certain hours. Sometimes you need to protect yourself from yourself.
Curate Your Feed Aggressively
Your social media feed doesn’t have to be a constant stream of existential dread. Unfollow, mute, or block accounts that consistently make you feel worse. This includes news outlets, political commentators, and that one person from high school who’s somehow become a full-time rage poster.
Follow accounts that add value, whether that’s genuine education, humour, or content related to your actual interests, rather than outrage farming. Your feed should serve you, not the other way around.
Replace the Behaviour
This is crucial: doomscrolling fills time and provides a (toxic) form of stimulation. If you just try to stop without replacing it with something else, you’ll probably fail because your brain will be looking for that dopamine hit.
When you feel the urge to scroll, do something else instead. Read an actual book. Go for a walk. Cook something. Call a mate. Play a video game. Watch something you’ve been meaning to watch. The activity doesn’t have to be productive or virtuous. It just needs to be something other than mainlining digital anxiety.
Create Physical Barriers
Keep your phone in another room while you’re working or sleeping. Use an actual alarm clock instead of your phone so you’re not immediately reaching for the doom portal the moment you wake up. Leave your phone in your bag during meals. These small physical separations create space between you and the compulsion.
Be Realistic About Information Utility
Ask yourself: “Is this information actionable? Can I actually do anything with what I’m learning here?” If you’re reading detailed analysis about geopolitical tensions you have zero control over, that’s probably not serving you. If you’re learning about a local issue where you could genuinely participate or take action, that’s different.
Most doomscrolling isn’t about staying informed. It’s about feeding anxiety while feeling like you’re doing something productive. You’re not. You’re just marinating in other people’s curated outrage.
When Professional Help Might Be Worth It
If you’re finding that your news consumption is genuinely interfering with your sleep, work, or relationships, or if you’re experiencing significant anxiety or depression, it might be worth talking to a mental health professional. Sometimes doomscrolling is a symptom of underlying anxiety rather than the cause, and addressing that directly can be more effective than just treating the behaviour.
The Bottom Line
Doomscrolling isn’t a moral failing. It’s a completely understandable response to living in uncertain times, combined with technology specifically designed to exploit your attention. The algorithms are optimized to keep you engaged, and negative content is engagement gold.
But understanding why it happens doesn’t mean you’re powerless to change it. Start small. Pick one or two strategies from this list and actually implement them rather than reading this article, nodding sagely, and then immediately opening Twitter to see what fresh hell is trending.
The world’s problems won’t be solved by you scrolling through them at midnight. But your sleep, mental health, and general quality of life will improve if you stop trying.
Now close this tab and go do literally anything else.
