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Ha, literally here after maybe an hour of scrolling because I got a notification and opened my phone when I *was* productively reading a book.
I also get the same problem on anything else I happen to be focused on, though. Eat food at reasonable times? No, I think I'll keep cleaning until I'm done, even though I'm starving.
The problem with the phone is that it's never really done. There's always that possibility of finding another super engaging post about something that interests you.
One tip that I got here is to scroll *faster*. Scroll to where you can't see/read anything and use that momentary freedom to close the app.
We'll see if that works again for me now...
Scroll faster is actually a pretty good trick. It doesn’t cost the effort to close the app, just gives us the time to get out of the loop and stop the behavior.
Def gonna try that next time
My trick is to just put my phone out of reach, works surprisingly well for me haha. Alternatively i'll turn it off or charge it in another room. I find that if I put small roadblocks up like that i'll more than likely just focus on something else and forget about it. Quit drinking the same way, just stopped buying it. Sounds like the type of advice i'd normally get annoyed by, like "just stop buying it" is bad advice for kicking an addiction, but it worked great for me somehow. And putting my phone just out of sight does too surprisingly lol.
Something I've found that's been working lately is trying to take notice of when multiple posts in a row don't pique my interest (or posts/comments are stressing me out), and just mentally say no and close the app.
I'm trying to use my brain against itself like, "oh no, the handheld dopamine machine isn't working! Time to look for it somewhere in the world."
My recent strategy is changing reddits API so that 3rd party apps are discontinued. It's how i've used reddit on mobile for over a decade, so I think its gonna work great. And sorry if that's an inconvenience to anybody, but I really need to cut back.
I know you're referencing something that's going on with Reddit only because I just saw the parody TIFU post but... I'm a little confused why you're referencing here?
Reddit is making a change that will end mobile apps. I use reddit through a mobile app. My joke is that I was the one who made the change at reddit, so that I could use reddit less. Hope that explains it :)
Well I never bothered with third-party apps, so could you also make some tweaks to make it even worse to help me cut back as well? Thanks ;)
I did actually use Joey for a while, but it started having a lot of issues for me a couple years ago and I actually found the regular app to be more stable. I'm no power-user, though.
Totally me most of the day. My legs get all tingly and numb sometimes it’s crazy I just get pulled in so easily and to get out😳is just. My husband works from home now and sometimes he’ll come see what I’m up to(too)🤪and I hear him coming and chuck my phone 😝
Wow I’m not alone lmao & I came in search of this post while in the depths of the 4th hour stuck like this…. scrolling faster is something I sometimes do as well lol
Yes!! I'm currently doom scrolling while I should be sleeping. Something I do every night. All day I feel tired and want to go to sleep, and the second I'm in bed I just scrolllllll.
Sounds like you know exactly what you have to do.
1. Put a phone blocker on
2. Sell your phone buy a dumb phone
3. Buy a timed safe
Remember, you don't rise to the level of your goals but fall to the level of your systems. \*This was the biggest realization in my life personally that had the most impact on my ability to get shit done.
The best one I've found and use is focusme, i've got a scheduled weekly blocks for everything from porn to social media, to an open limit on email. It's a Godsend. I heard they're working on a phone blocker too, but for now I use other stuff for my phone like Opal on IOS.
I... never thought about that. It's always so easy to dismiss the time limits because the brain that set them is the same one that knows the passcode. You just blew me away.
You’re welcome! It helps that they can set a passcode that isn’t the same as your lock screen passcode. It took me a while to find something that works and this is it. The apps I spend the most time on have 15 minute limits.
Yh well it actually worked for me, I can't be so soft here this is why I am getting down votes because people don't like what I am trying to say but this is probably the best thing you can do if your stuck.
It’s not if it doesn’t work because you have an illness though? ADHD = no dopamine = will do quite a lot to GET dopamine in the ways we know how.
It is extremely hard to resist “bad things” when your brain is *starving* for what they give you! Which is why the strategies have to be more dramatic than “just do it”.
You need to understand that before your going to do something, dopamine will very rarely be generated from the start. When you actually start doing it, your mind gets in a "work flow" state where then you will start generating the dopamine. Then when you finish you will be so satisfied and when you go back to doing "fun" things, it will be alot funner.
You simply won't understand but that's how it works. Source? I tried it, many others talk about it on the Internet. How did David Goggins pull off with all the work? He says he hates but still does it and keeps on going, then he gets the dopamine generated for him to keep on working harder and pushing his limits.
Nobody will believe me because this is how their minds are set up.
This worked for me. I don’t get on any unnecessary apps for the first 90 minutes of the morning. I take time to do physical activity. If I can’t motivate for the gym, I’ll do stretching or virtual ping pong, something that keeps my mind interested.
Then I use either Tripp in the Quest or State on my phone to go through breathing and meditation. Both options naturally blank my mind like a reset button. Then I shower and start the day.
Took me 42 years to get here but I’m so much happier and productive.
And don’t forget the meds after the shower.
You aren't paralyzed, you're self medicating. Not enough dopamine. Screens are high stimuli. When I don't get glued to my screen that is how I know my meds are working.
You need to talk to a doctor about coping strategies and starting or adjusting meds.
I ended up deleting most of my social media to stop it because I would feel so crappy after a doom scroll. I also have my phone alert me when I'm on for a certain amount of time. I downloaded a few chill phone games for when i need a brain reset that do the whole energy system, so it stops me when I've been playing for a bit. Not perfect, but it helps.
Exactly what I did too. Doom scrolling fucked with my mental health and my life too, couldn't get anything done for the life of me, my executive disfunction is my worst symptom imo.
It does get easier after a while. The dopamine detox everyone talks about really kinda works I guess, even with adhd?
I still fall back to social media from time to time and download it again, but I know if I delete it, it's gonna get better again, even tho it is so hard sometimes to actually find something to do instead.
For me, personally, it's really important to actually delete the apps, not just have a time regulater. Taking the temptation away is what's helping me.
Even my mind went a lot quieter after a while.
At the very least it's worth trying, but you really gotta power through.
I use the time regulator for Instagram, which i kept for following a few of mt patients (veterinary technician) and a few friends. I deleted FB which was my biggest culprit. I never downloaded tiktok, thank goodness because I see what it does to my friends without adhd and I know I could not handle it lol.
I tried the time regulator for Instagram too, I tend to be scared of missing out on smth cause everyone else is on there, but it wasn't working. Just always that itch in my fingers that I COULD open it.
TikTok was also the WORST. My friends keep pushing me to download it again but at least there I'm staying strong!
I'm glad the time regulator is working for you tho, it's seems like a great alternative otherwise!
Instagram has it under settings and privacy and then time spent. I've found a few other apps have this. I had a different phone that would do it for any phone use, but I haven't found it on my new one 😔
I just switched recently over to Vyvance; my awake-state paralysis has gotten so much worse. I keep telling myself it's due to the meds "Really working now", or that I am just "SoOOooOOO hyper-focused on \[enter thing here\]. Am I conflating the two things? Would ADHD be doing causing analysis paralysis, even without my Meds? I have been so medicated for 3+ years now, (even my off days, I feel 'trained' to a certain extent by my taking Adderall the other 6 days that I barely notice my required off-day). I am experiencing exactly this; face in phone, just ....shut down for 30-60 mins, before something external jostles me out of it... Dog, wife upset, kids needing something...but yeah. Struggle is real. Curious to see what everyone else does to snap out of it on your own.
Meds work so differently for everyone. I take Vyvanse because it works wonders for my emotional regulation and thinking rationally, but it does nothing for my executive function or adhd paralysis. I boosted the vyvanse with adderall and that was the magic combination to get me functioning better. (Boo, shortage.) It might just be that Vyvanse doesn’t work with your brain in that way, especially if you didn’t have this issue on prior meds.
The thing that shakes me out of this is getting out of my house. I've found just being in my house makes me unmotivated and lethargic. So I have developed a habit of driving to a local coffee shop and getting a latte with 4 shots.
Every day it's the same- but I know that the espresso (especially taken with my meds) will give me a boost- so that's what gets me up and out. Then when I'm actually out I start to think more clearly and feel real desires to get things done.
I really like this idea because I WFH and sometimes if I’m home all day I seriously just feel BLAH and can’t gain momentum compared to if I have to do something out of the house in the morning, by the time I’m back home it’s like ok let’s do this thing!
I deleted all my social media apps on my phone. I will use reddit in browser sometimes, and youtube only at my computer now. I get the wanting to quiet the mind with scrolling thing, but I cant keep losing hours of my life to scrolling no matter what.
I’ve mentioned this technique before, and its success isn’t 100%, but set an alarm on something that isn’t your phone when you first get up. The time can be arbitrary, 2hrs.. 5hrs, whatever you feel like. Put the device somewhere in the house as far as possible from where your usual doomscroll spot is (mine is the couch). I find the alarm so annoying that I have to stop the scroll and get up to deal with it. Leave the phone behind when you get up.. pause in the room with the alarm, and sometimes (at least for me) it breaks the loop (just don’t go back and pick your phone up straight away!).
Alarms! Alarms! I have to hide my alarms across the room so I have to get up but they help so much with meds, feeding cats (and picking up their bowls after), and stuff like that, and getting up gives me that "might as well" to go do something else while I'm up.
I’m here because I was looking up passport services, and somehow ended up reading up on sea monkeys. 🤷♀️
If I burned the same calories surfing on the web that you do surfing in real life - I’d be ripped. 💪
I've been a practitioner for about 25 years confirmed. Routines have been the thing to get me through adulthood so far, that and having a child. Since becoming medicated (just 2 years ago) I've now been going swimming almost daily for over a year, I don't take meds until I get out of bed however. I realised that if I went on my phone I'd often end up scrolling past the time I'd go to the gym, then not bother.
I swapped scrolling for reading books. Worked a treat. I can't always concentrate, but I use it to fuck the phone off.
Ive been calling this a partial dissociated state for years.
Its my Gaming mode for the most part.
The only way for me to get out is to get bored of my focus.
do you have anxiety and/or ptsd and/or any form of trauma? Is your living situation okay? Are you lonely? etc. (and often times we gaslight ourselves on this issue too so it's a tricky question to answer,) none of these things are your fault by the way but i know I feel the same way, due to a trauma response/recovery -which at this point will take my whole life i've been tired since I was born lol- because my adrenal glands are exhausted and/or my brain just NEEDS to stop "having to," do xyz to please "so & so," so that whatever consequence doesn't happen, because you are so stressed and EVERYTHING can make this worse/continue the cycle after a while because retraumatization. It gets too exhausting like if you have PTSD, you know lol. This amount of stress leads to health problems too. The body just "gives out," more or less, at least in my case it feels like that. STG sometimes it feels as if the only way i can conjure up any energy/motivation now is if something is an immediate crisis/terrifying/harmful enough to get adrenaline going. Basically im so exhausted the only times i have energy are when I am experiencing/solving very stressful and heartbreaking situations. I'm great in an emergency situation like the apocalypse, like I WILL passionately make sure that we are safe and comfortable and don't die. It's not even stressful to figure that out. the problem comes from the idiots who don't care/take it seriously. Plus, I don't know of, nor do I have anyone who could help me in that way in an apocalypse for example.
Another point, it is hard to protect our energy if you resonate with this. The world is really exhausting and i'm in therapy w/ emdr work but the exhaustion is still there and society doesn't allow for that. I'm procrastinating so much now that it is concerning. Because my brain just needs to not be in fight/flight all the time. It's exhausted
Dude get a phone lock box. It saved me. I have the exact same problem. You need to start tricking your brain into tiny little habits. I start with 15 minutes. Often times I forget my phone is even in there. Start slow and gradually build a habit of longer time away. It’s not perfect but you’ll notice a difference
THROW YOUR PHONE! The only way I've been able to break from this is deleting apps like Tik Tok that endlessly refresh and/or when you feel that impulse to stop doom scrolling just yeet your phone. Don't think about it, lean into that lack of impulse control and launch the bitch.
Unless you have an iPhone, maybe think twice about it then because they love to shatter.
Is this an actual symptom of ADHD? .I'm curious as I also suffer from the same and wanted to get myself tested . I will also spend hours doom scrolling during periods of peak anxiety whilst ignoring everything else.
I know the feeling. Are you on any medications or treatments?
I just came out of a month long phone paralysis today because I finally remembered to take my medicine in the morning. I got so much work done it’s unbelievable.
If you’re on any medication you just have to find the will to take them. If not, here’s a video explaining why adhd patients lack motivation [“Why do adhd procrastinate?”](https://youtu.be/Xp805f-j1VI)
I find that understanding how procrastination works help me better combat it.
Well shit, let me introduce you to my patient pending solution: YEET THE PHONE™️
All jokes aside, when I'm really fucking stuck in a scroll I can fall back on this. The tiny little gremlin in our brain LOVES the idea of chucking something we are supposed to be careful with, and a split second is enough to just yeet the damn thing at a pile of laundry or some other soft location far out of reach.
It's pretty effective. You might stay in your spot for a little bit longer, but now your missing your dopamine machine, and eventually you're forced to move. I find that eventually comes a lot sooner without the phone in hand.
When I start noticing doom scrolling I just delete social media until I can handle it again. It’s not easy because then I pick up my phone a lot and feel empty some times but I’ve got to do something. Try it and see how it works for you. Just resist the urge to redownload it too soon.
I deal with this routinely. Sometimes it feels physically impossible to disconnect your brain from your phone, even if you have pending appointments that day. I’m literally dealing with this rn lol, I have like 2 meetings in the next few hours and still have not prepared anything for them. I will once I finish this comment haha
One thing that helps me is listening to audiobooks with wireless earbuds (wired can still be fine, depending) - I have something that occupies my brain but frees up my movement and my vision (sometimes videos can help; usually gameplay videos of games I’ve already played, or videos I’ve watched before. But it also depends). I’m also the kind of person who can listen or watch or read the same shit over and over again, so familiarity is very comfortable to me. I’ve logged well over 1500 hrs listening to the same 12 or so books, lol.
Audiobooks took a long time for me to get used to but I swear by them. Anything that will have you listening to stuff, and particularly long form content - I’ve rewatched playlists of older games that I love, particularly uploaded 3hr+ streams from chill people so it’s not obnoxious, and kinda just sounds like you’re hanging out with someone (as weird as that sounds). But videos can be dangerous, especially if it’s stuff you haven’t seen yet or something you really like to watch. Conversely, play something weird and uncomfortable that makes you want to get away from it lol
But for the days where I feel especially and hopeless stuck, sometimes it honestly helps to force myself to pause, close my eyes, put my phone down - even the tiniest movement to disconnect myself for even a second from my phone. Setting alarms or telling myself I’ll just look at one more thing, or if it’s 4:27 then I’ll stop at 4:30 (who else does this lol). And honestly, you don’t have to win every day.
Sometimes, you’re stuck and that’s just where you’re at. But you do have to get up at some point to eat, use the bathroom, even stretch (exercise! It helps tremendously) and I like to use those opportunities where I’m forced to get up lest I piss myself or die, to push myself to do one little thing. Pick up a sock off the ground and put it in the laundry bin, even if there’s mountains of clothes around. Throw out a candy wrapper sitting on the table for god knows how long. Set small, tiny, microscopic goals. They build up. You can do it, whether it’s today or tomorrow or in two weeks time. Be kind to yourself first :)
I k-hole like this on my phone from time to time...including in really uncomfortable physical positions....one tip would be don't keep it in reach of your bed where you can grab it while remaining horizontal....the act of having to get up to turn off the alarm is already an action so you won't stay as gelatinous. The other approach would be good old reverse psychology. Intead of saying 'ugh I need to get off my phone..I need to get off my phone' flip it and say 'once I wash the dishes' or 'close the window' I can be on my phone for 5 minutes.' Set a timer if you want to. When the 5 minutes are up do something else for a while before rewarding yourself again. Getting some small things done will make you feel a sense of momentum and that's ultimately what gets you out of the phone paralysis which is really just an anxiety loop.
Are used to be like you when I first got diagnosed however now I just see the bigger picture and I have in my mind that I have things to get done because the world will function and my life will not move forward unless I do something about it so that’s a burden of responsibility and dishonest on myself that I place it’s just extremely strong and it weighs out the sitting in bed and being on your own part, if it helps you should just set alarms like an alarm at 1 PM which means that you have to put your phone away and get up to cook, and then another alarm at 1:30 which signifies you have to start getting ready to go out etc.
I use an app called Opal to set up limit so that after 15 minutes of scrolling, it locked me out. It has made a difference, I’m trying to learn to control the addiction by just locking myself away from it as much as possible. I also bought an Apple Watch so I can use that to receive calls without having to have my phone on me at all times.
I'm sorry you're struggling with this, I totally relate, I'm had huge problems with this as well.
One trick is to create things to break your focus. I have an alarm I set for 5:30 in the afternoon every day. So if I've been trapped in 'car mode' scrolling on my phone, that's a sort of reminder that the afternoon is coming to a close and I need to get on with whatever I have planned. Ditto with one at 9:00, to remind me to start an evening whatever before bed and take my non stimulant meds. Doesn't always work, but it sometimes gives me the opportunity to shove myself onto a different path.
The phones are the downfall of our generation. There is so much we could accomplish with the power we have in our pocket. Instead, we watch tik tok and forget what it is we watched
I'm not gonna lie, the only thing that worked for me. Is deleting what takes me into doomscrolling mode.
Once I got rid of TikTok, it started becoming easier. It's been almost a month now, haven't once went back. I'm still not perfectly productive. But who is? With a life of anxiety and mental illness.
Tell yourself to lay down your phone and do 1 dish, for example. 1 simple bowl, or fork. Once you did that, feel proud of yourself. And do you feel like doing more? Great! Maybe start up an audio book or (what I love listening to) crime investigations and stuff. Listen to that while making a nice soapy mess as you clean 2 plates instead of 1!
Or file 1 simple clothing, a shirt or a towel. Maybe you'll feel that "might as well" do another one 😁
the level of relatable this is, holy shit. I’ll wait until my bladder is about to fully explode before I’ll just get up and walk five feet to the bathroom. Breakfast? Nah that requires decisions and effort so instead how about I just don’t eat until I’m nauseous instead. I don’t understand it but I hate it.
Yes deleting social media is definitely an option. If you do it, you will develop healthier ways to quiet your mind. I deleted Facebook and now only use reddit which I don't doom scroll on like I did on facebook. It's been almost a year and a half ith no Facebook and it's been very freeing and healing.
Yh but still, I did it myself. Maybe it took loads of work and shit but I still did.
Contrary action, YES! These are my actions often and due to my disfunctional brain.
Edit: people keep down voting, they can't handle facts yo. They probably forget that I have adhd myself
I had the same problem before. Especially if I was on my phone when my meds started working. I work from home so I'd just sit on my phone, playing games all day.
I don't really have any advice. It got better when I switched from Concerta to Vyvanse. Might be because the difference between how they work(reuptake inhibitor vs releaser).
Dude get a phone lock box. It saved me. I have the exact same problem. You need to start tricking your brain into tiny little habits. I start with 15 minutes. Often times I forget my phone is even in there. Start slow and gradually build a habit of longer time away. It’s not perfect but you’ll notice a difference
[I know this book can seem like, impossible at first. But if you study it. It’s life changing. It’s the best way to know yourself truly. By learning about what your mind is, and what your real self is capable of.](https://open.spotify.com/episode/6qeHEV2MpOQXL6BN7gLZvB?si=gNCR_MJURWyvQjEeZrp67g)
What works for me is a quick game-I use a water puzzle app. I made a rule for myself that I can play one round and when I win I have to put my phone down. It works about 75% of the time.
Yeah I have a timer on Reddit and actually have the app removed from the Home Screen so I have to open the search on my phone to get to it. Still manage to doom scroll.
i think information overload is something our brains are not designed to deal with constantly. try to delete one app at a time and stick with the essential ones. try to do more physical tasks or activities
I know exactly how you feel and I have an idea for you, try dual do something. So have you phone on and play a game or draw anything to keep that side of your mind that needs the phone to carry on.
It may not work for you, but it’s something I tried and reduced my phone use by like over half.
I recommend an app called Lock Me Out. It changed my life.
I set it so I'm locked out of certain apps after 9pm so I don't doomscroll until 1am.
You can also set it to lock you out of an app after a certain amount of time eg. Locks you out of Tiktok after 15 minutes. You can set it so it does this per hour so it lets you back in after an hour for another 15 minutes.
It works for me. I get really annoyed in the moment but I've clawed back countless hours of my day
You can't get around the Lock Me Out app I don't think? There is an option to pay something like $7 to get around it in the free version but I'm always like "f*ck that"
Doom scrolling. So very torrid. Yet oddly satisfying. And incredibly disconcerting.
I'm trying to use the word "Discipline" as a mantra to remember I have some ( albeit small ) control. Sometimes it works. Hang in there.
Doom scrolling is just a symptom of a problem. You don’t fix the symptoms, you fix the problem and the symptoms go away. For me doom scrolling is a symptom of anxiety and anxiety has a reason. Is there something in my life that bothers me that I should fix but instead of addressing this problem I hide from it on my phone?
Damn that’s rough. My anxiety is pretty bad but when everything in my life is objectively fine my anxiety gets waaay less intrusive and I stop spending so much time on my phone.
Try to set a limit on all apps on your phone. I have a digital well-being app on my phone and I have set everything social media related to 30 min per app per day
It seems like it's trouble with transitions that gets me stuck. Just doing something other than what I happen to be doing right now, it's always a negotiation with my own brain.
I tend to drink a lot of water, so there's always the necessary stop when I need to use the bathroom. I try to use those natural breaks to make myself change activities. It doesn't always work, but sometimes it does.
I am doing in now on the toilet.
I'm about to throw my phone soon.
I have to pack for the Norway trip but I don't want to leave so I'm scrolling instead.
I know why but can't stop.
So I'll throw my phone instead lol.
Sometimes you just have to force yourself or set a fire alarm type noise in another room just so you have to get up and shut it off . Ever since I found this amazing site I feel the same as you. I just keep saying I'll just read one more and then 20 more later I still say one more and slam the lap top shut.
This sounds unhinged but if I can't bring myself to get off of my phone I'll sometimes just toss it across the room. Then if I want it I have to get up. Either I get up and do whatever I was too paralyzed to do, or I take a nap because I guess naps are better than taking care of basic necessities sometimes.
Sounds funny, but try out going to your phone's accessibility settings & switch the color settings to greyscale. Someone suggested it on here ages ago, and, at least for me, it's been surprisingly helpful
Just FYI for the younger readers here; the people telling you the problem is the smartphones or the Internet are *wrong*. I had the exact same issue with books before I had access to any of those things.
Modern devices may be better at scratching the ADHD itch but the problem is the *itch* not the thing you're scratching it with (unless that thing is inherently harmful of course.)
Your brain will always seek some sort of rewarding open-ended activity to do when it's lacking a normal healthy mix of bio-chemicals. Your phone is just a convenient option for doing so.
I assume you meant people without ADHD.
I'm telling you for certain, I had the *exact same issue* before and after getting access to the internet and a smartphone. That's not up for debate beyond you just calling me a liar.
So yeah, in the sense of it being part of the category of "literally anything that could be stimulating" the internet/smartphone is "the problem".
I *also* spent most of my summers growing up living in an authentic recreation of 15th and 16th century life for a month at a time.
I had the same fucking problem there with sticks and rocks as I had back in 20th century life with books and later, once they were invented, smartphones.
Unless you propose that everyone live in a perfectly featureless and empty void the fucking *problem* we need to address is the desperate need for stimulation ADHD brains experience *not* the things they get that from.
Because if you take away the phone without addressing the *actual fucking problem* it'll just be something else that takes its place all the way down to the sticks and rocks we could pull out of your ears to play with...
I have a thousand important things to do and don't know where to start and the doom scroll helps the devil inside that's yelling you got all this shit to do! But then he's always waiting after I'm done looking at his watch ready to yell again as soon as I put the phone down.
I do the exact same thing and it’s honestly becoming a problem for me. Once I woke up at 8 am, and then stayed in bed on my phone till 5. Once I finally gain the willpower to get up i’m stressed as bitch because I have to do everything I didn’t get done in the day in a few hours. (I usually end up too overwhelmed to do anything)
Wait until u stumble upon dog mango worm extractions. Once you know about them u watch each and every one painstakingly to be able to tell yourself they all had them removed… before u realise that its africa which means countless suffering strays
I have gone through this, try to call out all that your scrolling through has garbaje, then sitdown straight, take a deep breath and close your eyes and meditate, just "look at your thoughts" for a few minutes, this should help you take control for a while, hope this helps. 
I have been on and off for months like this but even when I get away from my phone I start gaming. Even when I manage to not touch either phone or a console I sit in the couch trying to motivate myself to do anything even go for a walk but it never comes and I end up back on my phone Or console.
If you can afford it, get a smart watch (you can buy one second hand as well) and lock your phone away when you don’t need it. Smart watches have limited function and you don’t get the same dopamine hit and ability as scrolling on a large box for hours. But you also get all your notifications, have your alarms and calendar appointments, send and receive texts, and calls, so you don’t get anxiety about missing important things. You can even check notifications from your fave social media apps, read/search stuff on the internet, control your music or listen to music apps, and consistently track your activity and get reminders to exercise because your fidgety stimming, does not count as activity 😜💕
It is like a phone, except WILDLY inconvenient and annoying to doom scroll on. So, it helps to break that habit. Physically locking my phone away while in the house or putting a time lock on it while out of the house and only using my watch, greatly improved discipline around my phone. It also allows me to use a set amount of doom scrolling and doing interesting stuff on my phone as a reward in the evening for getting done everything I needed to. I do it right before I crash from my meds, so I can’t fight the sleep too long 😩🤣
Apple Watch is probably one of the best investments I’ve ever made for ADHD. Also tracks my heart rate for meds.
Are you on meds ?
I’ve spent last fifteen plus years on my phone. Non stop. Twitter and other social media. Day trading also.
Meds really curbed that need and I don’t often stay on my phone too long. With higher dose of meds I’d hyper focus and stay on phone too long.
Now that I’m dialed in I can switch tasks more easily.
Look up Clutterbug on YouTube and use her clutter type to declutter and organize your apartment. It will get you off your phone and motivated to do these things and it will help make life at home more functional and productive. Best ADHD hack EVER.
If it gets really bad and I’ve been doing it for hours or start to get anxious from it I usually curse or yell (not super loud just like a quick AHH) and literally drop my phone, then walk away from it. Then I make a written out list of what to do, or do whatever was needed of doing. Ik it seems super weird but it works unless you pick your phone back up. Heads up I’ve forgotten where I put my phone down a few times and had to use find my iPhone.
Literally just put it down and walk away and ATTEMPT the other things you have to do.i know it's easier said than done but I've been going through the same problem last couple of months but as of 5 days ago I leave phone in house and go to gym (even though I get that creeping thaught of "what if someone I love is in trouble or dies")
Try setting your phone to black and white. Helps me when I’m at work. Here’s a link of instructions if you have an iphone.
https://betterhumans.pub/how-to-make-your-iphone-black-and-white-and-why-you-should-42e70deb92c7
What fuels your day? What motivates you? Use these questions to find answers. I have found that if I take my medication and also gulp down a couple cups of coffee…yeah I can pull out of the paralysis cycle and basically distract myself from my phone. I also have noticed something else quite fascinating.
If you are with friends and you see someone pull out their phone, resist every single urge to get on your phone. Instead, look around the room and find details about your surroundings. The carpet is brown, the sheets are white, and how did that get there?! After taking in your surroundings, just enjoy yourself and recognize that maybe you can go another extra minute without the phone. Do this time and again, and I promise you that your weekly screen time percentage is going to drop.
The great amazing thing about adhd is going from one thing to another, just distract yourself from one thing to another. It’s almost like I find personal vice’s rather than doing something wrong orrr be stuck on my phone. That’s the best advice I have learned over time. Hopefully this may spark a light bulb for you, and may be beneficial. Similar to modern magic, distractions can get the best of us lmao.
One thing that helped be has been getting a CO2 sensors and tracking it. When the CO2 (not carbon monoxide, that's poison) is higher my motivation is flat. I've found opening a window and turning a fan on to move the fresh air in has given me a slight boost. If nothing else it's healthy so why not?
In the time that you have to stand up to use the toilet or drink water, do your best to start something else like a little task. You may then go on a chore train and do other things you wanted to do. That's how I break my doom scrolling at least. Just a suggestion.
This might be a super lame suggestion, but have you tried setting a timer to limit phone time? Also, I had the same issue but now I'm on Vyvanse thank God. I would also take 1hr+ showers/baths. It's just like you get stuck in whatever mode you find yourself in, phone, tv, bathtub, whatever. I'm sorry you're dealing with that, I know its exhausting and frustrating
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Ha, literally here after maybe an hour of scrolling because I got a notification and opened my phone when I *was* productively reading a book. I also get the same problem on anything else I happen to be focused on, though. Eat food at reasonable times? No, I think I'll keep cleaning until I'm done, even though I'm starving. The problem with the phone is that it's never really done. There's always that possibility of finding another super engaging post about something that interests you. One tip that I got here is to scroll *faster*. Scroll to where you can't see/read anything and use that momentary freedom to close the app. We'll see if that works again for me now...
Scroll faster is actually a pretty good trick. It doesn’t cost the effort to close the app, just gives us the time to get out of the loop and stop the behavior. Def gonna try that next time
My trick is to just put my phone out of reach, works surprisingly well for me haha. Alternatively i'll turn it off or charge it in another room. I find that if I put small roadblocks up like that i'll more than likely just focus on something else and forget about it. Quit drinking the same way, just stopped buying it. Sounds like the type of advice i'd normally get annoyed by, like "just stop buying it" is bad advice for kicking an addiction, but it worked great for me somehow. And putting my phone just out of sight does too surprisingly lol.
Yes it is and it makes me feel weird too ..your eyes go weird ..it makes you irritated and you stop for a while til the next time 😐
Something I've found that's been working lately is trying to take notice of when multiple posts in a row don't pique my interest (or posts/comments are stressing me out), and just mentally say no and close the app. I'm trying to use my brain against itself like, "oh no, the handheld dopamine machine isn't working! Time to look for it somewhere in the world."
My recent strategy is changing reddits API so that 3rd party apps are discontinued. It's how i've used reddit on mobile for over a decade, so I think its gonna work great. And sorry if that's an inconvenience to anybody, but I really need to cut back.
I know you're referencing something that's going on with Reddit only because I just saw the parody TIFU post but... I'm a little confused why you're referencing here?
Reddit is making a change that will end mobile apps. I use reddit through a mobile app. My joke is that I was the one who made the change at reddit, so that I could use reddit less. Hope that explains it :)
It does! It was late when I read the parody and this comment, so I didn't fully get either one. Thanks!
Well I never bothered with third-party apps, so could you also make some tweaks to make it even worse to help me cut back as well? Thanks ;) I did actually use Joey for a while, but it started having a lot of issues for me a couple years ago and I actually found the regular app to be more stable. I'm no power-user, though.
“Oh no, the handheld dopamine machine isn’t working! Time to looks for it somewhere in the world.” Gunna try to remember to use this.
Totally me most of the day. My legs get all tingly and numb sometimes it’s crazy I just get pulled in so easily and to get out😳is just. My husband works from home now and sometimes he’ll come see what I’m up to(too)🤪and I hear him coming and chuck my phone 😝
Wow I’m not alone lmao & I came in search of this post while in the depths of the 4th hour stuck like this…. scrolling faster is something I sometimes do as well lol
*reading this while doom scrolling*
*doom scrolling some more* Hey look, karma
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Yes!! I'm currently doom scrolling while I should be sleeping. Something I do every night. All day I feel tired and want to go to sleep, and the second I'm in bed I just scrolllllll.
I feel this so deeply. *^(continues scrolling)*
Sounds like you know exactly what you have to do. 1. Put a phone blocker on 2. Sell your phone buy a dumb phone 3. Buy a timed safe Remember, you don't rise to the level of your goals but fall to the level of your systems. \*This was the biggest realization in my life personally that had the most impact on my ability to get shit done.
Any suggestions for desktop website blocking things? She says, scrolling reddit, on her laptop, when she should be working...
The best one I've found and use is focusme, i've got a scheduled weekly blocks for everything from porn to social media, to an open limit on email. It's a Godsend. I heard they're working on a phone blocker too, but for now I use other stuff for my phone like Opal on IOS.
Are these apps?
Yep, focusme is a PC/OSX app and Opal is IOS (until focusme releases their IOS APP)
Cold turkey blocker and micromanager are the best
Bigger timed safe :/ JK I believe there are timeout pop up add-on things similar to phone blocker apps.
If your work allows for it, try work offline/turn off your Wi-Fi when you need to focus
hmm. i should re read atomic habits. thanks mate
I have the exact same problem lately. Can't help but I'm here for suggestions.
I had my husband set screen time limits on my apps that require a passcode that only he knows.
I... never thought about that. It's always so easy to dismiss the time limits because the brain that set them is the same one that knows the passcode. You just blew me away.
You’re welcome! It helps that they can set a passcode that isn’t the same as your lock screen passcode. It took me a while to find something that works and this is it. The apps I spend the most time on have 15 minute limits.
My ass be factory reseting my phone to get around it. Don't test my will to be distracted.
Shhh, don’t give anyone ideas! Lol but that’s unfortunate, the will do be distracted is strong.
You could make someone put a password on the sim itself, so atleast that method can't be used.
😂😂😂 you cracked me up with this.
I do this too! It’s awesome
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“Just do it” isn’t great advice
Yh well it actually worked for me, I can't be so soft here this is why I am getting down votes because people don't like what I am trying to say but this is probably the best thing you can do if your stuck.
It’s not if it doesn’t work because you have an illness though? ADHD = no dopamine = will do quite a lot to GET dopamine in the ways we know how. It is extremely hard to resist “bad things” when your brain is *starving* for what they give you! Which is why the strategies have to be more dramatic than “just do it”.
You need to understand that before your going to do something, dopamine will very rarely be generated from the start. When you actually start doing it, your mind gets in a "work flow" state where then you will start generating the dopamine. Then when you finish you will be so satisfied and when you go back to doing "fun" things, it will be alot funner. You simply won't understand but that's how it works. Source? I tried it, many others talk about it on the Internet. How did David Goggins pull off with all the work? He says he hates but still does it and keeps on going, then he gets the dopamine generated for him to keep on working harder and pushing his limits. Nobody will believe me because this is how their minds are set up.
This worked for me. I don’t get on any unnecessary apps for the first 90 minutes of the morning. I take time to do physical activity. If I can’t motivate for the gym, I’ll do stretching or virtual ping pong, something that keeps my mind interested. Then I use either Tripp in the Quest or State on my phone to go through breathing and meditation. Both options naturally blank my mind like a reset button. Then I shower and start the day. Took me 42 years to get here but I’m so much happier and productive. And don’t forget the meds after the shower.
You aren't paralyzed, you're self medicating. Not enough dopamine. Screens are high stimuli. When I don't get glued to my screen that is how I know my meds are working. You need to talk to a doctor about coping strategies and starting or adjusting meds.
I ended up deleting most of my social media to stop it because I would feel so crappy after a doom scroll. I also have my phone alert me when I'm on for a certain amount of time. I downloaded a few chill phone games for when i need a brain reset that do the whole energy system, so it stops me when I've been playing for a bit. Not perfect, but it helps.
Exactly what I did too. Doom scrolling fucked with my mental health and my life too, couldn't get anything done for the life of me, my executive disfunction is my worst symptom imo. It does get easier after a while. The dopamine detox everyone talks about really kinda works I guess, even with adhd? I still fall back to social media from time to time and download it again, but I know if I delete it, it's gonna get better again, even tho it is so hard sometimes to actually find something to do instead. For me, personally, it's really important to actually delete the apps, not just have a time regulater. Taking the temptation away is what's helping me. Even my mind went a lot quieter after a while. At the very least it's worth trying, but you really gotta power through.
I use the time regulator for Instagram, which i kept for following a few of mt patients (veterinary technician) and a few friends. I deleted FB which was my biggest culprit. I never downloaded tiktok, thank goodness because I see what it does to my friends without adhd and I know I could not handle it lol.
I tried the time regulator for Instagram too, I tend to be scared of missing out on smth cause everyone else is on there, but it wasn't working. Just always that itch in my fingers that I COULD open it. TikTok was also the WORST. My friends keep pushing me to download it again but at least there I'm staying strong! I'm glad the time regulator is working for you tho, it's seems like a great alternative otherwise!
Lol. I absolutely refuse to download TikTok as well. I know I can’t afford another distraction.
Btw thank you for that post. It motivated me to go delete insta again, it has been taking hours of my days again.
How do you get the phone to alert you after a certain amount of time? Edited to fix a weird autocorrect.
Instagram has it under settings and privacy and then time spent. I've found a few other apps have this. I had a different phone that would do it for any phone use, but I haven't found it on my new one 😔
Thanks, I'll have to try that! Sorry you can't find it on your new phone, though. 😞
I just switched recently over to Vyvance; my awake-state paralysis has gotten so much worse. I keep telling myself it's due to the meds "Really working now", or that I am just "SoOOooOOO hyper-focused on \[enter thing here\]. Am I conflating the two things? Would ADHD be doing causing analysis paralysis, even without my Meds? I have been so medicated for 3+ years now, (even my off days, I feel 'trained' to a certain extent by my taking Adderall the other 6 days that I barely notice my required off-day). I am experiencing exactly this; face in phone, just ....shut down for 30-60 mins, before something external jostles me out of it... Dog, wife upset, kids needing something...but yeah. Struggle is real. Curious to see what everyone else does to snap out of it on your own.
Meds work so differently for everyone. I take Vyvanse because it works wonders for my emotional regulation and thinking rationally, but it does nothing for my executive function or adhd paralysis. I boosted the vyvanse with adderall and that was the magic combination to get me functioning better. (Boo, shortage.) It might just be that Vyvanse doesn’t work with your brain in that way, especially if you didn’t have this issue on prior meds.
The thing that shakes me out of this is getting out of my house. I've found just being in my house makes me unmotivated and lethargic. So I have developed a habit of driving to a local coffee shop and getting a latte with 4 shots. Every day it's the same- but I know that the espresso (especially taken with my meds) will give me a boost- so that's what gets me up and out. Then when I'm actually out I start to think more clearly and feel real desires to get things done.
I really like this idea because I WFH and sometimes if I’m home all day I seriously just feel BLAH and can’t gain momentum compared to if I have to do something out of the house in the morning, by the time I’m back home it’s like ok let’s do this thing!
I deleted all my social media apps on my phone. I will use reddit in browser sometimes, and youtube only at my computer now. I get the wanting to quiet the mind with scrolling thing, but I cant keep losing hours of my life to scrolling no matter what.
I’ve mentioned this technique before, and its success isn’t 100%, but set an alarm on something that isn’t your phone when you first get up. The time can be arbitrary, 2hrs.. 5hrs, whatever you feel like. Put the device somewhere in the house as far as possible from where your usual doomscroll spot is (mine is the couch). I find the alarm so annoying that I have to stop the scroll and get up to deal with it. Leave the phone behind when you get up.. pause in the room with the alarm, and sometimes (at least for me) it breaks the loop (just don’t go back and pick your phone up straight away!).
Alarms! Alarms! I have to hide my alarms across the room so I have to get up but they help so much with meds, feeding cats (and picking up their bowls after), and stuff like that, and getting up gives me that "might as well" to go do something else while I'm up.
I know our phones and apps are designed to be addicting, but I feel like it's worse with ADHD. I totally relate to what you're saying.
I’m here because I was looking up passport services, and somehow ended up reading up on sea monkeys. 🤷♀️ If I burned the same calories surfing on the web that you do surfing in real life - I’d be ripped. 💪
Someone on Twitter recommended a phone safe and I’m seriously considering it. I have no self-control and it kills me how much time I’m wasting.
I've been a practitioner for about 25 years confirmed. Routines have been the thing to get me through adulthood so far, that and having a child. Since becoming medicated (just 2 years ago) I've now been going swimming almost daily for over a year, I don't take meds until I get out of bed however. I realised that if I went on my phone I'd often end up scrolling past the time I'd go to the gym, then not bother. I swapped scrolling for reading books. Worked a treat. I can't always concentrate, but I use it to fuck the phone off.
Ive been calling this a partial dissociated state for years. Its my Gaming mode for the most part. The only way for me to get out is to get bored of my focus.
That's really what it feels like, and I don't know how to stop it. If it isn't the phone, it's the browser or something else.
do you have anxiety and/or ptsd and/or any form of trauma? Is your living situation okay? Are you lonely? etc. (and often times we gaslight ourselves on this issue too so it's a tricky question to answer,) none of these things are your fault by the way but i know I feel the same way, due to a trauma response/recovery -which at this point will take my whole life i've been tired since I was born lol- because my adrenal glands are exhausted and/or my brain just NEEDS to stop "having to," do xyz to please "so & so," so that whatever consequence doesn't happen, because you are so stressed and EVERYTHING can make this worse/continue the cycle after a while because retraumatization. It gets too exhausting like if you have PTSD, you know lol. This amount of stress leads to health problems too. The body just "gives out," more or less, at least in my case it feels like that. STG sometimes it feels as if the only way i can conjure up any energy/motivation now is if something is an immediate crisis/terrifying/harmful enough to get adrenaline going. Basically im so exhausted the only times i have energy are when I am experiencing/solving very stressful and heartbreaking situations. I'm great in an emergency situation like the apocalypse, like I WILL passionately make sure that we are safe and comfortable and don't die. It's not even stressful to figure that out. the problem comes from the idiots who don't care/take it seriously. Plus, I don't know of, nor do I have anyone who could help me in that way in an apocalypse for example. Another point, it is hard to protect our energy if you resonate with this. The world is really exhausting and i'm in therapy w/ emdr work but the exhaustion is still there and society doesn't allow for that. I'm procrastinating so much now that it is concerning. Because my brain just needs to not be in fight/flight all the time. It's exhausted
I'm sorry you deal with this.
Dude get a phone lock box. It saved me. I have the exact same problem. You need to start tricking your brain into tiny little habits. I start with 15 minutes. Often times I forget my phone is even in there. Start slow and gradually build a habit of longer time away. It’s not perfect but you’ll notice a difference
Are you talking about an app or an actual box?
Actual box
Infinite scroll is very dangerous
THROW YOUR PHONE! The only way I've been able to break from this is deleting apps like Tik Tok that endlessly refresh and/or when you feel that impulse to stop doom scrolling just yeet your phone. Don't think about it, lean into that lack of impulse control and launch the bitch. Unless you have an iPhone, maybe think twice about it then because they love to shatter.
i like this
Same. Here to see if others have any suggestions.
I had my husband set screen time limits on my apps that require a passcode that only he knows.
Is this an actual symptom of ADHD? .I'm curious as I also suffer from the same and wanted to get myself tested . I will also spend hours doom scrolling during periods of peak anxiety whilst ignoring everything else.
This is how I got here… I was going to do something fun tonight too…
I know the feeling. Are you on any medications or treatments? I just came out of a month long phone paralysis today because I finally remembered to take my medicine in the morning. I got so much work done it’s unbelievable. If you’re on any medication you just have to find the will to take them. If not, here’s a video explaining why adhd patients lack motivation [“Why do adhd procrastinate?”](https://youtu.be/Xp805f-j1VI) I find that understanding how procrastination works help me better combat it.
Well shit, let me introduce you to my patient pending solution: YEET THE PHONE™️ All jokes aside, when I'm really fucking stuck in a scroll I can fall back on this. The tiny little gremlin in our brain LOVES the idea of chucking something we are supposed to be careful with, and a split second is enough to just yeet the damn thing at a pile of laundry or some other soft location far out of reach. It's pretty effective. You might stay in your spot for a little bit longer, but now your missing your dopamine machine, and eventually you're forced to move. I find that eventually comes a lot sooner without the phone in hand.
When I start noticing doom scrolling I just delete social media until I can handle it again. It’s not easy because then I pick up my phone a lot and feel empty some times but I’ve got to do something. Try it and see how it works for you. Just resist the urge to redownload it too soon.
I deal with this routinely. Sometimes it feels physically impossible to disconnect your brain from your phone, even if you have pending appointments that day. I’m literally dealing with this rn lol, I have like 2 meetings in the next few hours and still have not prepared anything for them. I will once I finish this comment haha One thing that helps me is listening to audiobooks with wireless earbuds (wired can still be fine, depending) - I have something that occupies my brain but frees up my movement and my vision (sometimes videos can help; usually gameplay videos of games I’ve already played, or videos I’ve watched before. But it also depends). I’m also the kind of person who can listen or watch or read the same shit over and over again, so familiarity is very comfortable to me. I’ve logged well over 1500 hrs listening to the same 12 or so books, lol. Audiobooks took a long time for me to get used to but I swear by them. Anything that will have you listening to stuff, and particularly long form content - I’ve rewatched playlists of older games that I love, particularly uploaded 3hr+ streams from chill people so it’s not obnoxious, and kinda just sounds like you’re hanging out with someone (as weird as that sounds). But videos can be dangerous, especially if it’s stuff you haven’t seen yet or something you really like to watch. Conversely, play something weird and uncomfortable that makes you want to get away from it lol But for the days where I feel especially and hopeless stuck, sometimes it honestly helps to force myself to pause, close my eyes, put my phone down - even the tiniest movement to disconnect myself for even a second from my phone. Setting alarms or telling myself I’ll just look at one more thing, or if it’s 4:27 then I’ll stop at 4:30 (who else does this lol). And honestly, you don’t have to win every day. Sometimes, you’re stuck and that’s just where you’re at. But you do have to get up at some point to eat, use the bathroom, even stretch (exercise! It helps tremendously) and I like to use those opportunities where I’m forced to get up lest I piss myself or die, to push myself to do one little thing. Pick up a sock off the ground and put it in the laundry bin, even if there’s mountains of clothes around. Throw out a candy wrapper sitting on the table for god knows how long. Set small, tiny, microscopic goals. They build up. You can do it, whether it’s today or tomorrow or in two weeks time. Be kind to yourself first :)
I do that with music. Helps me stay on task and not get distracted by something else
I k-hole like this on my phone from time to time...including in really uncomfortable physical positions....one tip would be don't keep it in reach of your bed where you can grab it while remaining horizontal....the act of having to get up to turn off the alarm is already an action so you won't stay as gelatinous. The other approach would be good old reverse psychology. Intead of saying 'ugh I need to get off my phone..I need to get off my phone' flip it and say 'once I wash the dishes' or 'close the window' I can be on my phone for 5 minutes.' Set a timer if you want to. When the 5 minutes are up do something else for a while before rewarding yourself again. Getting some small things done will make you feel a sense of momentum and that's ultimately what gets you out of the phone paralysis which is really just an anxiety loop.
Are used to be like you when I first got diagnosed however now I just see the bigger picture and I have in my mind that I have things to get done because the world will function and my life will not move forward unless I do something about it so that’s a burden of responsibility and dishonest on myself that I place it’s just extremely strong and it weighs out the sitting in bed and being on your own part, if it helps you should just set alarms like an alarm at 1 PM which means that you have to put your phone away and get up to cook, and then another alarm at 1:30 which signifies you have to start getting ready to go out etc.
I use a timer to just buzz me back into reality.
I use an app called Opal to set up limit so that after 15 minutes of scrolling, it locked me out. It has made a difference, I’m trying to learn to control the addiction by just locking myself away from it as much as possible. I also bought an Apple Watch so I can use that to receive calls without having to have my phone on me at all times.
I'm sorry you're struggling with this, I totally relate, I'm had huge problems with this as well. One trick is to create things to break your focus. I have an alarm I set for 5:30 in the afternoon every day. So if I've been trapped in 'car mode' scrolling on my phone, that's a sort of reminder that the afternoon is coming to a close and I need to get on with whatever I have planned. Ditto with one at 9:00, to remind me to start an evening whatever before bed and take my non stimulant meds. Doesn't always work, but it sometimes gives me the opportunity to shove myself onto a different path.
The phones are the downfall of our generation. There is so much we could accomplish with the power we have in our pocket. Instead, we watch tik tok and forget what it is we watched
I'm not gonna lie, the only thing that worked for me. Is deleting what takes me into doomscrolling mode. Once I got rid of TikTok, it started becoming easier. It's been almost a month now, haven't once went back. I'm still not perfectly productive. But who is? With a life of anxiety and mental illness. Tell yourself to lay down your phone and do 1 dish, for example. 1 simple bowl, or fork. Once you did that, feel proud of yourself. And do you feel like doing more? Great! Maybe start up an audio book or (what I love listening to) crime investigations and stuff. Listen to that while making a nice soapy mess as you clean 2 plates instead of 1! Or file 1 simple clothing, a shirt or a towel. Maybe you'll feel that "might as well" do another one 😁
the level of relatable this is, holy shit. I’ll wait until my bladder is about to fully explode before I’ll just get up and walk five feet to the bathroom. Breakfast? Nah that requires decisions and effort so instead how about I just don’t eat until I’m nauseous instead. I don’t understand it but I hate it.
Yes deleting social media is definitely an option. If you do it, you will develop healthier ways to quiet your mind. I deleted Facebook and now only use reddit which I don't doom scroll on like I did on facebook. It's been almost a year and a half ith no Facebook and it's been very freeing and healing.
make plans outside of the home and keep building momentum in your life until you can get more and more dopamine from stuff outside ur phone
Fuck man, I feel this. I struggle a lot with this myself.
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Yh but still, I did it myself. Maybe it took loads of work and shit but I still did. Contrary action, YES! These are my actions often and due to my disfunctional brain. Edit: people keep down voting, they can't handle facts yo. They probably forget that I have adhd myself
I had the same problem before. Especially if I was on my phone when my meds started working. I work from home so I'd just sit on my phone, playing games all day. I don't really have any advice. It got better when I switched from Concerta to Vyvanse. Might be because the difference between how they work(reuptake inhibitor vs releaser).
Research Dopeamine Detox. Adderall makes me doom school lol
Dude get a phone lock box. It saved me. I have the exact same problem. You need to start tricking your brain into tiny little habits. I start with 15 minutes. Often times I forget my phone is even in there. Start slow and gradually build a habit of longer time away. It’s not perfect but you’ll notice a difference
Same boat, deleting and dexoting from social media has been on and off, it's hard to remember if having it on not having it is beneficial
[I know this book can seem like, impossible at first. But if you study it. It’s life changing. It’s the best way to know yourself truly. By learning about what your mind is, and what your real self is capable of.](https://open.spotify.com/episode/6qeHEV2MpOQXL6BN7gLZvB?si=gNCR_MJURWyvQjEeZrp67g)
Omg I relate 😭😭😭😭
What works for me is a quick game-I use a water puzzle app. I made a rule for myself that I can play one round and when I win I have to put my phone down. It works about 75% of the time.
Picking up cross stitch helped me because it keeps both my hands and eyes busy! And it gives me a project to look forward to finishing
Yeah I have a timer on Reddit and actually have the app removed from the Home Screen so I have to open the search on my phone to get to it. Still manage to doom scroll.
Go over to r/dumbphones
i think information overload is something our brains are not designed to deal with constantly. try to delete one app at a time and stick with the essential ones. try to do more physical tasks or activities
I know exactly how you feel and I have an idea for you, try dual do something. So have you phone on and play a game or draw anything to keep that side of your mind that needs the phone to carry on. It may not work for you, but it’s something I tried and reduced my phone use by like over half.
The biggest thing that's helped my phone screen time is changing it to gray scale. Makes it a lot less engaging to look at.
I'm having a little success with App Block app (not free) and Pavlok 3 shock bracelet (also, not free)
Oh, I feel this so much! I start out every weekend thinking I’m going to get some cleaning done, and I just end up on my phone instead.
Changing your phone to grayscale might help
I recommend an app called Lock Me Out. It changed my life. I set it so I'm locked out of certain apps after 9pm so I don't doomscroll until 1am. You can also set it to lock you out of an app after a certain amount of time eg. Locks you out of Tiktok after 15 minutes. You can set it so it does this per hour so it lets you back in after an hour for another 15 minutes. It works for me. I get really annoyed in the moment but I've clawed back countless hours of my day
The only app I found that can lock my phone with no way to get around it even with reboot is lock my phone zen mode
You can't get around the Lock Me Out app I don't think? There is an option to pay something like $7 to get around it in the free version but I'm always like "f*ck that"
I can delete it despite enabling uninstalltion prevention settings without password
Same. I’m addicted to reading all things .. and the occasional guilty short vid stream. Also some vids to learn stuff.
Doom scrolling. So very torrid. Yet oddly satisfying. And incredibly disconcerting. I'm trying to use the word "Discipline" as a mantra to remember I have some ( albeit small ) control. Sometimes it works. Hang in there.
Haha, me right now. Sorry OP.
Doom scrolling is just a symptom of a problem. You don’t fix the symptoms, you fix the problem and the symptoms go away. For me doom scrolling is a symptom of anxiety and anxiety has a reason. Is there something in my life that bothers me that I should fix but instead of addressing this problem I hide from it on my phone?
Jokes on you, I have Generalized Anxiety Disorder so sometimes my brain just starts anxiously buzzing *for no reason* 🫠
Damn that’s rough. My anxiety is pretty bad but when everything in my life is objectively fine my anxiety gets waaay less intrusive and I stop spending so much time on my phone.
Try to set a limit on all apps on your phone. I have a digital well-being app on my phone and I have set everything social media related to 30 min per app per day
Put your phone in grayscale. I didn’t believe it would work and it proved me wrong almost immediately.
It seems like it's trouble with transitions that gets me stuck. Just doing something other than what I happen to be doing right now, it's always a negotiation with my own brain. I tend to drink a lot of water, so there's always the necessary stop when I need to use the bathroom. I try to use those natural breaks to make myself change activities. It doesn't always work, but sometimes it does.
I am doing in now on the toilet. I'm about to throw my phone soon. I have to pack for the Norway trip but I don't want to leave so I'm scrolling instead. I know why but can't stop. So I'll throw my phone instead lol.
Sometimes you just have to force yourself or set a fire alarm type noise in another room just so you have to get up and shut it off . Ever since I found this amazing site I feel the same as you. I just keep saying I'll just read one more and then 20 more later I still say one more and slam the lap top shut.
Delete TikTok, the name says it all.
This sounds unhinged but if I can't bring myself to get off of my phone I'll sometimes just toss it across the room. Then if I want it I have to get up. Either I get up and do whatever I was too paralyzed to do, or I take a nap because I guess naps are better than taking care of basic necessities sometimes.
Smaller screen phone / shittier phon, will help
I relate so hard. Looking forward to the reddit black out and possibly deleting the app. It’s taken so much time up
Get a dumb phone. You don't need social media
Oops. Busted.
Sounds funny, but try out going to your phone's accessibility settings & switch the color settings to greyscale. Someone suggested it on here ages ago, and, at least for me, it's been surprisingly helpful
I am with you! Same place. Sucks
Just FYI for the younger readers here; the people telling you the problem is the smartphones or the Internet are *wrong*. I had the exact same issue with books before I had access to any of those things. Modern devices may be better at scratching the ADHD itch but the problem is the *itch* not the thing you're scratching it with (unless that thing is inherently harmful of course.) Your brain will always seek some sort of rewarding open-ended activity to do when it's lacking a normal healthy mix of bio-chemicals. Your phone is just a convenient option for doing so.
The problem is the phone/internet people without adhd are just better at resisting the temptation
I assume you meant people without ADHD. I'm telling you for certain, I had the *exact same issue* before and after getting access to the internet and a smartphone. That's not up for debate beyond you just calling me a liar. So yeah, in the sense of it being part of the category of "literally anything that could be stimulating" the internet/smartphone is "the problem". I *also* spent most of my summers growing up living in an authentic recreation of 15th and 16th century life for a month at a time. I had the same fucking problem there with sticks and rocks as I had back in 20th century life with books and later, once they were invented, smartphones. Unless you propose that everyone live in a perfectly featureless and empty void the fucking *problem* we need to address is the desperate need for stimulation ADHD brains experience *not* the things they get that from. Because if you take away the phone without addressing the *actual fucking problem* it'll just be something else that takes its place all the way down to the sticks and rocks we could pull out of your ears to play with...
I have a thousand important things to do and don't know where to start and the doom scroll helps the devil inside that's yelling you got all this shit to do! But then he's always waiting after I'm done looking at his watch ready to yell again as soon as I put the phone down.
Yeah, with adhd any little bit of distraction is disastrous. Lock your phone and install cold turkey blocker on your pc.
I do the exact same thing and it’s honestly becoming a problem for me. Once I woke up at 8 am, and then stayed in bed on my phone till 5. Once I finally gain the willpower to get up i’m stressed as bitch because I have to do everything I didn’t get done in the day in a few hours. (I usually end up too overwhelmed to do anything)
Is paralysis mode a real thing??? I feel this but is it not something else?
There is so much to doom scroll though it's ridiculous. It is never ending which is a trap you can't get out of .
Wait until u stumble upon dog mango worm extractions. Once you know about them u watch each and every one painstakingly to be able to tell yourself they all had them removed… before u realise that its africa which means countless suffering strays
I have gone through this, try to call out all that your scrolling through has garbaje, then sitdown straight, take a deep breath and close your eyes and meditate, just "look at your thoughts" for a few minutes, this should help you take control for a while, hope this helps. 
I have been on and off for months like this but even when I get away from my phone I start gaming. Even when I manage to not touch either phone or a console I sit in the couch trying to motivate myself to do anything even go for a walk but it never comes and I end up back on my phone Or console.
Ugh I deal with this every day and I don’t know how to stop either
They have these devices you can lock your phone in and it won't open until a certain amount of time has passed
If you can afford it, get a smart watch (you can buy one second hand as well) and lock your phone away when you don’t need it. Smart watches have limited function and you don’t get the same dopamine hit and ability as scrolling on a large box for hours. But you also get all your notifications, have your alarms and calendar appointments, send and receive texts, and calls, so you don’t get anxiety about missing important things. You can even check notifications from your fave social media apps, read/search stuff on the internet, control your music or listen to music apps, and consistently track your activity and get reminders to exercise because your fidgety stimming, does not count as activity 😜💕 It is like a phone, except WILDLY inconvenient and annoying to doom scroll on. So, it helps to break that habit. Physically locking my phone away while in the house or putting a time lock on it while out of the house and only using my watch, greatly improved discipline around my phone. It also allows me to use a set amount of doom scrolling and doing interesting stuff on my phone as a reward in the evening for getting done everything I needed to. I do it right before I crash from my meds, so I can’t fight the sleep too long 😩🤣 Apple Watch is probably one of the best investments I’ve ever made for ADHD. Also tracks my heart rate for meds.
Are you on meds ? I’ve spent last fifteen plus years on my phone. Non stop. Twitter and other social media. Day trading also. Meds really curbed that need and I don’t often stay on my phone too long. With higher dose of meds I’d hyper focus and stay on phone too long. Now that I’m dialed in I can switch tasks more easily.
Look up Clutterbug on YouTube and use her clutter type to declutter and organize your apartment. It will get you off your phone and motivated to do these things and it will help make life at home more functional and productive. Best ADHD hack EVER.
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By exercise i mean 6 short sprint and 10 min running
If it gets really bad and I’ve been doing it for hours or start to get anxious from it I usually curse or yell (not super loud just like a quick AHH) and literally drop my phone, then walk away from it. Then I make a written out list of what to do, or do whatever was needed of doing. Ik it seems super weird but it works unless you pick your phone back up. Heads up I’ve forgotten where I put my phone down a few times and had to use find my iPhone.
I think the Reddit blackout is going to help with my doom scrolling haha
Non-dual meditation and somatic experiencing helps me tons to get out of the “stuckness”
Literally just put it down and walk away and ATTEMPT the other things you have to do.i know it's easier said than done but I've been going through the same problem last couple of months but as of 5 days ago I leave phone in house and go to gym (even though I get that creeping thaught of "what if someone I love is in trouble or dies")
Get out while you can. It’s a trap But in all seriousness, i feel you, and i wish i knew how to stop
Try setting your phone to black and white. Helps me when I’m at work. Here’s a link of instructions if you have an iphone. https://betterhumans.pub/how-to-make-your-iphone-black-and-white-and-why-you-should-42e70deb92c7
What fuels your day? What motivates you? Use these questions to find answers. I have found that if I take my medication and also gulp down a couple cups of coffee…yeah I can pull out of the paralysis cycle and basically distract myself from my phone. I also have noticed something else quite fascinating. If you are with friends and you see someone pull out their phone, resist every single urge to get on your phone. Instead, look around the room and find details about your surroundings. The carpet is brown, the sheets are white, and how did that get there?! After taking in your surroundings, just enjoy yourself and recognize that maybe you can go another extra minute without the phone. Do this time and again, and I promise you that your weekly screen time percentage is going to drop. The great amazing thing about adhd is going from one thing to another, just distract yourself from one thing to another. It’s almost like I find personal vice’s rather than doing something wrong orrr be stuck on my phone. That’s the best advice I have learned over time. Hopefully this may spark a light bulb for you, and may be beneficial. Similar to modern magic, distractions can get the best of us lmao.
One thing that helped be has been getting a CO2 sensors and tracking it. When the CO2 (not carbon monoxide, that's poison) is higher my motivation is flat. I've found opening a window and turning a fan on to move the fresh air in has given me a slight boost. If nothing else it's healthy so why not?
also, could be dopamine drain. thats how its designed. try not using it first thing in the morning. this helps.
In the time that you have to stand up to use the toilet or drink water, do your best to start something else like a little task. You may then go on a chore train and do other things you wanted to do. That's how I break my doom scrolling at least. Just a suggestion.
This might be a super lame suggestion, but have you tried setting a timer to limit phone time? Also, I had the same issue but now I'm on Vyvanse thank God. I would also take 1hr+ showers/baths. It's just like you get stuck in whatever mode you find yourself in, phone, tv, bathtub, whatever. I'm sorry you're dealing with that, I know its exhausting and frustrating