09 April 2025: How to Reduce Screen Time and Make the Web Funner!

Preface

I’m not some technology hating geezer, social media can actually be really useful, if used correctly! (and they make it really hard to do that, so I don’t blame people if they get sucked in. I was there once… :/)
The way that most people use it is just distracting us from the community we have and things we can learn. For instance, I still have Instagram on my phone, but only to keep up with friends and local organizations.

Why Am I Doing This?

Ultimately, everyone has to find their own motivation. My motivations are sticking it to the Man (it’s punk as hell!) having more time to learn and experience life (YOLO!) and to feel like I’m doing something useful.

Pros (in my experience)

• You have more time (for whatever you want! Do what you love, find yourself!)
• You’ll get to bed earlier, or at least use your time in bed more productively
• The world will seem less scary and awful (by a bit… it’s still not perfect.)

Cons (in my experience)

• You get BORED (gotta find a way to fill the void)
• Withdrawals (more on that later)
• You’ll get a bit out of touch with things like memes and slang. It’s okay.
• You’ll lose touch with acquaintances (who followed you just to follow you)

Step 1: Lessen Screen Time

Make Your Phone as Inconvenient as Possible

Here’s my layout. Everything I normally use is on one screen! (this may look different for everyone, but it’s just an example of what helps me) Oh yeah, and my whole screen is black and white. You don’t understand how distracting the pretty colors are until they're gone lol. There are tutorials online for how to do this with both Android and IPhones.

Single Purpose Objects

My ADHD brain is the king of “If I don’t see it, it’s not there.” It’s like a baby playing peek-a-boo. I’ve found that if I don't take OUT the phone in the first place, I’ll think about opening problem apps less! Things like cameras, watches, notepads, and mp3 players are game changers. And they make you look super cool and Y2K! :D (I love old tech…)

Weird (but useful) tip: Turn on your phone ringer

If you’re not constantly wondering if you got a notif, you’ll check your phone less.

Discipline

Put screen time limits on your problem apps in your settings. You can do this on the computer too, with extensions.

**Withdrawal symptoms**

I’ll admit, for the first few days, weeks or months, it’ll almost feel like you get withdrawal symptoms. This is the hardest part, you just need to stay determined and push on. It will get better. The key to making this work is to replace the scrolling with other activities. Your brain still needs decompression time, nobody’s gonna be running around 24/7, but you can decompress in better ways than scrolling.

Step 2: Replace with Better Things

The Excruciating Boredom (What Do I Do Now?)

Some things I’ve started doing more:

• Mindless: Wordle/crossword/basic games, walking, thinking, cooking, organizing, writing thoughts down, staring at the ceiling/watching the clouds, parallel play with friends, watching anime
• Output/Endeavours: Drawing more, Making a website, volunteering (or trying to lol), hanging with friends, fucking around and finding out
• Learning: SciShow, improving code knowledge, training my dog, brushing up on Russian, reading about my fixations

Mindsets & Affirmations

Quitting social media isn’t the same as kicking Mark Zuckerberg in his tiny lizard-man balls, but it’s the next best thing. You got this! And if it feels like you don’t, it’s okay, you probably do! My journey is years in the making. It wasn’t a one-day switch, and even I still slip up sometimes!

MORE THINGS YOU CAN DO TO BAKE YOURSELF A WHOLE-GRAIN WEB EXPERIENCE! (this section is under construction)

Make a Website! I may be biased, but web design is so fun. There are some really fun templates you can use if you don’t want to code yourself, and there’s always help on the web! LINKS COMMUNITY Using Instagram for community article WEBSITE BUILDING / OLD WEB / WEB ENHANCERS Free place to host websites Free coding tutorials and general help I use Brave browser because it’s good at blocking ads, and feels safer Site you can use to update your current mood, and display it on your website or Twitter (I think…) Site where you can update your current status (whatever that means to you) This one lets you customize your page if you want! Where that fire text comes from