Here's what I mean:

Remember Juicero? It was a super-expensive juice maker that failed because the team obsessed over theory and never actually tested it on customers. Then the media pointed out the $700 gadget didn't press the juice pouches any better than you could with your bare hands.

There are loads like it. They're all about the branding, the vibe, the labels, the aesthetic...not the actual process of developing a strong product that can survive a brutal marketplace.

The troubles of of TikTok-addicted teens look really similar:

Endlessly consuming content about relationship psychology, and cultivating aesthetics and labels – without actually going out and socialising, dating and finding themselves through real experiences. (The US Surgeon General said people between the ages of 15-24 spend 70% less time in person with friends than those of the same age did in 2003.)

Juicero called its development process 'stealth mode', so as to protect its genius idea from competitors. And then they found out lack of exposure to real people left it helplessly ill-equipped to survive when it launched. That sounds a lot like kids sitting alone on TikTok throughout their teens, then suffering crippling anxiety and depression as adults.

Our kids are growing up to resemble the worst parts of the industry that hijacked their brains.

So after quitting Instagram reels and TikTok, I am now able to laugh more and experience deeper emotions suddenly. This is such a welcomed aspect of my life that I didn't know I was missing out on. Does anybody feel the same way?

I first opened Facebook in August 2011, and I’ve been on social media for the past 15 years. I’ve been on and off since the beginning of this year, but today, I’ve finally decided to leave for at least the next 12 months.

I’ve deactivated Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, and every other social media account I had, including the ones I barely even used. This will also be my last post on Reddit until I decide to come back, which hopefully won’t be for at least a year.

For now, I’ll only be using iMessage, FaceTime, and, of course, Outlook for work/school emails.

Honestly, I’m pretty excited about being offline. If you ask me what made me do this, it’s probably how much my perspective on life has changed since I moved to Europe last year. I’ve travelled to different countries across Europe, and I now live in Paris. Moving away from home has changed the way I see things and how I want to spend my time. I’ve realised there’s so much more to life than documenting it online. I want to actually experience things without feeling the need to take pictures, post updates, or share every little thing with an audience.

Another thing I’ve realised is that a lot of the friendships I maintained online weren’t as meaningful as I thought they were. When I was going through some really difficult times, hardly anyone showed up for me. It made me question how much substance there actually was behind so many of these connections. I’m not saying all online friendships are meaningless or that you can’t find genuine relationships through social media. But being connected to people online doesn’t necessarily mean having people you can count on when things get tough.

I’m from South Asia, where social media is also a way of staying connected to people back home, keeping up with everyone’s lives, and showing people how your own life is going. But I think I’ve reached a point where I don’t feel the need to keep up with everyone or constantly make my life visible to others. I want some privacy, some peace, and the freedom to live without always seeing what everyone else is doing or thinking about how my own life looks from the outside. Above all, I just want to remove my presence for a while.

Of course, this is a personal choice. I have nothing against people who enjoy being online, and I’m not saying everyone should do the same. I’ve just realised that I need a year away from all the noise, endless scrolling, comparisons, and pressure to stay connected to everything and everyone.

I’ve already noticed positive changes over the past couple of months just from limiting my social media use, so I want to see what happens when I take it a step further and leave completely.

Lastly, I want to thank this sub. I’ve been here for quite some time, and reading about other people’s experiences with social media and their decisions to step away has influenced me more than I realised. It’s nice to know I’m not the only one who feels this way.

Here’s to a year of being more present, living privately, and experiencing life without feeling the need to document it.

See you in a year (hopefully)

Forums such as reddit, just chock full of mostly negativity. People gossip, hate, spread rumors, take jabs at others. People who run these forums do next to nothing about it.

It seems harder to even want to come online when you realize the vast majority of what you will see is hatred.

I scroll and I scroll. I know it gives me nothing. Facebook has shown me so much fake AI generated BS slop in the last years. I receive zero things in my home feed from friends. Some times I manually check on friends how they are doing. Guess what. An old friend has been struggling with cancer for the last year and has just passed away. Why didn't facebook want to be useful for like one second and show me that? Cmon. Then it's like literally zero point of doing social media. Log off and get a life. If you really need to use your phone, then call an old friend or something.

How to get over this deep regret for wasting so much time watching and consuming useless content, escaping your life/ reality amd realising you're stuck in the same place you were (6) years ago, the loneliness, the resentment, the feeling to go back six years ago and tell yourself to do something, create something of your own instead of consuming other's life.

I haven’t really felt much of anything in years. I don’t feel excitement or joy or wonder. Like I used to see Halloween decorations in stores and feel excited Halloween was coming but now my eyes just skip right over it and I don’t take anything in or stop to feel anything. I’m wondering how much of this is from years of internet and scrolling. I know people will say it’s depression or something, but I’ve had mental health issues my whole life and been on medication half my life but only felt this way the last few years.

Editing this just to say I’m posting it in this sub Because I wonder if the internet is a big part of this.

Yesterday, I finally deleted all my social media because I realized how addicted I’ve become to it. I spend so much time scrolling without even thinking about it, and I’m tired of feeling like I’m wasting so much of my life on my phone.

But now that I’ve actually stopped, I genuinely don’t know what to do with myself. Everything feels boring, and I keep feeling the urge to pick up my phone out of habit, even when there’s nothing I need to check.
I know it’s only been a day, but it’s crazy how much I relied on social media to fill every quiet moment.

For those of you who have been through this, what did you do during the first few days or weeks? Did the boredom eventually go away? What did you replace scrolling with, especially when you’re just at home with nothing to do?
I really want to stick with this, but I didn’t expect to feel this bored already.

Started this week. Phone stays on the desk, just flipped over.

No big change so far. Day 2 was actually worse than day 1, lots of small annoying tasks and I kept grabbing it. The only thing that's different is I notice now how often I flip it without any reason.

Not sure if face down is enough or if it needs to go in another room. What worked for you?

It's almost that time again, folks! Let's do this thing. My wife and I are gearing up for it. Here's what we're putting together.

NO NET NOVEMBER GUIDELINES & GOALS

1. Replace screen-time with other activities (analog or in-person). Replacements include reading, writing, making art, exercising, walking the dogs, talking on the phone, going out and meeting friends, doing chores, etc. This is critical. Without things in place to replace the internet, you're going to find excuses for hopping back on.
2. Using the internet for work is acceptable, but ideally this is done at work and not at home. And see if you can test yourself and find ways to avoid doing work on the internet that you could do in some other way offline.
3. News is gained either through newspapers, the radio, or television.
4. Streaming media is avoided (spotify, Netflix,etc). Physical media preferred. DVDs, CDs, records, tapes, etc.
5. If internet must be used at home, it is only when absolutely necessary and only through a stationary computer kept in a specific location in the house (never on a cell phone or wandering laptop).
6. Make a list of projects you'd like to accomplish over the course of November. Use your forthcoming abundant free time to work toward these.

It's a work in progress. Feel free to add to the list!

I’m a new mom and looking to reduce my screen time and be in the present moment more. I get really bored when breastfeeding, especially at night. I keep the lights off except for a small nightlight so reading a book doesn’t really work for me although I do this during day feeds. Podcasts and audiobooks put me to sleep so I’m looking for ideas that are stimulating so I don’t fall asleep in my nursing chair. Thanks!

I don't get it. I mean, the first few minutes of doom scrolling is fun as it scratches that mental itch that comes with addiction.. but I keep on scrolling and scrolling hours after I stopped enjoying it. I'm conscious of the fact that I feel like shit while doom scrolling, and I'm very aware that I can easily switch to playing video games or watching anime or other things that I'll enjoy a hundred times more.. but why do I still choose to doom scroll instead?

It's funny because video games and anime used to feel like such an unproductive time waster for me. But nowadays, it feels like an achievement if I spend hours on those things rather than doom scrolling.

That’s literally what is happening

and no this isn’t a Reddit story

Think about the last time you made something creative. How did it start? If you rarely make things, what usually happens instead?

What do you do with things you save or bookmark? What has helped or got in the way of making things?

Not sure if this is the right term, but I've noticed since intentionally limiting my time on social media more, my organic opinions and takes in everyday conversation have become so much more positive. It highlighted to me that we often can't exactly see how negative discourse is affecting us day-today, but it does so probably more than we think.

It's a bit jarring how much normal social etiquette discourages negativity in general as something that will bring the mood down and alienate people vs online this sort of thing is lifted up and served before anything else to illicit engagement. Just rambling now but appreciate this community! Encouraging to see I'm not alone in fighting all this.

After years of mindless scrolling and consuming short-form content, I feel like my brain has stopped functioning the way it used to.

I struggle with concentration, forget things easily, can't retain information, and find learning new things extremely difficult. I have to reread things multiple times to understand them. My sleep is messed up, and I constantly feel mentally foggy.

I have career goals and exams to prepare for, but I can't even focus for 15 minutes without getting distracted.

Has anyone genuinely recovered from this? What helped you rebuild your attention span, memory, learning ability, and mental clarity?

I'm willing to put in months of effort. I just want my brain back.

Would really appreciate advice from people who've actually been through this.

PLEASE HELP 🙏🙏

I’m deeply in love with my partner but equally deeply unattracted to his tech addictions. He’s smart and talented but he seems to be addicted to video games and YouTube and the news. It could be worse. But he takes his phone into the bathroom with him and can’t do things like eat meals or do the dishes without having something playing in front of him. When I leave our 2 month old daughter with him I’m afraid he’s not giving her quality time or attention…
I think depression could be a favor here. He’s open to change but he just repeats empty “should”s when I bring it up, doesn’t take steps to change. Advice?

I started using my smartphone a lot less. I recorded every time I was on my phone, and noticed I spent 10 HOURS A DAY scrolling Reddit! 10 hours that could have been spent on studying, exercise, reading books, or even walking outside. But I am spending my time abroad which is a once in a lifetime opportunity... scrolling Reddit.

Now you might be thinking "well aren't you doing it now" and yes, you'd be correct. I am now on my "break" - I bought a small timer, and whenever I have to study, I turn my phone off and set the timer to an hour. Once I am done, I reward myself by setting the timer to a 20 minute break. Once the break is over, I'm back to 1 hour without the phone. It is so helpful to have something in front of you so you're mindful of the time.

I have been doing it for the last couple of days, even set my phone to airplane mode when I'm outside. When I walk, I begin to observe my environment. People are walking outside, having fun, children are playing, elderly people are enjoying life on the bench at the park, and I ignore all of this just to look at a small screen??? I could be doing this anywhere else, what's the point of living abroad???

Now, I won't quit my smartphone entirely and I probably won't quit Reddit, since I occasionally get some really good advice. However, it's insane how easy it is to get sucked in ragebait and doom and gloom, when there is such a beautiful world outside. It's not all sunshine and rainbows, I agree but there is so much to do and see than look at reality from someone else's lense.

Alright, back to studying. Stay safe, everyone.

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I feel like we all probably all share a disdain for the instagram, tiktok style dopamine pumping machine endless feed sorta stuff, that goes without saying. But I guess my question is where people rank other experiences on the internet that provide images, text, video or other media? Is there a spectrum of danger with social media/short form video at one end, and something like reading an ebook in a browser on the other? One side being hypnotizing and addictive and the other being possibly interesting but mostly just boring and annoying. If so, where do you draw the line?

I feel like there are lots of blogs, online journalism outlets, and museum archives, etc that intentionally try and serve stimulating but not addictive material. I am a big fan of the internet archive and often spend hours and hours looking through stuff on there. Obviously it's not served to me and tailored by an algorithm or any of that. It doesn't feel addictive, it feels more like it used to feel when I spent a whole day reading actual books or magazines. Is this ultimately a gateway drug to the other stuff, a salve for withdrawal? Is it just not the same thing at all? Does that count as "mindless" surfing since, ultimately we should be doing something away from a computer if we really want to be productive, waste less time, enjoy more of our real life?

Can a person enjoy the internet carefully and responsibly without becoming addicted in some way?

Very curious what people think

like the youtuber because everyone i know is obsessed with him they scroll and scroll abt him and i kind of hate the fact that they do because the script is ai and like its obvious