Doom scrolling

Overview

Doom scrolling (also called doom surfing) is the act of scrolling on and on through bad news, anxiety-stoking posts, and negative content without being able to stop. The word combines doom and scrolling, and it came into wide use during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. It's a state in which, even though you know it's bad for you mentally, the urge that "I need to know more" drives you on and you can't stop scrolling.

Why you can't stop

One reason doom scrolling is hard to stop is that human attention tends to be drawn to negative information. Some social networks also have algorithms that give priority to showing content with high engagement.

When you see one negative post, more related posts may be shown, making it hard to stop scrolling.

Doom scrolling for question box owners

There's a kind of doom scrolling specific to question box owners. After a harassing question arrives, you keep checking your dashboard over and over to see "whether any other nasty questions have come in." You endlessly check quote reposts to see whether your answers are being criticized. You keep reading the replies on a Q&A that's starting to draw backlash, even though it's painful to read.

These are also variations of doom scrolling. It's easy to think "The more I check, the more reassured I'll feel," but each check can also add to your anxiety.

How to break the doom scrolling habit

The first thing you can try is to physically put your smartphone out of reach. Create a physical barrier, such as leaving it in another room, putting it in a drawer, or handing it to a family member.

Using a screen time limit feature to set a cap on how long you use social media apps also works. When you hit the cap, a warning appears, giving you a moment to realize "I was just doom scrolling." For your question box dashboard too, set yourself a rule to check it only once a day and not open it at any other time.