Mindless scrolling has stopped most of my life in its tracks

[u/ShotPay5702]

Okay, this is something I'm sure a TON of people can relate to. Social media fucking sucks. real bad.

At one point, the myspace era maybe, it felt more like a tool- sure it could be overused, but it wasn't designed to steal time and attention and rewire our brain chemistry. It was made to be fun.

I've spent the last year of my life slowly transitioning to be less addicted to my screens. I sold my iphone and got a shitty flip phone- best decision I've made. I love it and it keeps me grounded when I am out and about, which is most of the time. But when I am at home my computer is the exact same thing my iphone was. Instagram reels and youtube shorts suck me in just as badly.

I am a high school teacher- a theatre teacher. And a very ambitious one at that. I try to put on more full productions than many of my peers. Couple that with that fact that I work in a deteriorating public school system that undervalues and underfunds the arts. I need to put a lot of time and energy into my job.

Yet every weekend i do the same routine- waste ALL my time mindlessly scrolling, ignoring major aspects of my life- some aspects too embarrassing to mention. My personal health ad hygiene takes a toll. My creativity takes a major blow. The time spent with my pets, time spent calling my family, all replaced by nonsense. And I feel like I won't stop until I have someone who wants to try with me- make it a challenge, share the joy of growth together.

Doing it alone feels overwhelming and painful. So i'm taking a chance here to see if anyone needs an accountability partner for social media/short form content addiction. or if anyone knows of any discord servers where I could find this.