It’s Not (Just) About Screen Time

Like a lot of people nowadays, I’ve been thinking a lot about how technology is impacting my mental and physical health. Additionally, as AI gets harder and harder to avoid–whether due to companies forcing it into their products or forcing it onto their employees–I find myself more and more noticing the negative mental side-effects of it (and I’m sure I’m not alone). One of the most common things I see and hear talked about to try to bring agency back to the user is screen time.

The Premise

Certainly, screen time is an important metric for us to understand as a society. If we see clear correlation between screen time and mental, physical health, reading and writing scores, etc. then we need to pay attention. And we do. Studies have absolutely shown the negative effects of high screen time. But, of course, correlation does not equal causation!

Most studies do not and cannot account for a variety of factors that, I think, are just as or more important than overall screen time. This got me thinking about my own experience.

Using Built-in Tools

I started out using iOS’s built-in tools to try to reign in my screentime. This included turning on App & Website Activity and using a combination of App Limits and Downtime to block apps and reduce interruptions. I set my App Limits to block social media, news, and Reddit after 30 minutes. Downtime was set to turn on from 9PM to 7AM daily, only allowing some of the more “necessary” apps on my phone.

It worked… Not great.

For one, the built-in app blocking is super easy to override, making them close to useless at actually stopping me from doomscrolling. And, before you say it, I refuse to intall a better third-party app that will constantly monitor my app usage in the background.

Second, importantly, I found myself getting frustrated when I really needed to do something that these functions would make difficult. For example, a couple of nights ago we have a tornado warning and I wanted to pull up the Michigan Storm Chasers livestream, but it was after 9PM and I had to override the block on my browser, override the block on Google, and then override the limit on Youtube… Not fun to do when you’re trying to quickly get info on dangerous weather!

Maybe it’s better to not have the “trouble” apps in the first place?

Deleting Apps

This is another common strategy I see online. If you have to log into Instagram on a browser, the theory goes, you have to be much more intentional and therefore will be less likely to get sucked in. In practice, most web apps are so good these days that I hardly remembered I wasn’t in the app most of the time. Shoutout to websites!

Admittedly, I still do have social media apps deleted from my phone, but more on that later.

Redirection

This is, in my opinion, the best strategy I see talked about. The idea is to re-train yourself to do something you actually want to do when you have the impulse to pick up your phone. The downside is that, if that alternative isn’t handy, I often found myself going to my phone anyways.

Reality

The result of all this was that yes, my screen time did go down (from about 4.5hrs/day to about 2.5hrs/day), but my mental and physical health weren’t getting any better and, on some days, I was actually more frustrated.

So, Is It the Screen Time?

For me? No. And once I realized it wasn’t the amount of time I was looking at phone, but what I was doing while I was looking at my phone, that gave me permission to forget what others recommended and taylor my approach to me.

Journaling and Assessing

The first thing I did was reflect on how I was using my phone day-to-day and how I felt about it. Often, I would find myself feeling down more about giving my attention to certain content than actually consuming in general. While I was often spending 20 minutes scrolling through Reddit and feel bad about it afterwards, I know I wouldn’t feel that way reading someone’s blog post or a book.

Delete & Replace

So, I deleted the Reddit app and put an RSS reader and Apple Books on my homescreen. Make it quicker to tap one of those than the others.

No No, the Account, Too

What?! But, my karma and history and saves! I know, I know. It’s hard, but deleting the accounts I didn’t want to give my attention to anymore really was the best way for me to stop going back. Reddit, Instagram, Threads… Once you can let go and that history is gone, the desire to go back diminishes quickly.

And when you do want to go back? Open one of those better apps, instead. It’s easier than setting up a new account, anyways.

Staying Connected

At first, my main concern was that I wouldn’t be able to stay connected with certain people or I’d miss out on what’s going on. Two things: 1. Texting, phone calls, and emails still exist, and 2. research and bookmark places and things to do in your area, then check them once in a while. You’ll be pleasantly surprised at how much more “connected” you feel when you have to put in more effort.

Real Life Alternatives

While I read more books on my phone than I used to and stay connected through websites instead of social media, I also still read real, paper books and talk with people, like, in person. In one of my previous posts I talk about my “system:” People over cameras over books over screens (books and screens now often overlap, but I try to prioritize paper books when possible), and I’d encourage most people to come up with their own. It’s been very handy for reminding myself what I want to do with my time.

Going Dark (Lite)

The last thing I started doing is going dark, for when I really don’t want to pick up my phone. This is for the evening when winding down or when out with friends. Utilizing Shortcuts, I’ve made the Action Button put my phone into Do Not Disturb, turn on Dark Mode, make my screen grayscale, and turn off the Always on Display. Then, I go put my phone in another room or leave it in my pocket. If someone really needs to get ahold of me, I still have my Apple Watch on, but most notifications are filtered out.

The Result

What’s the result of all this? I actually spend more time on my phone, now, but I’m doing things like researching, reading blogs and books, and even writing. Yes, my screen was the issue, but it was what was on the screen that really made the impact. If you can solve that problem you’ll feel so much better than just trying to reduce a number.