Tactics For Escaping Online Addiction

Improve relationships.

Stop SPECIFIC online activity for 90 days.

Let’s take social media. If social media has become problematic, stop all use for 90 days. Uninstall all social media apps from your phone and block all social media platforms from your web browser. For that three-month period, keep yourself from engaging in that specific online activity as much as possible. This gives your brain the chance to reset and enjoy other activities. When we are addicted to a behavior or substance, our brains primarily find the most pleasure in that behavior or substance. Going on a walk outside on a nice day does nothing for us if we are addicted to social media. Stopping that problematic online activity gives our brains the time to enjoy other activities again and set up different, healthier habits.

Redirect online motivations. Certain reasons motivate our online activities. For social media, maybe you are motivated to stay connected to your friends, meet new people, and improve your professional network. Maybe you enjoy the novelty of seeing what others are doing and get a little excited when you see others comment on your vacation pictures. Your motivation to use social media is to enhance your social capital. So, while you stop using social media for 90 days, focus your extra time and energy on fulfilling your motivations in other ways. Join a local book club or social group. Get involved in your neighborhood or volunteer at a local organization you believe in. These outlets can give you similar rewards for being on social media, but the outlet will be healthier for you.

At some point along the way, some important relationships were likely harmed by problematic screen use. Use this 90-day period to work on those relationships. Have an honest conversation with your partner about your challenges. Apologize to those whom you have hurt. Talk openly with friends about your desire to change and how they can help. It’s natural to feel we don’t need others or view vulnerability as weakness. But as researcher and vulnerability expert Brené Brown says, “Vulnerability sounds like truth and feels like courage. Truth and courage aren’t always comfortable, but they’re never weakness.” Improving relationships is vital in helping us escape problematic screen use.

Address underlying challenges. Screen use is a way to mask problems. We can easily escape from work or homelife challenges by jumping into an online world. When we take away our online coping strategy for 90 days, we will also need to work on those underlying challenges. Talk to your trusted family and friends to explore challenges you might be running away from. Journal, meditate and pray about what challenges need to be addressed. Work with a trusted mental health counselor to help work through these underlying challenges. The counselor doesn’t have to specialize in problematic screen use to be effective. The key is to look for a counselor you trust and like. The therapeutic relationship is one of the most important pieces of effective therapy.