October 26, 2026 | By Addya
I delete Instagram at least once a week in an effort to prove that I can live without it, but every time that I delete it, I end up redownloading it before the day is up. Despite the time limits I’ve set and the apps I’ve installed to avoid using social media too much, I almost always cave and end up scrolling for hours and hours on end.
But on the rare occasion that I succeed in avoiding Instagram, and find a way to stay offline, I’m still not free. Even when I’m not online, all my mind is thinking about is Instagram. If I’m not directly viewing the posts from my peers and influencers on the beach and on exotic vacations at that moment, I’m thinking about them anyways and how I’m not on such a vacation or at the beach.
It’s become nearly impossible for me to escape social media, now that apps like Instagram compete for both my time and my thoughts. Even while I talk or watch a movie or spend time with my friends, I’m planning out my next post, trying to avoid thinking about how many likes I got on my story, and envisioning the dopamine rush I’ll get when I finally open my messages or start to scroll.
Why This Happens
It can be hard to disconnect your mind from social media because of social media’s addictive nature, which is caused by psychological factors, such as low self-esteem and mental health issues, technological features like doomscrolling and notifications, and social influences, such as peer pressure (Muacevic and Adler).
It’s also difficult to stop thinking about social media because of the uncertainty that it often encourages. The uncertainty that comes with not knowing how many likes you got on a story or who commented on your latest post is what stops your brain from moving on and forces your attention to stay in a loop of anticipation.
When your attention is split like this, it becomes harder to fully engage with what's happening to you in the present. While we spend a lot of time measuring how long we spend on screens, we lack a metric to measure a far more important statistic: our “mental” screen time, or how long we spend thinking about something online.
Tips for Disconnecting Your Mind
🌿 Take a mindful minute.
When you struggle to tear your thoughts away from something online, it can be helpful to take a mindful minute after putting your phone down by taking a few breaths, stretching, or getting water in order to actively try to stop your mind from continuing to scroll before you start doing something else.
🧘♀️ Bring yourself back to the present.
Peaceful activities such as reading, talking to someone else, taking a walk, or playing a board game can be good strategies to bring your attention back to what you’re doing in the present rather than what you were doing previously online.
📵 Turn off notifications.
Turning off social media notifications so your brain isn't constantly anticipating when the next one will pop up is another way to avoid keeping your mind on social media, ensuring that your mental screen time stays low.
🔄 Break the checking habit.
In order to train your mental screen time, you can also try resisting the urge to check social media when you get a notification or when you think about how many likes you might have gotten on a recent post to break the anticipation loop. Additionally, you can train yourself to tolerate boredom, and actively avoid thinking about social media by engaging in a different activity.
I still delete Instagram from time to time, and I still sometimes find myself wondering how many people liked my story while I was doing something else or thinking about a post long after I've closed the app. But I’m starting to realize that disconnecting isn't measured by whether Instagram is on my phone or not, but by whether it's still in my head. After all, I don't just want to spend less time on social media; I want it to take up less space in my mind.
About the author
Addya (she/her) is currently a high school junior in the Bay Area who is passionate about mental health awareness and advocating for healthier social media platforms. She hopes to use her experience to spread awareness about social media and promote positive interactions for youth online.
Additional Tools and Insights 📚
How Social Media's Presence Crept Into My Mental Health: Social media can be a great way to connect with friends and stay in the know, but it’s important to use it mindfully. GoodforMEdia Youth Leader, Addya, shares her journey on finding balance for her mental health while staying connected.
The Pros and Cons of Social Media on Sonia’s Mental Health: GoodforMEdia Youth Leader, Sonia, opens up about how social media has impacted her mental health—the good, the bad, and how she’s learned to set boundaries. Watch now for tips on maintaining a healthier relationship with these platforms!
GoodforMEdia Guides and Tools: Explore a list of resources created by youth to help their peers and adult allies navigate the positive and negative aspects of social media.
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