What Is Doomscrolling, and How Do You Stop?

When you're surrounded by bad news, you may find yourself reading every little detail about it. The word for it is called "doomscrolling." The meaning behind the term came about when COVID-19 became prevalent in 2020.

Doomscrolling—also called doomsurfing—can be addictive when you're constantly exposed to negative news and events. Yet, there are things you can do to lessen your doomscrolling and reclaim some of your precious time. Here's what you need to know and how to break the habit.

What Is Doomscrolling?

Doomscrolling is when a person actively seeks out saddening or negative material to read or scroll through on social media or news media outlets. The idea behind doomscrolling is attempting to get access to all the information you need to keep yourself protected from what's dangerous around you.

Who's More Likely To Do It?

According to research, people with a high level of neuroticism may be more likely to engage in doomscrolling. Neuroticism is one of the Big 5 personality traits, along with openness, conscientiousness, extraversion, and agreeableness.

The trait describes a personality related to emotional instability and being more likely to experience or react to psychological distress. Researchers said that people with a high level of neuroticism react more strongly to negative emotions. They also said these individuals may doomscroll because of their proneness to experience those reactions, low self-esteem, and increased sadness.

Why Is Doomscrolling Addictive?

People's brains become stuck on wanting to seek out negative news when they have repeated exposure to the news. “We are all hardwired to see the negative and be drawn to the negative because it can harm us physically,” Ken Yeager, PhD, a psychiatrist at the Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, told Health.

Most people don’t realize they’re even doing this, Thea Gallagher, PsyD, clinic director at the Center for the Treatment and Study of Anxiety at the University of Pennsylvania’s Perlman School of Medicine, told Health. “People have a question, they want an answer, and assume getting it will make them feel better,” said Gallagher. “You keep scrolling and scrolling. Many think that will be helpful, but they end up feeling worse afterward.”

How It Affects Mental Health

When people doomscroll, it can hurt their mental health. They may experience feelings of:

• Apprehension
• Anxiety
• Sadness and anger
• Uncertainty about the future

Doomscrolling can also challenge the way you see the world, said Yeager. “People are drawn to doomscrolling because they feel like they have a sense of being able to control any of that bad news,” explained Yeager. “But doomscrolling does not create control and only makes you miserable.”

How To Stop Doomscrolling

Knowing what doomscrolling is can be helpful when you attempt to stop. It's important to recognize that you're doing it at all, said Dr. Gallagher. If you've been doomscrolling, here are more tips to consider.

Think on Your Feelings

Take a moment to think about how you feel after you doomscroll or doomsurf. Does it make you feel better and more empowered to have this knowledge, or do you end up feeling even more anxious and hopeless? If it’s the latter, Dr. Gallagher said you’ll want to get out of the habit ASAP.

Limit Screen Time

Try to limit the amount of time you spend on your devices. Maybe you put aside 15 minutes for you to cruise social media, but when the time is up, you put your phone down and do something else relaxing.

Take Control

If you're experiencing anxiety or sadness about a specific issue—like natural disaster relief—try being active when it comes to the issue. For example, you could find a group to join that's offering support to help people affected by the disaster. Doing this can help you feel less like things are spiraling out of control around you.

A Quick Review

Doomscrolling is the act of looking for depressive, negative information on social media or news feeds. People may want to get this information to keep themselves from danger and end up doomscrolling as a habit. Luckily, there are ways to stop doomscrolling like thinking about how you feel after you do it, limiting screen time, and working on positivity training.