Exactly this!! Last year I was dealing with extreme brain fog, but since I’ve reduced my time on TikTok/Instagram to an occasional post to keep in touch with my long distance friends or searching up a recipe, I feel so much better!
I did the same. Deleted social media from my phone in January. I replaced it with YouTube channels I like as well as online courses and audible books. Life is way brighter and smoothing out tremendously. I also signed up for brain workouts on Lumosity. It’s so hard not to go back though. Everyone is on it and I feel like I’m losing out. I just say I don’t see that or I haven’t heard of whatever is the latest. It passes and I’m good. Trying to get my elderly parents on Lumosity with me. My daughter too.
How do you break out of this and decide to just cut?
I’ve managed to convince myself that I’ll be missing out on the things I saved actively and intently, (neatly organised in folders by category) will be a waste. It’s like a visual justification of my “wasted time” that I do intend to review but never seem to find the time (or remember!).
I hate to think that my reluctance is addiction but fear I’m also answering my own question…is taking them offline before I exit the best way to ease myself out of this FOMO?
When you talked about building a neural pathway that send signals like “stillness is boring” when the need for the dopamine release every 8 seconds kicks in, I wondered what relation that also has to ADD or ADHD. If the pathways get myelinated the more you repeat the pattern and people who consume short form content deeply have a hard time reading because their brain is wired for the constant release, I just wonder what that means for those with Attention Deficit Disorders. Assuming they more likely to be consuming short form ?? So many questions, love this!! - Attention
I did some research on the topic yesterday and wrote my own article on it if anyone’s interested!
honestly it's a rabbit hole worth going down properly because the relationship between short-form consumption and ADHD runs in both directions. to answer your question in short yes, people with ADHD are likely drawn to short-form content because their brain is literally seeking what short-form delivers most efficiently. short form content is like a key in a lock for people with ADHD because it feeds into their problem of already having a dopamine regulation issue at baseline. there probably is nuance to this but the dopamine hit that people with ADHD get from short form content is much more pronounced because it is relative to your baseline at the end of the day and people with ADHD are more dopamine sensitive. i appreciate the question great topic for a full post.
This is a really interesting thought on the impact of short form content on ADD/ADHD brains. I definitely would be lead to believe that those people are more susceptible to being pulled in by that kind of content in a pretty extreme way. It’s catering directly to the deficit their brains naturally have and making it worse. I can’t tell you how often I’ve heard “I think I have ADHD I can’t focus on anything.” More people need to realize that that’s something that is actively being done to them, not a neurological deficit they were born with. Thanks for your great thoughts!
I have pretty bad ADHD, but I’ve trained my brain to hyper focus and can spend hours and hours reading - the more in depth and lengthy the better ;) I’ve been doing this for many years and surprisingly, never had any social media dependency issues. I go on socials once a week if that, watch the things people have sent me, and then forget I even have a phone most of the time ✨
I would highly recommend the app BePresent to anyone who is trying to decrease their screen time and short form content consumption. It uses the same psychology to keep you off social media that they use to keep you on it. Locking apps at certain times, only having a certain interval and number of uses in a day and streaks. It has really helped me (not being paid by them just genuinely support what they’re doing)
Loved this... I remember a time when i could read a book a day and i can't do one for a whole year these day... Genuine destructive path I have been on.
Interestingly, a "negative dopamine baseline" is often a marker of ADHD. And this is also the exact same thing that happens with too much passive stimulation.
The prolonged (even low-grade) dopamine load of successive anticipatory spikes of dopamine first desensitises dopamine receptors. Then if the load is continuously repeated day after day, those receptors become downregulated (literally pulled back into the membrane). This means less of the general motivational signal gets "through," causing feelings of apathy, inability to focus or sustain hard tasks, and even anhedonia.
Attention. As someone who's been on and off the short-form content-dependency train a lot, and being currently on it now unfortunately, I resonated with this post a LOT. Back when I drastically reduced my consumption of short-form content, I felt way lighter, mentally, as learning, reading, forming thoughts and ideas felt so easy and actually enjoyable. Now, I admit I have become more dependent on it, due to personal reasons of just wanting to drown my thoughts, however I'm glad to know I'm not so cooked I couldn't read this post without giving up. I'm going to take it as a sign that I can as you say retrain my attention and get back to where I was. I'm determined to once again feel that sensation of freedom I got from not reaching for my phone constantly, and instead either eagerly reading 2-3 chapters of a book or just sitting there silently with nothing but my thoughts and breathing. Thanks for the insight, I really needed it.
Attention. I have deleted TikTok a few times, but I have also had this doubt in my mind for a while: is it better to consume long form content that doesn’t teach you anything or short form content that leaves you with some information? For example I really love random history and science facts so sometimes I enjoy consuming short form content that teaches/explains me something with reliable sources. Is this better than maybe consuming a longer video that doesn’t teach me anything? I know that the best alternative is to always try to both consume a long form piece of content that also teaches something but I’m just thinking about the nuances.
you definitely have a point. i mentioned in the post how short form content has exposed people to so many new ideas across so many different fields and that can definitely be a positive but realistically how many videos does one come across on tiktok that are truly informative? i’m sure they’re there but you would have to consume a lot of garbage content before you get to that because the algorithms work like that. also what would your true understanding of that topic be? there’s only so much a 2 minute video can educate you on a certain topic and it leaves you with this feeling of understanding but in reality do you really understand it? my best advice would be to intentionally choose long form content that you know will provide value. read books that are packed with knowledge and wisdom. watch movies that you know will leave you feeling different at the end. at the end of the day no matter the type of short form content it will kill your attention span. hope this helps :)
Yes I totally agree with this! It is the exact reason why I decided to stay away from TikTok regarding creating content, for example. I know that I can probably catch a lot of people’s attention talking about interesting facts on TikTok but I feel conflicted about damaging people’s attention spans just to teach them something, so I stay here and write about them instead. Also this is why I try to use any concepts I come across in short form content as a starting point to research those concepts. It can be a good way to probably find things I wouldn’t find otherwise but I also love YouTube and I know that it is way better to find a concept watching a 25 minute video instead of a 10 second one.
ATTENTION! What about iPad kids who have been on technology basically their whole short lives. Reels after shorts and just constant stimulation. How do we stop them from this cycle and bring them back especially since they’re growing up with it and that’s the only thing they know?
honestly it’s a tough question to answer. some of these kids have literally had their attention spans conditioned by the best software engineers in the world to maximize the amount of time they spend on screens and it’s not even the kids fault. it’s the parent who shoved an ipad in their face when they were 2 or 3 years old. one thing research points to consistently though is to prioritize replacement over restriction because it gradually recalibrates the nervous system in a way that pure restriction never does. i mentioned in the post to replace short form content with long form content, but you can take this a step further by replacing screen time with activities that deliver real world stimulation, sports, creative hobbies, social play, anything that requires sustained attention and physical presence.
Also I don't know that all ADD brains find long form or sustained attention difficult, as long as it's of interest. I have self-diagnosed mildish inattentive ADD which craves novelty but also hyperfocuses. Terrible working memory but can read for hours. I know quite a few others who are similar.
After reading this, I’m left to wonder how all of this short term consumption will affect our brains in the long run, in terms of aging. If we are re-wiring’s our neuro pathways now, will that mean an increase in diseases such as dementia or Alzheimer’s later in life?
the honest answer is we don't fully know yet because short-form content at this scale simply hasn't existed long enough for the long term research to catch up, but the early indicators aren't reassuring (chronic understimulation of deep cognitive processing, sustained elevated cortisol from constant novelty-seeking, and reduced capacity for sustained attention) all linked with cognitive decline and all symptoms of chronic short form content consumption so there definitely is a correlation but i just can’t say with 100% guarantee because there isn’t enough research.
Its crazy. Companies really do measure your time on their app rather than your satisfsction in your app nowadays. Not everything is geared to make us, the customers/consumers happy. They just want what they want and we’re simply a means of doing it. Lowkey evil.
Attention.
I personally deleted tiktok, snapchat and IG when crossing over to the new year.
I read Ebooks during my free time now and I genuinely feel the difference.
My memory has improved, I appreciate the world and nature more.
I am happier and I have been trying to spread the word.
It actually is these damn phones!
I have the same experience. I think it started with the mobile phones and messaging, being available all the time, and attention started to fragment.
Exactly this!! Last year I was dealing with extreme brain fog, but since I’ve reduced my time on TikTok/Instagram to an occasional post to keep in touch with my long distance friends or searching up a recipe, I feel so much better!
Deleted mine too. Not sure what to replace them with
Nice, substack is a good start when you are in the go.
But when you are bored getting a hands-on hobby is better.
Yea good idea.
Thinking to find a hobby that challenges the brain and is also fun, and which is offline in nature and has self mastery element to it.
I did the same. Deleted social media from my phone in January. I replaced it with YouTube channels I like as well as online courses and audible books. Life is way brighter and smoothing out tremendously. I also signed up for brain workouts on Lumosity. It’s so hard not to go back though. Everyone is on it and I feel like I’m losing out. I just say I don’t see that or I haven’t heard of whatever is the latest. It passes and I’m good. Trying to get my elderly parents on Lumosity with me. My daughter too.
The whole point is to not replace no?
How do you break out of this and decide to just cut?
I’ve managed to convince myself that I’ll be missing out on the things I saved actively and intently, (neatly organised in folders by category) will be a waste. It’s like a visual justification of my “wasted time” that I do intend to review but never seem to find the time (or remember!).
I hate to think that my reluctance is addiction but fear I’m also answering my own question…is taking them offline before I exit the best way to ease myself out of this FOMO?
When you talked about building a neural pathway that send signals like “stillness is boring” when the need for the dopamine release every 8 seconds kicks in, I wondered what relation that also has to ADD or ADHD. If the pathways get myelinated the more you repeat the pattern and people who consume short form content deeply have a hard time reading because their brain is wired for the constant release, I just wonder what that means for those with Attention Deficit Disorders. Assuming they more likely to be consuming short form ?? So many questions, love this!! - Attention
I did some research on the topic yesterday and wrote my own article on it if anyone’s interested!
https://substack.com/@brinebasalt/note/c-228811731?r=4ozb3i&utm_medium=ios&utm_source=notes-share-action
honestly it's a rabbit hole worth going down properly because the relationship between short-form consumption and ADHD runs in both directions. to answer your question in short yes, people with ADHD are likely drawn to short-form content because their brain is literally seeking what short-form delivers most efficiently. short form content is like a key in a lock for people with ADHD because it feeds into their problem of already having a dopamine regulation issue at baseline. there probably is nuance to this but the dopamine hit that people with ADHD get from short form content is much more pronounced because it is relative to your baseline at the end of the day and people with ADHD are more dopamine sensitive. i appreciate the question great topic for a full post.
This is a really interesting thought on the impact of short form content on ADD/ADHD brains. I definitely would be lead to believe that those people are more susceptible to being pulled in by that kind of content in a pretty extreme way. It’s catering directly to the deficit their brains naturally have and making it worse. I can’t tell you how often I’ve heard “I think I have ADHD I can’t focus on anything.” More people need to realize that that’s something that is actively being done to them, not a neurological deficit they were born with. Thanks for your great thoughts!
I have pretty bad ADHD, but I’ve trained my brain to hyper focus and can spend hours and hours reading - the more in depth and lengthy the better ;) I’ve been doing this for many years and surprisingly, never had any social media dependency issues. I go on socials once a week if that, watch the things people have sent me, and then forget I even have a phone most of the time ✨
Attention!
What a masterpiece 🌱🌱🤍🤍
Changing the content I consume gradually…attention!
in case nobodies told you, i'm proud of you.
Thank you….
Attention!
I would highly recommend the app BePresent to anyone who is trying to decrease their screen time and short form content consumption. It uses the same psychology to keep you off social media that they use to keep you on it. Locking apps at certain times, only having a certain interval and number of uses in a day and streaks. It has really helped me (not being paid by them just genuinely support what they’re doing)
Loved this... I remember a time when i could read a book a day and i can't do one for a whole year these day... Genuine destructive path I have been on.
My fav writer on substack truly! Always looking forward to ur content. ATTENTION GNG
Interestingly, a "negative dopamine baseline" is often a marker of ADHD. And this is also the exact same thing that happens with too much passive stimulation.
The prolonged (even low-grade) dopamine load of successive anticipatory spikes of dopamine first desensitises dopamine receptors. Then if the load is continuously repeated day after day, those receptors become downregulated (literally pulled back into the membrane). This means less of the general motivational signal gets "through," causing feelings of apathy, inability to focus or sustain hard tasks, and even anhedonia.
It's a nasty cycle.
Attention. As someone who's been on and off the short-form content-dependency train a lot, and being currently on it now unfortunately, I resonated with this post a LOT. Back when I drastically reduced my consumption of short-form content, I felt way lighter, mentally, as learning, reading, forming thoughts and ideas felt so easy and actually enjoyable. Now, I admit I have become more dependent on it, due to personal reasons of just wanting to drown my thoughts, however I'm glad to know I'm not so cooked I couldn't read this post without giving up. I'm going to take it as a sign that I can as you say retrain my attention and get back to where I was. I'm determined to once again feel that sensation of freedom I got from not reaching for my phone constantly, and instead either eagerly reading 2-3 chapters of a book or just sitting there silently with nothing but my thoughts and breathing. Thanks for the insight, I really needed it.
Attention. I have deleted TikTok a few times, but I have also had this doubt in my mind for a while: is it better to consume long form content that doesn’t teach you anything or short form content that leaves you with some information? For example I really love random history and science facts so sometimes I enjoy consuming short form content that teaches/explains me something with reliable sources. Is this better than maybe consuming a longer video that doesn’t teach me anything? I know that the best alternative is to always try to both consume a long form piece of content that also teaches something but I’m just thinking about the nuances.
you definitely have a point. i mentioned in the post how short form content has exposed people to so many new ideas across so many different fields and that can definitely be a positive but realistically how many videos does one come across on tiktok that are truly informative? i’m sure they’re there but you would have to consume a lot of garbage content before you get to that because the algorithms work like that. also what would your true understanding of that topic be? there’s only so much a 2 minute video can educate you on a certain topic and it leaves you with this feeling of understanding but in reality do you really understand it? my best advice would be to intentionally choose long form content that you know will provide value. read books that are packed with knowledge and wisdom. watch movies that you know will leave you feeling different at the end. at the end of the day no matter the type of short form content it will kill your attention span. hope this helps :)
Yes I totally agree with this! It is the exact reason why I decided to stay away from TikTok regarding creating content, for example. I know that I can probably catch a lot of people’s attention talking about interesting facts on TikTok but I feel conflicted about damaging people’s attention spans just to teach them something, so I stay here and write about them instead. Also this is why I try to use any concepts I come across in short form content as a starting point to research those concepts. It can be a good way to probably find things I wouldn’t find otherwise but I also love YouTube and I know that it is way better to find a concept watching a 25 minute video instead of a 10 second one.
Attention.
This was a great read🔥
ATTENTION! What about iPad kids who have been on technology basically their whole short lives. Reels after shorts and just constant stimulation. How do we stop them from this cycle and bring them back especially since they’re growing up with it and that’s the only thing they know?
honestly it’s a tough question to answer. some of these kids have literally had their attention spans conditioned by the best software engineers in the world to maximize the amount of time they spend on screens and it’s not even the kids fault. it’s the parent who shoved an ipad in their face when they were 2 or 3 years old. one thing research points to consistently though is to prioritize replacement over restriction because it gradually recalibrates the nervous system in a way that pure restriction never does. i mentioned in the post to replace short form content with long form content, but you can take this a step further by replacing screen time with activities that deliver real world stimulation, sports, creative hobbies, social play, anything that requires sustained attention and physical presence.
Also I don't know that all ADD brains find long form or sustained attention difficult, as long as it's of interest. I have self-diagnosed mildish inattentive ADD which craves novelty but also hyperfocuses. Terrible working memory but can read for hours. I know quite a few others who are similar.
Attention
After reading this, I’m left to wonder how all of this short term consumption will affect our brains in the long run, in terms of aging. If we are re-wiring’s our neuro pathways now, will that mean an increase in diseases such as dementia or Alzheimer’s later in life?
Or will that not apply here?
the honest answer is we don't fully know yet because short-form content at this scale simply hasn't existed long enough for the long term research to catch up, but the early indicators aren't reassuring (chronic understimulation of deep cognitive processing, sustained elevated cortisol from constant novelty-seeking, and reduced capacity for sustained attention) all linked with cognitive decline and all symptoms of chronic short form content consumption so there definitely is a correlation but i just can’t say with 100% guarantee because there isn’t enough research.
ATTENTION, my mom was right when she took my phone away for months back when I was in middle and high school
attention, short->long->build->create
read it in one go with my friend.
Attention.
Its crazy. Companies really do measure your time on their app rather than your satisfsction in your app nowadays. Not everything is geared to make us, the customers/consumers happy. They just want what they want and we’re simply a means of doing it. Lowkey evil.
If you're not selling something, you're the product, not the customer