Social media creators who specialize in “anti-doomscrolling” content are inserting reminders into the feeds of people who lose track of time, challenging the idea that heavy app use is best understood as a simple addiction.
One of those creators is Olivia Yokubonis, who posts online as “Olivia Unplugged.” She makes videos that interrupt what the viewer may see as a short break, offering prompts that what felt like a 10-minute pause can stretch closer to 30 minutes. Many viewers respond positively, but the article also describes snarkier comments that treat the creator’s posting as ironic.
In explaining why she posts on social platforms, Yokubonis said, “For us to actually be seen, we have to be where people are.” She also said, “People love hearing from people,” describing her approach as conversational rather than branded. She said her content sits on a “fine line and a balance” of cutting through noise without adding to it.
Yokubonis’ account also ties into a screen-time app called Opal. The article says she works for Opal and that Opal is designed to help users “reclaim their focus.” However, it says her page is largely free of branding cues such as logos and constant download plugs, suggesting that viewers may not immediately know she is connected to the company.
The style of interruption in her videos mirrors research findings discussed by Ofir Turel, a professor of information systems management at the University of Melbourne. Turel said that when he presented people with their screen-time information, they were practically “in a state of shock,” and many voluntarily reduced their usage afterward.
Not everyone is convinced the method reliably changes behavior. Ian A. Anderson, a postdoctoral scholar at California Institute of Technology, said he finds this kind of inside-the-feed disruption interesting, but was curious whether it is disruptive enough to prompt action. Anderson said the impact could depend on whether people are fully paying attention, adding, “If they’re paying full attention, I feel like it could be an effective disruption, but I also think there is a degree to which, if you are really a habitual scroller, maybe you aren’t fully engaging with it.”
Anderson’s work also examines what people mean when they say they are “addicted” to social media. The article reports that in a representative sample of active Instagram users, 18% agreed they were at least somewhat addicted and 5% indicated substantial agreement—while only 2% were deemed at risk of addiction based on symptoms. Anderson said believing oneself to be more addicted can harm self-control and increases self-blame for overuse, warning, “There are these negative consequences to addiction perception.”
The broader disagreement over the term “addiction” runs through the reporting. The article says researchers and psychologists agree some people spend too much time on social media, but that disagreement persists over whether “addiction” fits without identifiable clinical symptoms such as strong, sometimes uncontrollable urges and withdrawal. It also notes that Turel acknowledged the term resonates with many people and is often used colloquially.
For people looking to curb screen time, Anderson suggested making small, meaningful changes such as moving where an app sits on a phone or turning off notifications—describing these as “light touch interventions.” He also pointed to more involved steps, like not bringing a phone into the bedroom or other places where people commonly use it.
Other creators approach the problem from a systems perspective, arguing that platforms are built to keep users engaged. Cat Goetze, who posts as “CatGPT,” said, “There’s a whole infrastructure — there’s an army of nerds whose only job is to get you to increase your time spent on that platform.” She added that a “whole machine” is trying to keep users behaving that way and said it is “not your fault” and people are “not going to win this just (through) willpower.”
Goetze also founded a business called Physical Phones, which makes Bluetooth landline phones that connect to smartphones and encourages people to spend less time on devices. The article says the packaging includes the message “offline is the new luxury.” Even so, Goetze said, “Social media will always play a part in our lives,” and that she does not necessarily think that is bad. She said reducing average screen time from 10 hours to one hour or from three hours to 30 minutes would be a net positive benefit for individuals and society, adding, “I’d love to be the person that they’re watching for those 30 minutes.”