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Manhattan | Wellness > Mental Health

Healthy Habits to Avoid Being on Instagram All Day

Allyson Haskins Student Contributor, Manhattan College
This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at Manhattan chapter and does not reflect the views of Her Campus.

In an ever-changing landscape that’s moving towards the digital world faster than ever before, it’s important to find all the ways to take a break from the bed rotting. As someone who falls victim to the doom scroll in every waking moment, here are a few tips that have helped me steer away from this. 

  1. Reading
    1. A lot of the tips I’ve learned about steering away from the doom scrolls have been found in books I’ve read. Books are such a fun way to escape into a world of your choosing and stimulate brain growth.
  2. 5-4-3-2-1 Rule
    1. I actually found this tip in one of the books I just started reading, The Let Them Theory, which dives into a lot of really good tips to better yourself as a person.
    2. The 5-4-3-2-1 rule is the rule that when you want to do something, all you have to do is give yourself a 5-second countdown and then force yourself to do it before your brain can convince you not to.
      1. Don’t want to get out of bed? Get out after 5 seconds.
      2. Don’t want to get off social media? Count down from 5. 
  3. Set a time limit
    1. Put a time limit on your apps that restricts you from overconsumption and forces you to actually stop
  4. Set goals for yourself
    1. Set limits on how much media you want to consume, what kind of media you’re going to allow yourself to consume, etc. 
    2. This can push you away from seeing negative content and gives you a limit to how much you’ll allow yourself to see

There are so many different ways to move away from doom scrolling, even if they don’t seem as glamorous as scrolling does. Just remember to take a step back and realize what’s better for you and your health, which isn’t always Reels. 

Allyson Haskins

Manhattan '27

Hi! My names Ally, I’m from a small town in Pennsylvania and I'm currently in my sophomore year at Manhattan University. I am a Marketing and Communications double major with a concentration in PR.

I absolutely love traveling, no matter how far or how close the location is as long as its something new. I've been to 48 states, and Maine was my absolute favorite. But, I have 7 siblings so family vacations are a bit stressful, so I'd prefer to go when I'm older.

I've written for an environmental magazine called EcoGenZine during high school and have always loved writing since I was a child. I usually find inspiration from TikTok or Pinterest where my collections are growing to be a bit too large. I love taking criticism on my work, oddly, and learning from others' work.