Social Media Detox: Who Really Needs It (Plus My Story)
Some people can scroll social media for hours and still feel fine. They go do their work, finish their to-do list, live their life. It doesn’t affect them that much.
But for others — people who are more sensitive, reflective, or emotionally tuned in — even a few minutes of scrolling can shift your state completely.
And you might not even realize it right away. You might just feel a bit anxious, unmotivated, scattered, maybe even disconnected from yourself… and you won’t always link it back to the screen you just put down.
But it is connected.
I’ve done social media detoxes several times over the last few years — usually around three weeks long. And every time, I saw the same thing:
I felt calmer. More focused. More creative. More in touch with myself and my goals.
And this time… it went even deeper.
In this article, I want to talk about why some people need a social media detox more than others.
I’ll share the three deeper emotional and psychological reasons why scrolling affects certain people so much.
Then, I’ll share my personal story — what I experienced during multiple detoxes — and finally, some practical tips that helped me… and a few mistakes to avoid.
Table Of Contents
Who Needs a Social Media Detox More Than Others — 3 Emotional Reasons
1. A Sensitive or Dysregulated Nervous System
Some of us never had the chance to grow up with a calm, safe, regulated internal world.
Maybe we lived in environments where we were constantly alert, anxious, or emotionally overwhelmed.
And over time, our nervous system adapted — not by becoming stronger, but by becoming more reactive.
It gets overstimulated quickly, stressed easily, and takes a long time to recover.
Social media — with its constant flow of noise, opinions, visuals, and mini dopamine spikes — becomes too much.
It might not feel dramatic at the moment, but it slowly pushes us out of balance and into emotional or physical exhaustion.
2. Empathic or Emotional Absorption
If you tend to absorb the emotions of others or feel deeply affected by people’s energy, this one’s for you.
Social media isn’t just content. It’s people — their moods, their energy, their projections, their pain, their desires — all packed into images, videos, comments, and stories.
Even if you scroll for just a little bit, your system can pick up and hold on to all that unprocessed emotional residue.
You might feel drained afterward and not know why.
It’s not about being “too sensitive.” It’s about being someone who’s deeply attuned — and for people like us, boundaries around emotional input are essential.
3. Low Self-Worth & the Habit of Comparison
This one is subtle but incredibly common.
If you have wounds around self-worth — maybe from childhood, past experiences, or even just a lifelong habit of being hard on yourself — social media can intensify them fast.
You’re constantly seeing curated, filtered versions of other people’s lives.
You compare. Even if you know better.
You start asking: “Why am I not there yet?” “Why don’t I look like this?” “What’s wrong with me?”
And if it’s not self-blame, it can flip the other way — judging others, trying to find flaws as a form of self-protection. But that also drains you.
The energy that should go toward your healing and growth gets lost in the cycle of evaluation and internal defense.
My Social Media Detox Story
I’ve done several social media detoxes over the last few years. The first one was about four or five years ago. I stayed off Instagram for three weeks, and I still remember how different everything felt.
I had more time, more focus, more motivation. I started learning new things, cooking more, being more present with myself. I was genuinely surprised by how much lighter and more grounded I felt.
When I came back, I even wrote a post about it — saying I wouldn’t quit social media, but I’d use it more consciously.
And I really believed it. I thought I had full control.
But the truth is… that control didn’t last long.
Slowly, without even noticing, I slipped back into the same patterns — checking more often, getting distracted, feeling drained again.
So I did another social media detox. And then another.
This last one — the one I just recently finished — was different. Because this time, I finally understood why it affects me so much.
I noticed how, when I removed social media, I started filling the space with something else — watching random videos, checking YouTube analytics too often, or even just finding other ways to get little dopamine boosts.
That’s when I realized: it’s not just about removing apps.
It’s about learning how not to replace them with other distractions.
Only then, you really get the benefits.
And those benefits are so worth it.
To learn not to replace social media with other distractions I did also a 5-day Dopamine Detox and then continued a social media detox.
After about three weeks, I started feeling a deep shift again. I had more mental clarity. I was more calm, more focused, more in tune with what I want in life — not what everyone else is doing.
I started taking real steps — like creating new content, doing a self-development program, waking up earlier, going to the gym again.
Not because I was forcing myself, but because I had the mental space and energy to actually do it.
Tips to Make It Work — And Mistakes to Avoid
f you’re thinking about doing a social media detox, here are a few things that really helped me — and a couple of things I wish I’d done differently:
1. Don’t replace one distraction with another.
This is the most important one.
If you delete Instagram but spend 3 hours watching YouTube or mindlessly reading Reddit threads, the social media detox won’t do much.
Try to notice why you’re reaching for stimulation — and gently redirect it.
Maybe journal. Maybe take a walk. Maybe just sit with the discomfort for a moment.
2. Expect discomfort — especially at the beginning.
You might feel restless, bored, even anxious. That’s normal.
Your brain is used to easy dopamine hits, and it’ll resist. But the longer you go, the more space you create for calm, clarity, and deeper motivation.
3. Create something instead of consuming.
Use the time you’d normally spend scrolling to do something — write, draw, clean, walk, move your body, make a plan.
When you start creating again, you start rebuilding your confidence and energy.
4. Track what changes.
Pay attention to how you feel.
Is your mood different? Do you sleep better? Do you have more ideas? Fewer negative thoughts?
When you notice the benefits, it becomes much easier to stick with it — or do it again later.
Conclusion
Social media isn’t evil. It can be helpful, inspiring, and even healing — if used mindfully.
But if you’re someone with a sensitive nervous system, empathic tendencies, or wounds around self-worth…
you may be more affected by it than you realize.
You don’t have to quit it forever. But even a few weeks off can bring you back to yourself.
More clarity. More focus. More calm.
And if you’ve noticed that you have some self-worth or self-esteem issues check my articles about self-love.
