Are We Finally Craving a Break From Our Phones?
We're waiting in line?? Let's Check Insta!
It's a commercial break? Perfect for a little scroll.
But at some point, our phones went from filling the occasional empty moment to filling almost EVERY moment.
Lately, it seems more and more people are wondering: Are we finally getting a little sick of our phones?
Sure, we love them... We've come to depend on them... But sometimes, we also need a break
While we can't get rid of them, people have been getting surprisingly creative about breaking their doomscrolling habit.
Some are using tools that essentially “brick” their phones for a set period of time, blocking distracting apps until they physically tap a device or complete another step to unlock them.
Others are switching their screens to grayscale, deleting social media apps, using app limits, carrying minimalist “dumb phones,” or simply leaving their phones in another room during meals, movies, and time with friends. The goal isn’t necessarily to give up smartphones altogether... it’s to make mindless scrolling just inconvenient enough that we start choosing something else.
A 2026 Pew Research Center survey found that 53% of American adults believe they spend too much time on their smartphones. Among adults ages 18–29, that jumps to 70%. Even more interesting, 45% of Americans said they'd actively tried to cut back on their smartphone use during the previous year.
Another recent YouGov survey found that 63% of Americans wish they could take breaks from their phones to focus on other activities, although many admit they struggle to actually do it.
So maybe we aren't sick of our phones themselves.
Maybe we're sick of feeling like we can never quite put them down.
---> Every Moment Has Become a Phone Moment
Think about how often your phone sneaks into moments that used to belong to something else.
We're checking messages during dinner. Scrolling while watching TV. Glancing at notifications while someone is talking. Looking at our phones because there were seven seconds of silence and apparently that's now uncomfortable.
YouGov found that 76% of Americans check their phone at least once while watching a movie or television at home, while nearly half do so while eating with other people.
There's even a term for ignoring someone in favor of your phone: “phubbing,” short for phone snubbing. A large analysis of 52 studies involving nearly 20,000 people found that partner phubbing was associated with lower relationship satisfaction, intimacy, responsiveness, and emotional closeness.
Apparently, nobody loves competing with a tiny glowing rectangle for attention.
---> Maybe We Need More Things That Make Us Put It Down
Of course, telling yourself “I'm going to use my phone less” is easier said than done.
Sometimes the easiest solution isn't finding more willpower. It's simply doing something that requires your attention somewhere else...
Go see a movie in a theater and keep your phone in your pocket; Meet friends for dinner and leave the phones off the table; Make something with your hands.
The activity itself almost doesn't matter. The point is to find things interesting enough that you temporarily forget there's an endless supply of notifications waiting for you.
---> Remember Doing One Thing at a Time?
That's part of what we love about a painting class at Pinot's Palette.
For a couple of hours, your hands are busy. You're following the artist, mixing colors, talking to the people around you, listening to music, enjoying a drink, and watching a blank canvas slowly turn into something you actually made.
Sure, your phone might come out for a picture or two.
But it's difficult to endlessly scroll while you're holding a paintbrush.
And maybe that's exactly the kind of break many of us could use.
---> The Goal Isn't to Throw Away Your Phone
Phones aren't going anywhere, and most of us wouldn't want them to.
In fact, that same Pew Research study found that 73% of adults believe their smartphone helps them stay informed and 51% say it helps them feel connected to other people.
The interesting part is that many of those same people still feel they're spending too much time on them.
Maybe the next phase of our relationship with technology isn't about giving it up. It's about getting a little better at deciding when we actually want it around.
See a movie... Take a class... Paint something... Cook dinner... Go outside... Meet a friend...
Just find something that makes you forget to check your phone for a while.
You might be surprised by how good that feels. <3 <3 <3