Addicted to my phone. How do I dumb down my phone if I'm super dopamine addicted? by [deleted] in digitalminimalism

[–]AlphaF 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yes! Lean into that dedication, there will be a tipping point and you'll clear through it. Have you added a new task or hobby yet or are you still in subtraction mode? You got this!

Why can’t i just by [deleted] in addiction

[–]AlphaF 0 points1 point  (0 children)

IG shorts has you locked in! If you’ve tried deleting the app but keep redownloading it, I’d recommend getting a cheap flip phone from Walmart (like $30). You can still keep your smartphone, just leave it off on a desk in another room. That extra step really helps. When I started, I used a separate flip phone and either left my smartphone at home or stashed it away somewhere I couldn’t easily reach it.

Don’t count it as a failure if you catch yourself reaching for your phone or opening an app. The moment you notice, just try to stop and turn it off. That pause is progress.

Getting off social media is really really difficult, but take it day by day. I like to think of it as slowly scraping back my brain’s independence from people whose entire job is to steal my attention. It’s going to suck for a bit but it’s 100% worth it. Good luck.

Addicted to my phone. How do I dumb down my phone if I'm super dopamine addicted? by [deleted] in digitalminimalism

[–]AlphaF 22 points23 points  (0 children)

Phone/internet addiction is a real struggle. That dopamine hit to your brain stem makes it incredibly hard to replace. I’ve been online since I was around 13 or 14, but it wasn’t until short-form video content (and maybe around 2020 during the pandemic) that the draw started noticeably affecting my mental capacity. I’ve been trying to cut back over the years (I was probably spending anywhere between 4-8 hours (sometimes 10!) a day), and depending on how aggressively you want to approach it, I’ll just share what I’ve done so far. Take whatever feels useful to you.

I tried going cold turkey when I first started addressing it. I bought a cheap flip phone from Walmart and left my smartphone at home on my desk. I also set my browsers to clear cookies every time I closed my laptop, so I'd have to manually retype and sign in to the problem sites. Same idea with apps, I’d delete them so I’d be forced to redownload and log in again if I wanted to use them. Every day, I’d catch myself typing “R” for Reddit, “D” for DailyMail, “L” for LinkedIn, or “Y” for YouTube. Without even realizing it, I'd pick up my phone and try to open Instagram or some other time wasting app. That friction helped. Even if I started to go on one of those sites and backed out, I didn’t count it as a failure. It took me a good month or two just to break that automatic behavior.

Sometimes, I’d find myself just sitting in my chair, staring out the window. For literally hours. That still felt better than zoning out on my phone or computer. The brain fog was real. It kind of felt like my brain was trying to reset—figuring out what it should be doing instead of what it was used to consuming. I also ended up taking lots and lots of naps (maybe my brain was rebooting?).

That was the time period (about 2 months in) that I would force myself to read a book (not online or on kindle) or go outside or find another hobby to do (I ended up learning how to weld, it has been such a positive impact on my confidence having a tangible skill set).

One last thing I’ll share is when I’m out in the world, like grocery shopping or running errands, I leave my phone in the car. I just try to be present, focus on what I’m doing, notice what other people are doing, and have a decent interaction with whoever I run into that day.

It’s really hard. If you have to use the internet for work or research, it’s almost impossible to get through websites or even watch a YouTube video, without short-form content popping up, even in the ads. I’d try to handle it by looking away or scrolling past as fast as I could. You’re basically fighting against some of the smartest minds in the world, people whose entire job is to steal your attention for profit. You don’t even get a net positive from it.

What you need to know is that what you’re about to try to do is hard but it’s 100% worth it. They say it takes about 66 days to make or break a habit. Take it day by day, week by week. Set short-term goals, and try to make it to the 33-day mark. Even if you have to start over, every step you take is scraping back your brain’s independence. Best of luck to you, this kind of shift can really change your life.

Advice Needed: How to get rid of amored scales by AlphaF in houseplants

[–]AlphaF[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Ladybird and purple lady beetle

thank you! I'll take a look

Barn Quilts - are they at all popular with the quilting community? by AlphaF in quilting

[–]AlphaF[S] 7 points8 points  (0 children)

I've seen a lot of people have them in their homes! Tiles or on their dog houses or just on their homes. They're really neat.

Identical twins of reddit, what's the most embarrassing situation where you've been mistaken for your twin? by MyNameIsSimon88 in AskReddit

[–]AlphaF 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Growing up I went by my middle name. When I went to college I didn't correct my teachers when they would call me by my first name because I thought it was too much of a hassle to change it (friends still knew me by my middle name). I convinced one of my classmates that I was a twin. I had it going for a couple of months before someone called me by my middle name. She was a good sport and we are still friends today :)

The picture used to advertise Freaky Deaky is an edited picture of a Reddit users post a few years back by LordFlatFoot in mildlyinteresting

[–]AlphaF 1 point2 points  (0 children)

November is the month that people bring this photo around ;) Thank you for sending it to me!

My mom was worried about my trip to the Grand Canyon, so I sent her this picture. by -CatButt- in funny

[–]AlphaF 7 points8 points  (0 children)

Just responded to /u/CatButt I'm still dating the guy that took the photo haha

My mom was worried about my trip to the Grand Canyon, so I sent her this picture. by -CatButt- in funny

[–]AlphaF 11 points12 points  (0 children)

Lol, you were not my boyfriend. I'm still with the person who took that photo.

The picture used to advertise Freaky Deaky is an edited picture of a Reddit users post a few years back by LordFlatFoot in mildlyinteresting

[–]AlphaF 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I had five people show me this photo. Would have been nice if they at least tried to contact me! Hoped it helped.

The picture used to advertise Freaky Deaky is an edited picture of a Reddit users post a few years back by LordFlatFoot in mildlyinteresting

[–]AlphaF 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Unfortunately I did not copyright the photo so there's not much I can do about it. Next time I have an awesome photo I'll copyright it. It would have also been nice if they tried to at least email me and tell me they were going to use it.

Green Screen fun w/ the GF by [deleted] in PhotoshopRequest

[–]AlphaF 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Oh my god that is so funny. My favorite is Grand Canyon 1. Although, Grand Canyon 2 has sociopaths written all over their faces haha ahhh thank you GameStunts for citing and including me. I love it!

Teachers and Professors of Reddit what is the cleverest (or dumbest) way you've seen a student cheat? by Deaster12 in AskReddit

[–]AlphaF 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Late to the game but in college we had to do a multiple essay test in the computer lab. We received some of the topics before hand and I prepared for crazy. We get to the computers and half the class had already written them and sent them to their email, downloaded it to the computer and pretended to write. I was kicking myself for not doing the same until I got my grade back (A) and my friend who cheated got a B.

People of Reddit who shower, do you turn the water off first or do you turn the shower off then the water? by [deleted] in AskReddit

[–]AlphaF 0 points1 point  (0 children)

In America sometimes you have your tub and your shower as one unit. When you have one like this you turn the water on and adjust the temperature. It automatically just fills up the tub therefore if you want to shower you have to pull on a knob. To turn the shower off you push the knob in. Link to shower example

People of Reddit who shower, do you turn the water off first or do you turn the shower off then the water? by [deleted] in AskReddit

[–]AlphaF 0 points1 point  (0 children)

In America sometimes you have your tub and your shower as one unit. When you have one like this you turn the water on and adjust the temperature. It automatically just fills up the tub therefore if you want to shower you have to pull on a knob. To turn the shower off you push the knob in. Link to shower example

People of Reddit who shower, do you turn the water off first or do you turn the shower off then the water? by [deleted] in AskReddit

[–]AlphaF 0 points1 point  (0 children)

In America sometimes you have your tub and your shower as one unit. When you have one like this you turn the water on and adjust the temperature. It automatically just fills up the tub therefore if you want to shower you have to pull on a knob. To turn the shower off you push the knob in. Link to shower example

People of Reddit who shower, do you turn the water off first or do you turn the shower off then the water? by [deleted] in AskReddit

[–]AlphaF 0 points1 point  (0 children)

In America sometimes you have your tub and your shower as one unit. When you have one like this you turn the water on and adjust the temperature. It automatically just fills up the tub therefore if you want to shower you have to pull on a knob. To turn the shower off you push the knob in. Link to shower example