Mamori / Guides

How to Stop Doomscrolling

Updated

On this page
  1. What is doomscrolling?
  2. Turn off notifications for feed apps
  3. Make the screen less fun with grayscale
  4. Move the app off your Home Screen
  5. Set a night schedule
  6. Limit the feed apps
  7. Why these limits are easy to undo
  8. Block the feeds with Mamori (free)
  9. If it is getting heavy
  10. FAQ

Short answer: Turn off notifications for your feed apps, take them off your Home Screen, and set a night schedule. Screen Time and Digital Wellbeing are free, but you can undo them in a second. If you keep going back, Mamori blocks the feed apps fully while it is on.

You pick up your phone for one minute. Then it is 40 minutes later, and you feel worse. This guide has small changes that help, with the exact menus on iPhone and Android.

What is doomscrolling?

Merriam-Webster says to doomscroll is to spend too much time scrolling through online content, especially news, that makes you feel sad, anxious or angry.

It is a habit, and habits can change. Start with the small steps below. Pick two or three. You do not need all of them.

Turn off notifications for feed apps

Every alert pulls you back in. Turn them off for the apps you scroll the most.

On iPhone: go to Settings > Notifications, tap the app, then turn off Allow Notifications.

On Android: go to Settings > Notifications > App notifications, tap the app, then turn its notifications off. Google says settings can vary by phone.

Make the screen less fun with grayscale

Color is part of what makes feeds feel good. A black and white screen is duller.

On iPhone: go to Settings > Accessibility > Display & Text Size. Tap Color Filters, turn on Color Filters, then tap a color filter. Apple says you can use a filter to view the whole screen in grayscale.

On Android: go to Settings > Digital Wellbeing > Bedtime mode. Google says the Grayscale screen option option changes your screen to black and white. It works while Bedtime mode is on.

Move the app off your Home Screen

When the icon is one tap away, you open it without thinking. Make it harder to reach.

On iPhone, touch and hold the app on the Home Screen, tap Remove App, then tap Remove from Home Screen. Apple says this keeps the app in App Library. You can still open it from there, but it takes more steps.

Set a night schedule

Late-night scrolling costs you sleep. The CDC lists turning off electronic devices at least 30 minutes before bedtime as a sleep tip.

On iPhone (iOS 26 and earlier): go to Settings > Screen Time > Downtime. Tap Scheduled and set the start and end times.

On iPhone (iOS 27): go to Settings > Screen Time > Screen Time Schedule, turn on Schedule, then tap Add Schedule.

On Android: go to Settings > Digital Wellbeing > Bedtime mode > Bedtime routine. Pick Use a schedule or Turn on while charging.

Limit the feed apps

On iPhone (iOS 26 and earlier): go to Settings > Screen Time > App Limits, tap Add Limit, pick the feed apps, tap Next, and set a time.

On iPhone (iOS 27): App Limits are now Time Allowances, set by category. Go to Settings > Screen Time > Time Allowances and pick the Social Media category.

On Android: go to Settings > Digital Wellbeing > App timers. Tap Set timer next to the app and pick a time. Google says when time runs out, the app closes and its icon dims.

Why these limits are easy to undo

  • iPhone: Apple says that by default, you can ignore a Screen Time limit once you reach it.
  • Android: Google says in Focus mode, Take a break lets you use the paused apps again.

These tools are good for a gentle nudge. In a weak moment, you can tap past them.

Block the feeds with Mamori (free)

Mamori blocks the apps in a group and their websites. Blocking is free.

  1. Open Mamori and tap Block.
  2. Under Add to your list, tap Social media. Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, X, Snapchat, Reddit and Threads are ticked. YouTube is in the list too, but you tick it yourself.
  3. Untick any app you want to keep.
  4. Tap Lock and pick your lock.
  5. Go to Home and tap Turn on.

If news is what pulls you in, Add to your list also has a News group.

The lock is the point. To get an app back, you pass your lock first: a wait, a phrase you type, or a PIN a friend keeps. Free waits are 15 seconds. Premium gives you longer locks, from 5 minutes to a week.

On iPhone, the first time, iPhone asks you to switch Mamori on in Settings. You only do this once. Tap Hide the apps under a ticked group to hide the icons too.

Mamori has no schedules and no daily time limits. It blocks fully while it is on. When protection is off, nothing is blocked, and you can delete Mamori like any app.

If it is getting heavy

If scrolling leaves you feeling low or anxious, you do not have to handle that alone. In the US, the 988 Lifeline is free and open 24 hours a day. You can call, text or chat with a counselor.

FAQ

Do I need to delete the apps?

No. Blocking stops the app on your phone. Your accounts and messages stay as they are.

Can I block only the feed and keep messages?

Not with these tools. They block a whole app, not one part of it.

Does Mamori set a daily time limit?

No. Mamori blocks fully while it is on. Screen Time and Digital Wellbeing have time limits.

Which step should I try first?

Turn off notifications. It takes a minute, and it removes the alerts that pull you back in. See also how to make your phone less tempting.

Related guides

How to Make Your Phone Less Tempting: Grayscale, Notifications and Home ScreenMake your phone less tempting with grayscale, fewer notifications, a calmer Home Screen and app limits. Exact iPhone and Android menus, plus the evidence. Dopamine Detox: What the Term Means and What the Research SaysWhat a dopamine detox is, what dopamine does, and what the research says. It is a popular term, not a medical treatment, and the evidence is limited. How to Block Instagram on iPhone and AndroidFree Screen Time and Digital Wellbeing steps, and a block that holds.

Sources

Last checked 12 Nov 2026.