Doomscrolling: What Endless Bad News Does to Your Stress Levels
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It usually starts innocently. You check the news, then one more story, then the comments. Twenty minutes later you feel tense, flat and somehow more worried than when you started.
NOUI Collective · · 3 min read
It usually starts innocently. You check the news, then one more story, then the comments. Twenty minutes later you feel tense, flat and somehow more worried than when you started.
That's doomscrolling. And you're far from alone.
Why we do it
Our brains are wired to pay attention to threats. In the past, noticing danger kept us alive. Now, that same instinct keeps us scrolling through bad news, looking for certainty or reassurance that rarely comes.
Endless feeds make it easy. There's no natural stopping point, so the only thing that ends a scroll is you.
What it does to your mood
Two to four minutes. That's less time than it takes to make a cup of tea.
What it does to your body
Repeatedly taking in stressful content keeps your stress response ticking over. If that becomes a habit — especially at night — it can feed into poorer sleep, more tension and the "wired but tired" feeling. Our nervous system regulation guide explains why recovery time matters so much.
How to break the habit
Choose when, not whether Staying informed matters. Try checking the news once or twice a day at set times, rather than dipping in all day.
Pick your sources A trusted news site or a daily summary gives you what you need without the endless feed and comment sections.
Set a physical stopping point Scroll only while your tea brews, or until you reach the end of one article. Give the habit an edge.
Keep it out of bed Late-night doomscrolling is the hardest to stop and the most costly for sleep. See screens and sleep.
Follow some kindness The same study found that uplifting content didn't dent mood. Curating your feed on purpose genuinely changes what you see.
Reset afterwards If you notice you've spiralled, try two minutes of cyclic sighing to help your body settle.
The NOUI take
You don't have to switch off from the world to protect your peace. Just stop letting a feed decide how much of it you take in.
Take the NOUI wellness quiz for a personalised reset plan.
If worry or low mood is affecting your daily life, speak to your GP.
References
- Buchanan, K. et al. (2021). Brief exposure to social media during the COVID-19 pandemic: doom-scrolling has negative emotional consequences, but kindness-scrolling does not. PLOS ONE.
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Treatments and rituals to read next
- Reflexology
A structured pressure massage of the feet, and sometimes hands and ears, based on the traditional idea that areas of the foot map to the body.
- Box breathing practice
A four-count breathing pattern you can do anywhere to slow a racing nervous system.
- Float therapy
Floating in a shallow pool or pod of heavily salted, skin-temperature water, usually in darkness and quiet.
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