I Quit Social Media For 30 Days

Added: 2026-05-21

[00:00:01]I've been putting this off for weeks, but today is finally the day. It's April 20th, and I am going to be deleting all of the social media apps off of my phone for the next 30 days. But let me back up for a second to the endless nights scrolling, the 15-minute break that turns [music] into an hour, being alive, but not really being present. Because that was my reality every [music] single day. And I think deep down I knew it. I knew I was wasting time. I knew I was distracting myself. I knew something needed to change. [music] I needed to reclaim my life, my time, my energy, my thoughts. I needed to stop consuming other people's lives and start [music] actually living my own. The rules were simple. No social media for 30 days. No exceptions. [music] I started by deleting every app off my phone. And since I'm a full-time creator, I could still post from my computer, but the key was removing it from my pocket because that is where the bad habit [music] lived. The goal of this wasn't just to quit social media. It was to reclaim my time and to feel boredom [music] again and to try new things and to feel what life felt like before I was constantly consuming everyone else's. The first thing I noticed was how fast I finished everything. I did my to-do list in half the time and it was kind of confronting because it forced me to admit something.

[00:01:24]I wasn't always busy. I was distracted.

[00:01:27]And once the distraction was gone, I found boredom. A feeling I used to know really well as a kid. But somewhere along the way forgot existed. And let me tell you, boredom is uncomfortable. I felt it even in the smallest moments, like waiting for my coffee or standing at a crosswalk. moments that I used to fill instantly with scrolling. But out of that boredom came something unexpected, new hobbies. I started doing things that [music] actually challenged me, things that made me think, things that took time, like using my problem-solving brain and learning how to play chess or working on a drawing for [music] days just to see the final result. And the dopamine I got from that was way more satisfying than any scroll.

[00:02:10]I [music] also started reading more. I got into Sudoku, like actually really into it. I spent more time learning on Dualingo instead of just doing the bare minimum. [music] And what I realized is when you remove the easy option, you start choosing real life. It's been hard for me this hike to be present. I keep grabbing from my phone, wanting that constant stimulation, and I am just struggling to be in this moment and only in this moment. And so I do think it's going to be a process and something that I have to practice because my brain is so used to constant stimulation and entertainment. [music] I think one of the most unexpected parts of this whole experience was what came up when I didn't have social media to distract me anymore because usually if I felt anxious or overwhelmed or just a little off, [music] I would reach for my phone and kind of shift my attention away from it. But without that, I actually had to sit with what I was [music] feeling. And I realized how often I was avoiding processing things in real time. And that's something I've been working through more intentionally in therapy.

[00:03:17]This video is in sponsorship with BetterHelp. [music] And one thing I really appreciate is how accessible they've made therapy feel because I know for a lot of people, therapy can feel [music] out of reach. Whether it's the cost or time or just not knowing where to start. But with BetterHelp, [music] you can get matched with a licensed therapist online and connect in a way that fits your life, [music] whether that's messaging, phone calls, or video sessions. And if it's not the right fit, you [music] can switch therapist at any time, which I think is really important.

[00:03:48]For me, therapy has become less about [music] fixing something and more about learning how to understand my patterns and [music] actually process what's going on instead of constantly distracting from it. And I think in a world where we're so used to always having [music] an escape in our pocket, having a space where you can slow down and actually think [music] and feel is really valuable. If that's something you've been wanting to explore, I'll have a link in the description [music] where you can learn more about Better Help. And you can use my code Ellison Scar for 10% off your first month. It is April 28th, so I've officially been doing my no scroll social media challenge for 8 days. I thought I was really going to miss short form video entertainment, but it turns out that I have found other hobbies and other ways to entertain myself that are a lot more mentally stimulating and honestly a lot more fun. I recently fell in love with Sudoku. By day 15, things started feeling a lot different. So much of my day before was built around instant gratification. [music] Picking up my phone, scroll, quick dopamine, repeat.

[00:04:57]And every moment of boredom was filled instantly. But without that, I started doing things that [music] didn't give the same immediate reward. Things that took time and that were slower [music] and things that didn't feel super exciting right away, like baking something from scratch or sitting down and drawing and not finishing it in one go or actually reading an entire book.

[00:05:20]Even doing simple things like going on a walk without any music and without any distraction, just being there in the present moment. And when I first started this, it felt super uncomfortable and unnatural because my brain was so used to getting something instantly. So maybe I wasn't actually bored before. Maybe I was just overstimulated. And maybe for the first time in a long time, my brain felt quiet enough [music] to just enjoy the simple things again.

[00:05:51]We're already 15 or 16 days into the no social media challenge. It's May 6 and something that I've experienced is when the volume of your external world is turned down, then the volume of your internal world is turned up. And so I feel like I'm hearing my own thoughts more clearly. I'm hearing my own values more clearly. I'm seeing things more clearly. I also feel like I'm not comparing myself so much to other people. I'm not comparing my life to other people's lives because I'm not consuming other people's lives. And if I'm being honest, it's actually pretty peaceful because I'm just doing me and I'm just living my life and I'm just enjoying my reality without constantly asking myself the question of am I enough or am I doing enough?

[00:06:53]My entire job is built around [music] content, views, performance, engagement.

[00:06:58]And for the first time, I wasn't consuming [music] any of it. I wasn't scrolling. I wasn't watching. I wasn't part of it in the same way. [music] And it made me realize how powerful content actually is because I felt what it's like to be constantly pulled into it, to [music] lose time in it, and to feel distracted by it. And so I started asking myself, if I know how easy it is to fall into that, then what responsibility do I have as someone creating [music] it? And I sat with this question for the entire 30 days because I don't want to make content that just keeps people watching. [music] I want to make content that actually gives something back, that makes you think or helps you make better choices or maybe improves your life in some sort of small way. But [music] at the same time, I can't control how someone watches my videos. I can't control if it's in balance or if it turns into a binge scroll. But what I can control is what [music] I put out and how intentional I am with it.

[00:07:58]This month made me realize something.

[00:08:01]Our time is not unlimited and the people we love aren't guaranteed either. And I know that sounds cliche, but it's true.

[00:08:08]There are things that matter in life and there are things that don't. And so I started asking myself, is this worth the cost? The cost of time with people that I love, the cost of my attention, and the cost of my mental clarity. One thing I kept thinking about during this whole experiment was computer RAM. And if you don't know what RAM is, it's basically how much your computer can process at one time. And so when you have a bunch of tabs open or a bunch of apps running, your computer starts to slow down and it gets glitchy and things don't load properly. And if you keep pushing it, it eventually crashes. And that's kind of what we're doing to our brains. We are constantly taking in information. We're scrolling. We're watching. We're reading. We're switching from one thing to the next. and there's no space to actually process any of it. And so over time, our RAM fills up and you're going to feel brain fog and constant low-level stress and feeling mentally tired, even if you didn't really do anything. And so for me, this experiment felt like closing all of those tabs and letting my brain actually catch up.

[00:09:19]By day 30, I could feel the difference, not just in my habits, but how my brain actually felt. It felt like I had more space in my mind. And [music] in that space, I started reconnecting with what actually matters. I processed emotions that I hadn't touched in years [music] and thoughts that I had been pushing off and feelings that I didn't even realize were still there. And yes, [music] I was bored. But that boredom finally gave my brain room [music] to think instead of just constantly reacting. And so, was it worth it? [music] Absolutely. Will I never use social media again? No. That's just not realistic for [music] my life.

[00:09:58]But what this gave me was boundaries. I don't need to consume content every [music] day. I need to be present in my life every day. Moving forward, I'll keep YouTube on my phone, but I won't be redownloading Instagram, Tik Tok [music] X, or Facebook. And if I need to use them, I can access them from my laptop.

[00:10:17]I hope this video makes you look at your own relationship with social media a little differently. Maybe it inspires you to try something like this for yourself, even if it's not for 30 days.

[00:10:27]Because what I realized is when you create a little distance from all the noise, you start to reconnect with your own life again. [music]