Reducing Screen Time and Avoiding Social Media Burnout

By Amelia Zmuda, B.S., M.S., Exercise Physiology

Social media has become an integral part of daily life, offering clear benefits such as staying connected with friends and family, providing entertainment, and serving as a convenient outlet for creativity and self-expression. These platforms have changed how we communicate and engage with the world, making it easy to share, discover, and interact every day.

However, excessive screen time and social media use can come with unintended consequences. One of the most common is social media burnout. Social media burnout can be defined as a reduced interest in logging into social platforms, often accompanied by feelings of exhaustion, frustration, or even anxiety related to online engagement (Harren et al., 2021). What once felt enjoyable can begin to feel like an obligation or a source of stress. If you find yourself relating to this definition, it may be time to reevaluate your habits. The good news is that there are simple and effective ways to reduce screen time and avoid burnout.

According to DemandSage, the average person spends 6 hours and 54 minutes on screens daily, totaling about 47 hours and 55 minutes per week (DemandSage, 2026). It can be helpful to become more cognizant of your own daily usage and take steps to reduce it using tools already available on your devices. Start with small, realistic goals, such as reducing screen time by 30 minutes for one week, then gradually increasing to an hour the following week. This approach makes change more sustainable and less overwhelming. There are also built-in features designed to help manage usage, such as app time limits, which allow you to set daily restrictions on specific apps.

Creating “screen-free zones” in your home can also be an effective strategy. For instance, if you notice yourself consistently doomscrolling before bed, challenge yourself to make your bedroom a no-screen zone. At first, it may feel difficult to know what to do instead of scrolling, but replacing that time with other activities such as reading, knitting, or meditating can help ease the transition.

Furthermore, finding more engaging hobbies or activities can reduce the amount of time spent on screens throughout the day and provide a healthier balance overall. A series of studies demonstrated that older adults who spent several hours a week over a few months learning to participate in a new craft activity showed improvements in memory, focus, and overall brain function compared to control participants (Adams-Price & Morse, 2025). This suggests that engaging in hands-on, meaningful activities may support cognitive health and mental engagement, and can be a great way to replace scrolling.

Ultimately, managing screen time is not about cutting social media out completely, but about using it more intentionally. By setting boundaries, exploring offline activities, and

becoming more mindful of usage patterns, it is possible to maintain a healthier and more sustainable relationship with technology.

References Adams-Price, C. E., & Morse, L. W. (2018). Creativity, aging, context and culture: Reimagining creativity in everyday life in older adults. Possibility Studies & Society, 3(4), 499. https://doi.org/10.1177/27538699241235247 Harren, N., Walburg, V., & Chabrol, H. (2021). Studying social media burnout and problematic social media use: The implication of perfectionism and metacognitions. Computers in Human Behavior Reports, 4, 100117. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chbr.2021.100117

DemandSage. (2026, March 9). Average screen time statistics 2026 [by age & country]. https://www.demandsage.com/screen-time-statistics/