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Found a trick that finally got me to stop checking my ex's social media
I kept checking my ex's Instagram every night for like 8 months after we split... drove me crazy. What finally worked was changing my phone's bedtime mode to block those apps at 9pm sharp. I set up a little notebook on my nightstand instead and just wrote down one thing I was glad about that day. It's been 3 weeks now and I don't even think about looking anymore. Weird how a tiny schedule change broke a habit that felt so big. Has anyone else tried something simple like that to stop dwelling?
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seth_singh2018d ago
That notebook idea is pretty clever actually. I heard somewhere that our brains latch onto the little reward we get from checking, like a tiny dopamine hit, and the notebook replaces that with something healthier without you even realizing it. The jar thing made me laugh, but there's something to that too, making the habit cost you something small but annoying adds up fast. I read a study once where people who just moved their phone charger to another room broke phone habits way faster than people who tried to use willpower alone. Changing your environment even a tiny bit seems to trick your brain into forgetting the old routine.
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the_mary18d ago
Well, I gotta say the jar of quarters idea made me laugh, but I bet that money would sting less than the regret of seeing your ex at some party you're not invited to. At least with the notebook you're not paying to be miserable. Though honestly, I wonder if anyone's tried the jar method but with $5 bills, because that might cure a habit real quick when you run out of cash.
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bennett.evan18d ago
Tried something kind of similar actually. I started keeping a jar where I put a quarter in every time I caught myself checking my ex's location on Snapchat. Ended up with like 12 bucks before I got too annoyed at wasting my own money.
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