By Sana Abbas

In this day and age, social media is constantly within reach. Apps like TikTok, Instagram, X, YouTube, and many others have become part of everyday life for many people’s fingertips. As a 19 year old, I am not immune to the pull of technology either. It has become such a normal part of my life that most of the time, I do not even realize how much time I spend online until many hours have already passed. What starts as checking one notification quickly turns into endless and mindless scrolling late into the night, losing sleep, and feeling mentally exhausted afterward.

Older generations often criticize younger generations for being “addicted” to our phones and tell us to simply go outside more or disconnect. While there is truth to the idea that technology can negatively affect us, I think the conversation is more complicated than that. Most young people are not staying on their phones because they are lazy or because they hate the outside world. Sometimes people stay online because it feels safe, familiar, and easier to control than real life.

Social media has become a comfort zone for many people my age. Even when we know doom scrolling diminishes our mental health, sleep, and attention spans, it can still be difficult to stop. Apps are designed to keep us engaged for as long as possible. Infinite scrolling, short videos, notifications, and algorithms constantly feed us content based on our emotions and interests. It is easy to lose track of time when every swipe gives us something new to react to.

At the same time, I do not think people who doom scroll should automatically be judged. Many young people are dealing with stress, anxiety, loneliness, or depression while trying to balance school, work, relationships, and expectations about the future. For some, scrolling through social media becomes a distraction from those feelings, even if only temporarily. The problem is that temporary comfort can slowly turn into unhealthy habits. Spending too much time online can make people more isolated, less motivated, and disconnected from the world around them without them even realizing it.

However, constantly blaming young people is not helpful either. Technology is deeply built into modern life. School, friendships, entertainment, and communication all happen online now. Telling teenagers and young adults to completely abandon their phones ignores how connected our generation has become to technology from such a young age.

I think what young people need is balance, not shame. There is nothing wrong with enjoying social media or spending time online, but there also needs to be awareness about how harmful excessive doom scrolling can become for our brains and mental health. Instead of mocking young people for being “chronically online,” older generations should try understanding why so many people turn to their screens in the first place.

Ultimately, doom scrolling is about more than just phones or screen time. For many people, it has become a way of coping with stress, uncertainty, and the pressure of everyday life in a world that already feels mentally exhausting. Technology itself is not the enemy, but normalizing endless scrolling is not healthy either. Instead of shaming people for being online, there needs to be more awareness about finding balance and understanding the emotional reasons behind why so many young people struggle to disconnect.

Sana Abbas is a second‑year college student sharing perspectives from her generation in the No Filter column.