From throwing up 67 hand signs to AI short form videos, doomscrolling has become mainstream for all ages. Through the rise of social media, students and faculty can be seen doomscrolling during passing periods, lunches, class time and off campus. Even staff members like Student Accessibility Services Coordinator Samantha Watson use doomscrolling as a way to pass time and to have a mental reset.

 “I do scroll those short 60 second videos,” Watson said. “I can attest to the fact that it is kind of my go to whenever I’m either bored or sometimes it helps me actually relieve stress.”

Watson noticed how often she was picking up her phone during times when she was “bored”.

“I’m definitely self aware,” Watson said. “There was a good period of time, like a few weeks, where I was actively noticing myself reaching for my phone to scroll, and I would, mentally tell myself, ‘No, put it down. You’re bored’.” 

As someone who oversees part of the REACH program, Watson explained how doomscrolling can be fixed for students who have habitual practices.

Not only does it affect those who fall into habitual behavior, but also those who have ADHD like Msgr. Rick Stansberry.

“It lessens our attention span,” Stansberry said. “I’m already ADHD, even though I’m old, and so I have a short attention span as it is. But when you’re doomscrolling, you don’t really land on anything very long now. The other day, I wasted a bunch of time scrolling, watching golf cart wrecks.”

Stansberry is aware that he doomscrolls but he notices how it is also almost become an instinct for him.

“At the time, you just start doing it, and you don’t really think, and then afterwards, I think, ‘Well, that was dumb. That’s an hour of my life I’ll never get back’,” Stansberry said. “Then you’re late to something, and I’m like, ‘Well, if I had not wasted time doing that, I wouldn’t be late’.”

During times of adoration, Stansberry mentioned how he has become victim to doomscrolling at times and recommended to look up from the screen if it happens.

“I’ve been in the chapel or down at the Cathedral, and I’m there in adoration, and I’m like, ‘Oh, I have this time’,” Stansberry said. “And then we’ll check an email, and then it evolves into that. I think the best thing is don’t bring your phone or just try to look back up at the Eucharist and try to stop yourself.”

Though faculty members have caught themselves doomscrolling in the act, there are some students like freshman Nina Damitsian who scroll for 12 hours a day.

“It’s kind of my routine now because that’s all I do,” Damitsian said. “When I wake up in the morning, I wake up 10 minutes earlier, so I can doomscroll for 10 minutes before I get out of bed.”

Damitsian shared how doomscrolling has taught her new tricks and how she doomscrolls with her friends. 

“A lot of my friends doomscroll,” Damitsian said. “When we hang out, we just doomscroll. We don’t actually hang out. We sit in our beds and face the opposite direction and go on our phones.”

Similar to Damitsian, senior Bo Phung also has a routine for doomscrolling.

“I doomscroll almost every night before bed,” Phung said. “An hour and a half a day before going to bed and doomscrolling in between sets at the gym.”

While students like Damitsian doomscroll to learn more knowledge, some like Phung do it to occupy time.

“There’s just nothing else to do in the moment,” Phung said. “I’ve finished everything I’m doing for the day.”

While doomscrolling takes time from students and faculty, Watson advises students to become self-aware of their actions and realize the cause of them. 

“Mindfulness and awareness are the first steps to fixing the issue,” Watson said. “I’m sure so many people, myself included, will just do it without even realizing it. Try to bring awareness to yourself of the fact that you’re doing it. Also maybe identify why you’re doing it or recognize what times of the day you do it.”