April 2026
On my second trip to China I spent a week with almost no social media. The time to stare out the window, to be bored and just think, or to give my brain a rest from the high pace of life, changed my brain chemistry. I was more interested in conversation, in long term dopamine. Social anxiety disappeared.
My past attempt at Deleting social media failed. I returned to social media to spread political propaganda, but ended up scrolling again. So I came up with a new method, not cold turkey but weaning off the addiction. Instead of an absolute departure, there would be a tax on social media.
20 pushups or 2 minutes of learning Chinese each time I open social media. If I forget, I have to repay it.
(Learning Chinese = active listening i.e. Bilibili. This option is needed because day one, I did too many pushups and needed a physical break. Plus it's so easy there's no excuse.)
Both of these skills are suited to regular training. As of a week in, my pushup endurance has exploded. My Chinese has gotten a lot more natural.
It has not been an absolute success. I still spend many hours on social media when I'm at home. The reason is I know once I put it down, it will cost me to pick it up again. But the core problem is that I wrongly assume not being on social media means I have to do homework. I have a lot of homework to do, yes, but trying to do it all the time is high stress and unrealistic. I need to learn to relax without social media - reading, writing, watching a long video.
You must make the rules absolute. I was relatively strict, even doing pushups after a long night of doing homework. But I began to make exceptions - when I'm on the toilet, when I'm in class. This and the addiction of staying online forever led to me giving up for two days. I lost motivation. I had to remember why I do it.
It will both require and train your willpower, but it is doable and very productive.
I also suggest not putting your phone in your pocket. This will not only adjust you to being offline, but also reduce radiation and magnetic disruption on your body as well as adjust you to living without the phone.
Finally, for those who cannot bear to live offline. You must learn to LARP. There is no limit to the LARPer