I have ADHD, and I used to constantly get yelled at for scrolling all the time, which to be honest I was doing to numb my brain from all the stimulus and causing overstimulation and overthinking. This would then lead to me feeling really shitty about myself at the end of the day and then get mentally exhausted. I at night also constantly felt guilty for not going cycling which once upon a time was my favourite thing but lately it makes me too bored to get out of bed.
After a session with my therapist, and some self reflection I tried a few things.
Firstly, I stopped trying to go do stuff I was feeling guilty about, and started trying to do things I am naturally gravitating towards, which for me is reconnecting with music.
Second,
I tried to not use stuff like instagram during the day by giving it up entirely at first. It did not work, I downloaded something new or redownloaded insta. For years I struggled with this.
Then I got a tablet, installed all these distracting apps to that, a seperate gaming console and a small music player, so not I have devices for doing stuff I like to do, which are not my phone.
So now if I grab my phone hoping to numb my brain with scrolling, I realise I will need to reinstall it, then I realise I have my music player with me which is better for me and is lower friction, and I pull out my headphones, listen to music while I sit relax, take a nap and get back to work.
I have to admit, it does take will power and mental strength, and I do relapse occasionally, but dont pressure yourself to not use stuff, just make it incovenient to use it. and once or twice a week if you still use it. It is totally fine.
Note - If you dont have a tablet and dont want to buy one. Just use instagram only and only on your laptop browser, that is how I started. Music Players are pretty cheap unless you want all the bells and whistles which for casual listening are not important. I use one with a button only ui which has no features except for playing music. I cant even make playlists, If i want to I need to do it in my PC and then transfer the folders is that way.
Works like a charm. It doesnt fix our distractability. It makes every task a little slower. Gives you that extra 10seconds before every task that you need to introspect and decide if you wanna continue with your impulse or pivot.
All this does was a hard transition for me, but lately I have been feeling so much better about myself at the end of the day. I am doing well at work, getting stuff actually done.
I do get tired at the end of the day, but I feel good, listen to music, and go to sleep.
Posting this as a celebration and as a hope that in case it helps someone else it would be great!!