Quick Answer: The best things to do instead of doomscrolling are small and physical. Go for a ten-minute walk, write down what is worrying you, set a 15-minute timer, text a friend. Choose an activity to swap out for, depending on your day.
Probably the most Gen Z move you can make right now is to search for things to do instead of doomscrolling. That’s something which is all over my feed – thousands of carousels with the best tips.
The problem is, you search it up on the very phone that those advises will tell you to avoid! But your thumb is still moving and your eyes may be stinging. There’s also a deadline in another tab.
So we skipped the hacks and asked a group of ten Gen Zs what they do on bad days, deadlines and late nights.
For instance, 21-year-old Disha from Mumbai said, “Honestly, I put my phone in another room, make Maggi at midnight, and stare at the ceiling until my brain gets bored enough to sleep.”
One thing that all the answers had in common was: they try their absolute best. Sometimes they win. Other times they fail. Miserably so.
Why Your Thumb Is Still Moving
Doomscrolling isn’t a diagnosis – it’s a habit. Psychologist Matthew Price says social platforms are “designed to be limitless scrolling.” [Source: APA Monitor].
For young urban Indians, the hours add up.
Social media usage among 18- to 24-year-olds is over 120 minutes a day, whereas the average for the category was 97.9 minutes. This was found in a report by VTION and IAMAI, covered by Open magazine in June 2026. The sample size wasn’t specified.
While scrolling isn’t harmful, Price studied 61 young adults for 30 days. He found that those who accessed pandemic news on social media had higher levels of depression and PTSD symptoms. However, those who accessed news through newspapers and TV didn’t.
This is an association, not a causation, so we wanted a list of things to do instead of doomscrolling. Things that would fit real days.
Things To Do Instead Of Doomscrolling: 15 Ideas For Bad Days, Deadlines And Late Nights
These things to do instead of doomscrolling come tagged by the day you are having. Pick by mood, not by ambition. Each takes ten minutes or less, unless it says otherwise. None needs money, a gym, or a new app. All of them work in a PG room, a shared flat or a family home.
1. Walk For Ten Minutes, No Earphones
Best for: When you’re stuck on a deadline.
A study done by Stanford researchers with 176 people found that in one experiment, creative output increased by about 60% while walking at Stanford Graduate School of Education. However, focused tasks with one answer weren’t helped.
Do this before brainstorming. Not fact-checking. Take your notes app, not your feed.
“When my brain freezes before a submission, I leave my phone on my desk and walk laps around my society parking lot. Looking at random parked scooters and stray dogs resets my head way faster than staring at a blinking cursor ever does.” said Aryan.
2. Write The Headline Down By Hand
Best for: Bad days.
Psychologists in the American Psychological Association suggest writing out a stressful headline to slow you down. Writing it out with a pen means you’re reading what it actually says. Close the app and look at what you’ve written. Often it’s not as bad as you think.
3. Set A Timer, Then Obey It
Best for: Any day.
One of the easiest things to do is limit how long you spend doomscrolling.
In a trial done in 2018, 143 students were asked to limit their time on Facebook, Instagram, and Snapchat to 30 minutes a day for 3 weeks [Source: Hunt et al., 2018].
This led to lower levels of depression and loneliness. This was a short trial and was done on students. However, the APA suggests starting with 15 minutes.
20-year-old Meera said, “I put a 20-minute app timer on Instagram, which I immediately ignore every single night. Honestly, the only thing that actually stops me is letting my phone battery die completely at 1 a.m. because I am way too lazy to get out of bed for the charger.”
4. Turn Off News Alerts
Best for: Mornings.
News alerts will make you see bad news before brushing your teeth. Simply turn off news alerts on your phone, according to APA.
Look at headlines once a day and at a time of your choice. Don’t look at your phone during meal times. You’ll still be informed.
You won’t be caught off guard. This only takes 30 seconds. That means it’s one of the quickest things to do instead of doomscrolling.
5. Text one friend, One Line
Best for: Bad days.
No one wants a long message. Send them a meme, thinking of you or free tonight? You’re not solving your day, you’re bringing one person into it. Choose someone who will reply with stickers and not advice.
“Whenever my day goes completely off the rails, I text my best friend from college just the words ’emergency momos’. We do not even talk about what went wrong for the first twenty minutes. We just sit at a roadside stall, eat, and complain about traffic,” said Kabir, 23.
6. Do A 10 Minute Tidy (Phone In Another Room)
Best for: Deadlines.
This is called the ‘10 minute stash’ by Homes & Gardens. Put your phone away. Set a timer. Tidy one surface. Start with black and white tasks, like putting dishes back in the kitchen. No decisions to make. Tidying your desk will also make the deadline feel less like a mountain.
7. Empty Your Head On One Page
Best for: Late nights.
Planoly suggests doing a one-page brain dump. Write down all your worries, tasks and half-thoughts. Don’t edit. Once the page is filled up, stop. This is easily one of the cheapest things to do instead of doomscrolling at 1 am. No battery required.
Ananya, who just turned 21 last month, said, “At 2 a.m., my brain starts inventing problems from five years ago, so I grab a rough notebook and write everything down until my hand hurts. Last week I literally wrote ‘do pigeons have feelings’ right next to my internship to-do list just to get it out.”
8. Pick One Issue And Do Something About It
Best for: Feeling helpless from the news.
Price suggests linking your news consumption to your values and getting involved with a cause you care about.
- Join a local group.
- Sign a petition.
- Donate.
This will help you take your anger somewhere. You won’t be checking for updates every 10 minutes.
“Reading constant news about heatwaves and vanishing lakes used to ruin my entire week,” said Rohan. “Instead of spiraling in comment sections, I joined a weekend lake cleanup group near my area. Picking up actual plastic bottles for two hours makes me feel way less helpless than doomscrolling.”
9. Call Someone At Home
Best for: Bad days.
Broadsheet have 36 ideas. One of them is calling your mum, dad, sibling and grandparents. Go for a 10 minute walk whilst on the phone. You’re doing two things at once and you’re also getting a voice you know. Ask one easy question like ‘what did you eat today?’ and let them talk.
10. Read 5 Pages Of A Physical Book
Best for: Late nights.
This is a low target, so it’s easy. Planoly suggests keeping your book where your phone usually is. If you want to read more, then great! If not, then 5 pages is fine.
“I bought three thriller novels last year to fix my sleep schedule, and they just sat on my nightstand collecting dust. What finally worked was switching to graphic novels and old Archie comics because my tired brain cannot handle tiny text blocks after midnight.”
This is what Tanya, who is 19, had to say! I have also covered the reading habits of Gen Z – do check it out!
11. Make Something With Your Hands
Best for: Deadlines with a fried brain.
Cook one easy dish, draw, iron or water your plants. Planoly and Happiful both suggest getting hands-on. Choose one task that has a visible outcome. Finishing a plate of poha is better than an incomplete feed.
I spoke to Siddharth, who’s pretty chilled. This is what the 22-year-old said:
“When my eyes hurt from staring at spreadsheets all day, I go to the kitchen and make garlic tadka Maggi from scratch. Chopping actual garlic and waiting for the water to boil forces me to use my hands and gives me a hot bowl of food instead of eye strain.”
12. Move To A Different Spot
Best for: Bad days.
Planoly suggests moving locations. Open a window or go outside. If you’re living in a PG or small flat, this could be your balcony, terrace, or stairwell. Changing your location will help when trying to change your mind. Even 2 minutes will help. Take your chai with you.
13. Put Your Phone In Another Room
Best for: Deadlines.
Both Broadsheet and Homes & Gardens suggest this. Charge your phone in another room so it’s hard to reach. Use a basic alarm if needed.
Distance is the cheapest way to restrain yourself. It’s one of the most practical things to do. You’re not using any willpower in the moment. Set it up before you begin working.
14. Play A Playlist And Do One Chore
Best for: Lazy days.
Homes & Gardens suggest doing a chore whilst listening to music or a podcast. Choose one task to do, like the sink or shoe rack. Once your playlist finishes, you’re done. You’ve cleaned a corner and finished a playlist.
“Whenever my room looks like a cyclone hit it, I put on a 2000s Bollywood throwback playlist and tell myself I only have to fold clothes until ‘Kajra Re’ ends. By the time the song finishes, my chair is visible again and my mood is totally fixed,” said Niharika, 21.
15. Do Nothing For 5 Minutes.
Best for: Any day.
Sit down and look out the window. Don’t feed your urge. You don’t need to do anything. The best thing to do may be to do nothing.
The Takeaway: When It Is More Than A Habit
If you’re feeling low, anxious or having trouble sleeping for weeks, then this list won’t help. Speak to a doctor or counselor.
India has a 24×7 tele-mental health service called Tele-MANAS. You can call 14416 or 1800-89-14416. If you’re in immediate danger, call 112. [Source: Ministry of Health and Family Welfare]
You can’t just use your willpower to stop. You need an alternative that’s easier. Keep two alternatives to hand, one for bad days and one for deadlines. Start with the timer.
Vikram was trying to avoid answering but gave a pretty honest answer.
“I used to think quitting doomscrolling meant deleting every app and becoming a monk. Now I just aim to put my phone down ten minutes earlier than yesterday. Even on days when the scroll wins, I know I can try again tomorrow.”
Your phone is designed to keep your thumb moving, so it’s not a personal failure if you slip up. Real change won’t mean you have a perfect screen time report. It’ll mean you’re choosing to do one small physical activity tonight.
Put your phone down, close your eyes, and let your day end.
Sources:
- American Psychological Association, Strain of media overload, APA Monitor, November 2022 (Matthew Price’s 30-day study of 61 young adults; advice on notifications, timers and handwriting headlines)
- Price, M. et al. (2022). Doomscrolling during COVID-19. Psychological Trauma. Reported in the APA Monitor piece above.
- Open magazine, Young Indians spend over 2 hours daily on social media, outpacing national average: report, updated 1 June 2026 (VTION and IAMAI)
- Oppezzo, M. and Schwartz, D. L. (2014). Give your ideas some legs: the positive effect of walking on creative thinking. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition. Summary: Stanford Graduate School of Education
- Hunt, M. G., Marx, R., Lipson, C. and Young, J. (2018). No more FOMO: limiting social media decreases loneliness and depression. Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology. Summary: PsyBlog
- Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, National Mental Health Programme, Tele-MANAS
- Idea sources: Planoly, Happiful, Broadsheet, Homes & Gardens