September 23rd, 2025

Ever had that sinking feeling when you look up from your phone and realize that 30 minutes – maybe more – has just vanished into thin air?
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That was me with Instagram. Multiple times a day, I’d open the app to check “just one thing” – maybe a DM or a quick story update – and before I knew it, I was three pages deep into a favourite creator’s latest reels, watching cooking videos I’d (probably) never try, and reading comments on posts that had nothing to do with my life.
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My brain felt foggy. My work sat there, still untouched. The frustration would hit: Ugh, I did it again. Then came the guilt, that low-key shame of knowing I’d just burned through precious time on… what exactly?​
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I knew something had to change – it was quietly stealing my focus, my energy, and hours I couldn’t get back.

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This is the first email in a two-part series on reclaiming your digital well-being without going full hermit.

What actually worked for me? My phone’s Digital Wellbeing app

I started simple – setting daily timers on my “problem apps.” Each evening, I’d pull up my screen time stats like I was checking a bank statement. The numbers were… humbling. But instead of getting judgmental, I got curious.
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What patterns was I seeing?

When was I reaching for my phone most?

What apps were clearly the biggest time-suckers?

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Then I’d reset my timers for the next day, and every few weeks, I shaved off 10-15 minutes. No dramatic restrictions – just gentle boundaries.
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The transformation didn’t happen overnight, but within a couple of months, the numbers told a completely different story. I’d cut my daily Instagram use in half. Often, even more.

What I learned about making micro-detoxes actually stick

Environment beats willpower every time.

Try moving Instagram off your home screen and bury it in a folder called “Time Wasters” (harsh but effective). Make other apps like your meditation app and notes app the most visible instead.

Small friction, big results.
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Start super small.

My first digital detox was just one hour during dinner. Phone in another room, and focusing on my meal. It felt weird at first – like I was missing something important. (Spoiler: I wasn’t.)

Work up to longer periods of time gradually.

Consider including it in your evening routine to support better sleep, powering down screens 30-60 minutes before bed.
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Track the wins, not just the restrictions.

Instead of focusing on what I was giving up, I started noticing what I was gaining back: deeper conversations, better sleep, that satisfying feeling of finishing tasks without the mental fog of constant context-switching.
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Progress beats perfection.

Some days, I still fall into the scroll hole. The difference now? I notice it faster (especially with the help of the app timer pop-ups), and I don’t let one “slip” turn into abandoning the whole practice.

The real shift wasn’t just in my screen time numbers – it was in my relationship with my phone. I stopped letting it run me and started making it work for me.

EXERCISE: The One-Hour Challenge

This week, try your own micro digital detox:
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Step One

Choose your hour – pick one hour when you’d normally have your phone nearby (during meals, first thing in the morning, or last thing at night work well).
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Step Two

Create distance – put your phone in another room or turn on Do Not Disturb and put it in your desk drawer.
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Step Three

Notice without judgment – how does it feel? What makes you want to reach for your phone? What do you do with the space instead?
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Step Four

Build gradually – if and when one hour feels easy, stretch it to two hours, and when that feels easy, try three hours or even four.
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Think of it like strength training for your attention span. You’re building the muscle slowly, and you’ll be surprised by how much lighter and more focused you feel.

Ask yourself: If you reclaimed just one hour back from your phone this week, what would you do with it?
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Talk soon,
Moriah
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P.S. Next week is part two of our digital wellbeing series, where we talk about the real magic: what you create in that reclaimed space. Know someone who could benefit from an experiment like this? Please forward this along + share the signup page for these weekly emails.

P.P.S. What are all the things that you could finally accomplish if you got one full hour back every single day?