For many people, bedtime has become another opportunity to remain connected. A few minutes of checking social media can quickly turn into hours of watching videos, reading updates and responding to notifications.
As a result, what could have been just a brief diversion ends up delaying bedtime, resulting in less sleep and recovery hours each day. This ultimately leads to fatigue and difficulty concentrating, irritability, poor mental functioning and disruption of the normal sleep-wake cycle, once such a pattern develops.
How does the brain behave during doomscrolling?
The brain is naturally drawn to new information, and doomscrolling provides a continuous stream of it. The constant stream of videos, headlines, notifications and posts keeps feeding the brain fresh inputs to keep attention levels high rather than winding down naturally after engaging activities. Information that causes stress, fear or emotional response triggers higher levels of cognitive and physiological arousal, thus making a person’s brain remain active despite physical fatigue.
The issue is especially critical during the nighttime when the circadian rhythm of the body (the internal 24-hour cycle) is preparing the body for sleep. As evening progresses, the brain produces higher amounts of the hormone melatonin, which is responsible for the regulation of the sleep cycle. However, any kind of screen light can inhibit or postpone the release of melatonin and content on the device keeps the brain stimulated and alert.
What are the effects of doomscrolling on the body?
The difficulty in falling asleep is only the beginning. When scrolling repeatedly pushes bedtime later, reduced sleep duration can affect several functions that depend on adequate rest. Sleep plays an important role in memory consolidation, attention, emotional regulation and cognitive performance. This can result in morning fatigue, difficulty concentrating, irritability, slower responses and reduced daytime alertness.
The effects can also extend to the eyes. Prolonged screen viewing can contribute to digital eye strain, particularly because people tend to blink less frequently while concentrating on a screen. Reduced blinking can destabilise the tear film, the protective layer covering the surface of the eye, increasing tear evaporation and contributing to dryness and irritation. Continuous near focusing can further cause visual fatigue, blurred vision and headaches.
When these effects occur repeatedly, the issue becomes less about one late night and more about a pattern that can disrupt the body's usual sleep schedule.
What can be done to break the cycle?
The solution is not to stop using technology altogether but to set a specific time of day beyond which there would be no social media usage. Keeping devices out of the bedroom and substituting screen usage with activities that demand minimal engagement can help the mind prepare for rest. This means taking actions and developing new habits, even small ones.
The eyes can benefit from regular breaks, conscious blinking and comfortable screen positioning. The 20-20-20 rule, looking at something around 20 feet away for 20 seconds every 20 minutes, can help reduce prolonged visual strain. Maintaining consistent sleep and wake times can further support the circadian rhythm and establish a more predictable sleep routine.
While doomscrolling involves screen usage at night, there are other elements involved. They include sustained cognitive activity, use of screen-based light sources close to bedtime and delayed bedtime, all of which could potentially have negative impacts on brain function and eye health. By establishing a barrier between screen usage and bedtime, one ensures adequate recovery for the brain and preserves precious sleeping time.
(The author is an internal medicine specialist at Apollo Spectra Hospital, Chennai)
The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not purport to reflect the opinions or views of THE WEEK.
