it’s complicated: why it’s so hard to untangle your relationship with your phone.

I can’t tell you how many times I tried to lower my screentime before I finally hacked it. I was frustrated with my relationship with my phone for years, nearly a decade if I’m being honest.

I tried sheer willpower, I tried screentime limits, I tried app blockers, I day dreamed about getting a dumbphone. I deleted apps, I set goals, I set my phone to greyscale.

I couldn’t understand why I was so tied up with this thing until I took a step back and truly started dismantling my habits.

The fact is your phone addiction isn’t just about Instagram or TikTok or whatever your social media of choice is. Don’t get me wrong, that is likely a huge piece of the puzzle. Full stop: those platforms are built to suck you in and keep you there, capitalizing on your time and your data. Meta has even admitted as much.

But it’s more than the doomscroll.

It’s the incessant phone pick ups.

It’s checking the weather 10x a day.

It’s scrolling through Zillow when you aren’t house hunting.

It’s following along with the group text all day.

It’s checking your phone at the red light, in line at the coffee shop, in the waiting room at the dentist.

It’s refreshing your email when you aren’t even expecting anything important.

It’s scrolling through your home screen with your thumb hovering trying to find which app will take you from very bored to mildly bored.

It’s playing Candy Crush so long that you see the candy floating when your eyes are closed.

It's push notifications.

It’s relying on your phone to fall asleep, to wake up, to count your steps, to remind you to stand up.

It's checking the time.

It's Googling every little thing.

It's asking AI to write something you could write yourself.

It's buying things you don't need.

It's buy now, pay later.

It's checking sports scores.

It's news alerts.

Deleting your social media apps doesn’t take into account the full picture. Blocking apps is a bandaid when you need a whole new approach.

This is why I created Rewire your Digital Habits. I couldn’t reshape my relationship with technology by only looking at one piece of the puzzle. It takes a holistic approach. You must be ready to dismantle your habits and rebuild. It sounds serious because it is.

But on the other side?

After 35 days, you can coexist and have a healthy relationship with technology.

You can still use Google Maps or Spotify or order your groceries online. You might even still use social media in some form.

The point is you will be in control.

You will use your devices are the tools they are intended to be.

You will simply balance those things with real world hobbies and experiences. You will get your entertainment offline. You will cultivate your community without sending memes or empty likes on social media.

You will have a full, rich life.