I quit social media and online shopping to regain control of my life. Here’s what I learned from my 30-day experiment.

I started my reset after spring break last year to make the second half of the semester as productive as possible. I deleted Instagram, Snapchat, Twitter, and even LinkedIn from my phone.

I signed out of the accounts on my laptop and abstained from browsing car shopping websites, a habit I would resort to whenever I felt bored or stressed out. I started strong with nothing to do on my computer but school and writing assignments.

Within the first week, my screen time was already significantly down — under an hour and 30 minutes — but I occasionally felt the urge to scroll through Instagram or search for used cars I’d probably never buy. Dr. Lembke said developing the desire to return to one’s favored pleasurable activity is a normal part of a dopamine reset.

“Because we’re in this dopamine deficit state, we’re now not getting this exogenous source of dopamine. We feel worse before we feel better, but usually, by about day 10 to 14, the body starts to get the memo … and then people start to get out of that craving state,” Dr. Lembke said.

I replaced my screen time with more productive activities

I replaced scrolling through Twitter with reading and started running again. While certainly not as instantly gratifying as social media, these tasks gave me a sense of accomplishment when I finished. After the first week passed, I was becoming accustomed to my new lifestyle.

Dr. Lembke also recommends disabling push notifications, specifically from social media outlets. “Turn all that stuff off so that you’re not in this mode of reacting to your device, but you’re very intentional about when you’re going to go on and how you’re going to use it,” she said. Her concept lies within a redistribution of control, ensuring that the device doesn’t dictate your interactions with it but instead is managed by you.

By the second two weeks, adhering to the regimen became much easier.

Enabling lifelong habits

I got into a bit of a productivity slump this year, so I took another monthlong abstinence period. It gave me more time to write, focus on school, and catch up on reading.

I still use social media, though I typically schedule content ahead of time and log out after posting. By “posting and ghosting,” I can reap the benefits of being active online without becoming distracted.

I also disable notifications on most non-essential apps, so my phone and laptop aren’t inundated by a constant stream of usually unimportant information. I get far more meaningful work done than before.

My main takeaway from Dr. Lembke’s 30-day experiment is that intentions are key. Rather than letting external stimuli determine our actions and behaviors, we should purposefully interact with them.