Is Popcorn Brain the Reason You Can’t Focus?
The distraction epidemic nobody’s naming.
If you find yourself tethered to your phone without a breather, you’re not alone. The average American adult checks their phone 205 times per day. I’m sometimes guilty of this as well, in spite of knowing better.
Digital life is creating all kinds of fallout, including shorter attention spans and less conscientiousness. One particularly concerning affliction? It’s called “popcorn brain”—and chances are, you have it too.
What Is Popcorn Brain?
Popcorn brain is a growing cultural phenomenon that describes what happens to your brain when you spend too much time online. Coined by researcher David Levy, the term describes the sensation of your brain “popping” from overstimulation. Popcorn brain makes life feel difficult offline, where things move at a much slower, less interesting pace.
You’re at greater risk for overconsuming media and developing popcorn brain when you’re stressed. That’s because more scrolling is a natural coping mechanism to stress.
Popcorn brain is different from internet addiction. True internet addiction is exceedingly rare. It interferes with your work, relationships, and everyday functioning. Popcorn brain is all too common. It defines modern life.
Your Cure for Popcorn Brain: Digital Boundaries
You don’t need to become a digital monk to cure popcorn brain. Research finds that simply decreasing your reliance on your devices, rather than total abstinence, is what works best.
Digital boundaries can curb popcorn brain. Here are four simple ways to create healthier phone habits.
Create space: Keep your phone off your nightstand; invest in a low-cost alarm clock instead. This helps you avoid scrolling first thing in the morning and before bed, which can have a profound effect on your amygdala and the tenor of your day. While at work, create distance by keeping your device out of reach (10 feet away) or in a cubicle drawer.
Opt out: Remove all automatic alerts and push notifications. Opt out of being hyperconnected. Check your email, the headlines, and texts on your own time.
Set limits: Limit your scrolling to two or three 20-minute sessions per day. Set a timer. Aim to only check your phone for essentials (like urgent messages, calls, and emails) outside of these designated windows.
Switch to grayscale: Trade in the vibrant colors of your phone display for simple black-and-white mode. This makes scrolling less enticing and can decrease screen time.
The goal of digital boundaries is to create healthier phone habits, allowing you to consume tech, without it consuming you.
Dive Deeper
→ Read chapter four of my book, The 5 Resets, for the science behind popcorn brain and how my patient used a “media diet” to overcome his own case of popcorn brain.
→ Check out CNBC’s coverage of my popcorn brain hacks.
→ Check out my interview with Fast Company on phones causing “brain rot.”
→ Listen to my series on the Calm app to build healthier phone habits.
This week’s reset: Try one of the strategies above to cure your popcorn brain. At the start, go easy on yourself. Creating a healthy relationship with your device requires time, patience, and practice (habit formation takes about eight weeks!). Don’t forget to celebrate small wins along the way.
Until next week,
Ironically as a creator attempting to make money on these platforms I’m encouraged to turn on notifications , post notes 3x per day, DM people etc. I need to immerse myself in this world and become part of it and that includes posting across multiple social media platforms. I find myself checking to see if my bell has a notification like Pavlov’s dog.
Anyway, I listened to the article while playing chess on chess.com as well. 🤯
I started wearing a watch again. I found if I look at my wrist instead of my phone to see what time it is I save 5 minutes of phone checking time...