In the digital age, screen time can feel like something that’s just a part of life. From grocery orders to keeping up with friends, planning a trip to finding the perfect pair of sneakers, almost anything can be done online—a fact many of us take full advantage of.

But how much screen time is too much? Where is the line between making life easier and sacrificing the richness of life for the sake of digital convenience? And when does screen time begin to make a real impact on your mental health?

Keep reading to learn key information our therapists want you to know about screen time—and if you’re wondering how to reduce screen time, we’re here to provide our top tips.

A woman's hands texting on a phone. Her nails are painted yellow.

What Is Screen Time?

Screen time is defined as, “time spent watching television, playing a video game, or using an electronic device with a screen (such as a smartphone or tablet).”

As technology continues to develop and improve, we’re spending more and more of our time using screens, whether we’re working, communicating via text or video chat, shopping, scrolling social media, or streaming the latest Netflix show.

How to Calculate Your Screen Time

Wondering what your screen time stats look like? Getting a rough estimate of your overall screen time is simple.

Both Apple and Android phones allow users to see their daily screen time, sharing both your overall screen time use as well as the breakdown of how much time is spent within various apps. Different types of laptops and tablets also offer different levels of screen time reporting, so a quick internet search is the best way to determine the reporting method of your specific device.

Once you know how much time you’ve spent on your phone, laptop, and tablet, add any additional time spent using a device to that number. For example, if you learn that you spent three hours on your phone and also know that you watched two hours of television with your partner in the evening, your screen time total for the day would be five hours.

Some people include work-related screen time in their overall screen time stats, while others primarily track their recreational screen time use.

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Is Screen Time Always Bad?

Screen time is often discussed in a negative light—however, it’s important to note that screen time is not inherently a bad thing. There are plenty of ways that technology and screen time can provide value to our lives:

FaceTime and other video call platforms provide a way to meaningfully engage face-to-face with friends and family who live far away.
Watching a favorite movie with loved ones can be an enjoyable way to relax, unwind, and connect after a long day.
Reading a book on an e-reader or tablet can make it easier to read while traveling.
Meditation or mindfulness apps can help users ground themselves in moments of anxiety or center themselves when overstimulated or overwhelmed.

The emphasis, then, should not be on cutting out technology and screen time entirely, but rather on learning to prioritize beneficial forms of screen time while maintaining healthy boundaries and habits with your devices.

How Do I Know If My Screen Time Is a Problem?

Screens are a natural part of life in the digital age—but how do you know when your screen time has become too much?

Your screen time has likely become a problem if it is affecting your emotional, mental, or physical health, or if it is impacting your career, relationships, or ability to be productive in day-to-day life.

Excessive screen time can:

Cause neck or eye strain
Negatively impact brain development
Increase risk of brain-related disease
Heighten symptoms of anxiety and depression
Worsen sleep quality
Cause social isolation
Lower problem-solving skills
Worsen memory
Increase stress levels
Lead to feelings of comparison and low self-esteem
Reduce daily physical movement

If any of these symptoms have begun to show up in your life, it may be time to re-evaluate your screen time.

How to Reduce Your Screen Time: 6 Healthy Screen Time Habits for Your Mental Health

Are you trying to cut down on screen time? Here are a few of our favorite ways to reduce screen time and build better digital routines for your mental health.

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Schedule Screen-Free Time

When trying to spend less time staring at a screen, the first thing to do is to schedule it. Intentionality is key when working toward any goal, and reducing your screen time is no different.

Make the decision to designate certain times in your schedule as screen-free zones. Maybe you choose not to look at your phone during the first or last hour of your day. Or perhaps you decide that Tuesday and Thursday nights are fully unplugged. Don’t feel like you have to make drastic changes all at once—slowly working screen-free time into your schedule can make it a natural part of your routine.

Utilize Apps That Help Decrease Screen Time

It may sound counterproductive, but yes—there are apps that can actually help you cut down on your screen time. A few of our top recommendations include:

one sec:one sec is a screen time app scientifically designed to help users rewire their brain’s relationship with technology. It works to interrupt your scroll, putting you back in control of your digital use and helping you stop getting sucked in to checking just “one more thing.” The app also encourages users to replace bad habits with healthier behaviors, building a more intentional life.
Forest: The Forest app is unique in that it gamifies disconnecting. When using the app, you’re able to set certain apps on your device as off-limits, such as social media platforms or games. Then, when you want to stay away from digital distractions, you begin a Forest session by planting a virtual “seed” and setting a limit for how long you want to be offline. If you set a 30 minute limit, for example, the “seed” will grow into a virtual tree only if you stay off blocked apps for that 30 minute span. If you use an off-limits app, the tree you’ve planted withers. If you make it to the end of the timer, the tree grows to completion and is added to your virtual “forest.” The app features a calming, aesthetically-pleasing design that users love, and the best part? The Forest app partners with a nonprofit to plant real trees across Africa, turning users’ digital focus time into real-world impact.
Freedom: For individuals ready to take strong action in cutting down their screen time, the Freedom app works across all devices—phone, tablet, laptop, or all three. Users can block specific apps, websites, or even the entirety of the internet. It also allows you to pre-schedule focus sessions, so distracting sites and apps are automatically blocked during certain hours of the day. For users who benefit from extra structure, “Locked Mode” makes exiting a Freedom focus session early impossible, adding an extra layer of accountability.

Another popular tool for cutting back on screen time is Brick, a device that blocks certain apps or websites from your phone until you physically scan the Brick device. If you keep your Brick in a different room, you have to get up, locate the Brick, and scan, adding a level of friction and effort to leaving focus mode that helps users keep distractions at bay entirely.

Additionally, if you want to keep things as simple as possible, there are options built into your device’s operating systems to set time limits for yourself within specific apps or your device as a whole.

Turn Off Unnecessary Notifications

One of the most common reasons people get sucked into screen time is because they received a notification. Their phone pings, they check the screen, and before they know it, they’re scrolling and don’t remember why they picked up their phone to begin with.

To make your phone less enticing, turn off any unnecessary notifications in your settings. Certain notifications are obviously important, such as text messages, but other notifications are far less crucial. After all, do you really need to know every time your favorite streaming platform adds a new show or a former coworker posts on social media?

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Develop Meaningful Screen-Free Hobbies

When trying to cut habits that are no longer serving you out of your life, one of the best things you can do is to replace that habit with something better. If too much of your time is going to digital distractions, developing meaningful hobbies offline gives you something positive to put that time toward.

Need some ideas? Here are a few of our favorite options for healthier hobbies you can begin:

Doing yoga
Running
Playing a musical instrument
Cooking or baking
Knitting or crochet
Playing pickleball
Drawing
Writing
Playing chess
Sending snail mail
Working jigsaw puzzles
Hiking
Gardening

Set Your Phone to Grayscale

Setting your phone to grayscale has been shown to help people spend less time on their device. This is because the bright colors of a smartphone’s screen serve as a dopamine reward to the brain; by taking these colors out of the equation, individuals often find they want to spend less time using their phone.

Find an Accountability Partner

The best way to build healthier habits is to do so alongside someone else. Not only does having an accountability partner make you feel less alone in your decision to unplug, it makes the process more fun.If you have a friend, family member, or partner who also wants to build a life with less screen time, you can set joint goals as well as cheer each other on in your individual goals. You can find offline hobbies that you both enjoy doing together, and could even work toward a celebratory reward for a specific milestone in your screen-free journey.

A woman put her phone away in the front pocket of a red leather backpack.

Build Better Screen Time Habits With the Team at Aspire Psychology

At Aspire, we’ve seen the effects that technology can have on mental health. If your screen time habits are contributing to anxiety, depression, low self-esteem, or making it harder to be present in daily life, you don’t have to navigate those patterns alone.

Ready to learn more? Submit a brief inquiry form to get started today.

How to Reduce Your Screen Time: Healthy Screen Time Habits for Your Mental Health