Scroll Addiction: How Endless Feeds Are Destroying Productivity and Mental Health

Scroll Addiction: How Endless Feeds Are Destroying Productivity and Mental Health

Be honest—how many times today did you unlock your phone “just to check something,” only to look up and realise 30 minutes had disappeared? For many Malaysians, this has become a daily routine. We scroll while waiting for food, during MRT rides, before tidur, and sometimes even while talking to people right in front of us. What feels like a harmless habit is slowly turning into a serious addiction—with real consequences for productivity and mental health.

Endless scrolling is not an accident. Social media platforms are designed to keep us hooked. There is no natural stopping point, no “last page.” The feed just keeps going, serving content that triggers curiosity, outrage, or comparison. Each swipe gives a small dopamine hit, making our brains crave the next one. Over time, this trains us to seek constant stimulation—and struggle with focus in real life.

The impact on productivity is obvious but often ignored. Many office workers start the day checking emails, then get pulled into social media “for five minutes” that turns into half an hour. Students sit down to study but keep reaching for their phones every few minutes. Tasks take longer, mistakes increase, and deep thinking becomes difficult. We feel busy all day, yet oddly unproductive.

Mental health suffers quietly too. Constant exposure to curated lifestyles makes people compare their behind-the-scenes with other people’s highlight reels. This leads to feelings of inadequacy, anxiety, and low self-esteem. Bad news, online arguments, and negative comments pile up, creating emotional exhaustion. By the end of the day, many feel drained without knowing exactly why.

In Malaysia, this problem is growing across all ages. Teenagers lose sleep scrolling late into the night. Adults unwind with social media but end up more stressed. Even family time is interrupted by buzzing notifications and glowing screens at the dinner table.

The solution is not to quit social media completely. It is about control and awareness. Simple steps help—turning off non-essential notifications, setting screen time limits, and keeping phones away during work or family time. Most importantly, we need to relearn how to be bored, present, and focused without reaching for a screen.

Scrolling should be a choice, not a reflex. If we don’t take back control of our attention, the endless feed will continue stealing our time, our focus, and our peace of mind—one swipe at a time.