Last updated: November 2026

Quick answer: Make scrolling harder and better options easier: keep your phone in another room, agree phone-free times with family, and replace the habit with games, walks, and books. Small changes beat willpower every time.

Christmas is meant to be slow and warm, yet many of us spend it hunched over a phone, scrolling through endless posts while the people we love sit beside us. If you want to know how to stop doomscrolling during Christmas holidays, you are not alone, and you are not weak for finding it hard. Phones are designed to keep us scrolling. This guide offers gentle, practical ways to put the phone down and enjoy the holidays properly.

The aim is not to ban your phone or feel guilty every time you pick it up. It is to choose when you use it, rather than letting it choose for you. In our experience, a few small changes to where the phone lives and what replaces it work far better than strict rules that collapse by Boxing Day.

What can I do instead of doomscrolling during the Christmas holidays?

Replace scrolling with something your hands and mind enjoy: a board game, a puzzle, baking, or a walk. The habit fades faster when a better option is already waiting for you.

Scrolling fills empty moments, so the first step is to fill those moments with something better. Lay out a board game on the coffee table, start a jigsaw puzzle, or put on a film the whole family can enjoy. When something enjoyable is already in front of you, the phone becomes far less tempting.

Try making a short list of alternatives before Christmas begins: bake biscuits, build a gingerbread house, sort old photographs, or learn a simple card game. Keep the list on the fridge where everyone can see it. When boredom strikes, and it will, you can point to the list instead of reaching for a screen.

How do I set up phone-free zones at Christmas?

Agree simple phone-free times and places: no phones at the table, and a basket by the door for evenings. When everyone follows the same rule, nobody feels singled out by it.

Mealtimes are the easiest place to start. Agree that phones stay away from the table, and put them in another room or in a basket by the door. It helps to make the rule about everyone, not just one person, so it feels fair. The first meal may feel strange, but conversation soon fills the gap.

Choose one or two phone-free windows each day, such as the first hour after waking and the hour before bed. Charge your phone overnight in another room, and use an old-fashioned alarm clock instead. Waking without a screen sets a calmer tone for the whole day, and you will be surprised how much quieter your mornings feel.

How can I wind down in the evening without my phone?

Build a screen-free evening ritual: a book, a warm drink, and low light. Reading or listening to music helps your mind slow down, while scrolling keeps it wired and restless.

Evenings are the hardest time to stop scrolling, because we are tired and the phone is easy. A gentle ritual helps. Make a warm drink, light a candle, and pick up a book, a magazine, or a puzzle. Even twenty minutes of reading can shift your mood, and it does not leave you feeling drained the way an hour of scrolling does.

Your sleep will thank you too. The Sleep Foundation notes that most adults need around seven to nine hours of sleep a night, and you can read more in their guidance on how much sleep we really need. Screens late at night can make it harder to drift off, so keeping the last hour screen-free is one of the kindest gifts you can give yourself this Christmas.

Can getting outside help me stop doomscrolling?

Yes, getting outside is one of the best ways to break the scrolling loop. Fresh air, daylight, and movement reset your attention, and a walk gives your hands and eyes something real to do.

A walk is a natural phone break. Leave the phone at home, or slip it into a zipped pocket on silent, and head out for even fifteen minutes. Notice the frost, the decorated windows, and the smell of woodsmoke. Your mind will wander, and that wandering is restful in a way scrolling never is.

Movement brings real benefits too. The NHS recommends that adults aim for at least 150 minutes of moderate activity each week, and you can read more in their guidance on the benefits of exercise. A daily Christmas walk counts towards that total, and it lifts your mood at the same time. Invite someone along, and the walk becomes connection as well as exercise.

How do I handle the urge to check my phone?

Pause before you unlock it: ask yourself what you are hoping to find, and wait sixty seconds. Most urges pass on their own, and a short pause breaks the automatic habit.

Urges are normal, and fighting them usually makes them stronger. Instead, notice the urge without acting on it straight away. Put the phone down, take three slow breaths, and ask what you are really looking for: company, news, or simply something to do. Often the answer is boredom, and boredom passes.

Make the phone slightly harder to reach. Move social apps off your home screen, switch the phone to greyscale for the holidays, or set a simple time limit that reminds you when you have been scrolling for a while. Small friction is surprisingly powerful, because scrolling depends on being effortless.

How do I stop doomscrolling during Christmas holidays on social media?

Decide in advance how much social media you want, and when. Checking once or twice a day at set times keeps you in touch without letting the apps fill every quiet moment.

Social media at Christmas is a mixed blessing. It keeps you close to faraway friends, but it also invites comparison: other people’s perfect trees, perfect families, perfect gifts. Remember that you are seeing highlights, not real life. Nobody posts the burnt sprouts or the argument over the board game.

Try a simple plan: check your apps once in the morning and once in the evening, for ten minutes each, and then close them. Turn off notifications that are not from real people, and mute accounts that leave you feeling flat. If a full break feels right, tell your friends in advance so nobody worries, and enjoy the quiet.

• Check social media at set times, not whenever you feel a tug.
• Mute accounts that make you feel worse about your own Christmas.
• Post your own moments, then put the phone away and live them.
• Remember that highlights are not the whole story.

How do I keep the habit going after Christmas?

Keep one or two changes that worked, and let the rest go. A phone-free mealtime or a daily walk is easy to carry into January, and small habits last longer than grand resolutions.

Christmas is a good time to experiment, because routines are already different. Notice which changes felt good: the quiet mornings, the board games, the walks. Choose one or two to keep, and write them down somewhere you will see them. A habit that survives January is worth far more than a perfect Christmas week.

Be kind to yourself when you slip. You will scroll too much some days, and that is fine. The goal was never perfection; it was presence. Each time you notice and put the phone down, you are practising a skill that gets easier with time.

Frequently asked questions

Is doomscrolling bad for my health?

Scrolling itself is not dangerous, but long sessions can leave you feeling anxious, tired, and low, especially late at night. Shorter, deliberate sessions and regular breaks help you enjoy your phone without it draining you.

How do I stop my children doomscrolling at Christmas?

Model the behaviour you want to see: put your own phone away, offer fun alternatives, and agree screen-free times together. Children follow what adults do far more than what adults say.

Should I delete social media apps for Christmas?

You can, but you do not have to. Moving apps off your home screen or setting time limits often works just as well, and it is easier to keep going after the holidays.

What if I need my phone for work over Christmas?

Keep work in a set window, such as one hour in the morning, and switch off work notifications outside it. Tell colleagues when you will be available, so you can relax properly the rest of the day.

Christmas is short, and the moments that matter are rarely on a screen. They are in the kitchen, around the table, and out on a frosty walk. Put the phone down for a little while, and see what you notice. You might find that the holidays feel warmer, slower, and more yours than they have in years. Why not try one phone-free hour today, and see how it feels?