I asked a psychiatrist how to be less distracted and more productive. Her 30-day reset helped me regain control of my life. (2024)

Over winter break, I wanted to devise a plan to succeed in the spring semester. My goal was to resist distraction and become a more productive worker, but I didn't know how.

I asked Dr. Anna Lembke, a Stanford psychiatry professor and the author of "Dopamine Nation," for the answer.

An era of overconsumption associated with dopamine

Several regions in our brains house dopaminergic neurons. These neurons create dopamine, a chemical messenger constantly traveling through "reward pathways." Dopamine is related to everything from physical movement to memory, motivation, and attention.

We're surrounded by addictive substances and reinforcing activities. Once habits are started, altering them typically requires great energy. Dr. Lembke told me the best way to escape this vicious cycle of highs and lows is to abstain from the addictive substances altogether.

She recommends that individuals abandon their favored instantly gratifying activity for 30 days, which provides enough time for their neural circuitry to recalibrate.

My drugs of choice are social media and online car shopping. Before my reset, I spent an average of three to four hours daily on these apps. I embarked on a 30-day mindfulness period to regain control of my life.

Beginning Dr. Lembke's reset

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

At the end of my 30-day experiment, it was time for final exams. I secured eighteen credit hours with a semesterly GPA increase of 55%. I began to enjoy college more and felt better prepared to tackle greater tasks.

During the experiment, I noticed several things. According to Lembke, temporary pain, whether a cold shower or a long-distance run, can ease the transition to starting a harder task, like homework. Walking to class without listening to music through my AirPods made it easier to lock in and get work done.

Another observation is that my connections with friends strengthened once I was off social media. I couldn't connect with them online, but I felt our in-person conversations were more meaningful.

Most notably, I became far more aware of my phone usage. I've stopped scrolling on Instagram when I wake up, and I no longer feel compelled to check social media incessantly. My screen time dwindled to less than an hour daily, and I felt better than ever.

I logged back into my socials, but I proceeded cautiously

Dr. Lembke recommends self-binding strategies to limit your use of social media platforms, like making your phone black and white. Setting the display on a smartphone to grayscale makes it a more boring experience, so you may not want to stay on as long.

I switched my phone and laptop to grayscale. Browsing the used car market is a lot more bland when all the options are in various hues of gray.

Moreover, time away from tech can give users a perspective switch, which significantly helps productivity. Whenever I'm working on something now, I resist the urge to watch YouTube or scroll through social media. Recognizing these distractions for what they truly are — detours from the road of productivity — rather than pastimes for moments of boredom is critical for enhancing efficiency and focus.

Cutting out excessive screen time was for the better

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.