How-to is on the bottom of the article.
I have deleted all my social media apps years ago, disabled all my notifications, and put multiple social media blockers on my laptop, to restrict access from parts of youtube, facebook, reddit, x, and every other doomscrolling site imaginable.
But a real solution has always eluded me, as I found myself reading lesser-known forums, and watching long form videos for hours (instead of short form)
Using blockers is a blanket solution to deal with the problem, just like when it comes to Porn Addiction (which I’m an expert in). Yet I was unable to find a simple holistic solutions to this, and the same things that work to end your porn addiction have not been as effective with “internet addiction”.
I was going trough my usual routine of “just watching some videos” while I eat, unable to break free hours later, finding myself lost to time and reality, going down rabbit holes on youtube, conspiracy theories etc…
During one of THOSE days I found a guy arguing on about how casinos use blue light to “trap” the addicts inside, and that is why they removed the windows (so the only blue light is coming from the machines&inside lights).
We all hear about the effects of blue light on sleep, how we all should use blue light blockers, and not even use our screens “1-2 hours before bed”. Then an idea struck me..
What if I used no blue light at all?
I remember Bryan Johnson (founder of Don’t Die) mentioning he uses a red filter app on his phone if he must use it in the evening. What if I was using it the whole day?
That’s how the experimentation started…
I turned all my screens as red as the settings let it, getting minimum blue light from them. Yes. The whole day.
5 days later as I’m writing this, my life is unrecognizeable, in the best ways possible. I was a bit unsure at first to try this or not, but I have set my laptop and phone to red only. It has made my relationships with my devices instantly better.
After 30-60 minutes I noticed how differently sunlight looks, and how uninspiring it is to sit down in front of a red light instead of being outside/doing something “real”.
Doing other forms of digital detoxing always ended with me being at the same place after 2-3 days (after the end of a digital detox), in need of “just a little more” scrolling, to get info, learn, or whatver I justified it with.
After 2 days I have noticed an interesting trend.
I had 0 problems with “discipline”, and was able to scroll, read, watch videos when I wanted to, and ended the session when I intended to end it. I have even disabled some of the blockers (for example youtube sidebar is now visible for me) as I found it inconvenient when doing targeted research, for example “how to do cardio when bulking”.
Why Red?
Blue light stimulates alertness, dopamine pathways, and the circadian rhythm. It’s flat, dead, lifeless. It doesn’t hook your brain. Instead, it makes scrolling feel like drinking flat beer — technically possible, but unsatisfying.
“Thanks to the previously mentioned changes in melatonin and cortisol, your dopamine levels also shift. As this happens, your brain starts to release less and less dopamine in response to different experiences, especially those that are normally rewarding.” (https://blackdoctor.org/your-brain-on-blue-light-understanding-the-science/)
As I’ve mentioned in the title – the solution is not pretty. But nevertheless it is extremely effective.
If there was one thing that can fix the current generations of phone-addicted youth, no matter their aspirations in life, it is awareness to this one setting that can change the course of your life.
Seems like a practical nightmare….?
I have been more productive doing basic video editing, research, and looking at all sorts of images than if I had been if the red colour filter was off. Unless our job requires direct evaluations of accurate colour (for which you use specialized displays, calibrated with a separate digita calibrator (https://www.digitalcameraworld.com/buying-guides/best-monitor-calibrators), you can indeed turn the page and forget about ever being hooked on social media.
That’s it. Hope you didn’t expect a sales pitch at the end of this. This is free. Available to every person. Don’t be afraid to use it in public, it may cause curiosity, but noone has asked about it directly (yet).
I see a future where having a red screen can be an indicator that this person is serious about their digital wellbeing.
The truth will not change wether you feel like testing this out or not.
If you give it a try, you’ll see the effects within 1 hour (especially if you’re stuck in a room reading this).
How to set it up:
Apple (both iphone and mac)
go to settings, find accessibility -> Display&Text size -> scroll down to colour filters -> select colour tint -> set the hue to full red, and the intensity to maximum.
Windows:
Nvidia gpu:
Right-click desktop → NVIDIA Control Panel.
Display → Adjust desktop color settings.
Select your monitor, choose Use NVIDIA settings, then use the Color channel dropdown to pick Red / Green / Blue and adjust Brightness/Gamma/Contrast for each channel. To force a red cast, reduce Green & Blue channels toward minimum while leaving Red normal/high. Apply and test.
Intel (integrated GPUs)
Right-click desktop → Intel Graphics Command Center (or Intel Graphics Control Panel).
Display → Color / Color Balance / Custom color (name varies).
Reduce Green/Blue sliders to near 0; keep Red up. Apply. Intel
AMD Radeon
Right-click desktop → AMD Radeon Software.
Display / Color → look for Color Depth / Custom color or color controls.
Adjust per-channel or use calibration sliders to push the image toward red. Apply & test.
Android phones:
Color correction / accessibility filters (varies by phone):
Go to Settings > Accessibility > Color & motion / Color correction.
Some devices let you apply red/green filters or custom color inversion.
On Samsung, it’s under Visibility enhancements > Color adjustment.
Many things made red light only filter impossible to use, at least at all times.
The biggest drawback was the interface. Many websites became unusable, which I was ok with, until I missed parts of the UI crucial for effective life.
Worst of all, due to not seeing colour codes, I stopped using the calendar app, and my notion productivity system. Switching to a paper habit tracker and timeblocking I found is not effective…
The solution I’m using now, is use the filter after work on the computer, and it is on all times on phone.
If someone were to use this indefinitely, he would need to install a black and white filter parallel to this setting.
Blue light can be used effectively to be productive too (it does not care what you do, but motivates you to keep being in front of the screen)