The Traveling Companions, 1862. Artist: Augustus Leopold Egg

This led to a re-examination of my rehab-relapse cycle. I soon realized the main reason for my doomscrolling is the anxiety of missing out — my brain, or human brains in general, are eager for new information. It's an evolutionary thing.

The Real Problem: Passive vs. Active Information Consumption

But getting new information from social media is a terrible, terrible idea.

It's algorithm-driven, meaning I was passively receiving information that algorithms decided I might like. Which leads to massive clickbait and crap information. I hate that, but I can't help scrolling. It's a real addiction. In the meantime, I'm losing my autonomy in selecting and discerning information to the algorithm.

I realized that to regain my autonomy in information consumption, I had to shift my mindset from passive to active.

Active information consumption means I only get the information that I subscribe to. I have total control of the sources, instead of being fed random reels from the algorithm.

Information vs. Inspiration

But is passive information consumption, or are algorithms always bad?

My answer would be no. I found that algorithms are actually super helpful in getting inspiration, not information.

The difference between the two is:

• Getting information is a daily, regular thing. We need to dedicate time to this. We also need to be mentally ready to consume chunks of quality, reliable information.
• Getting inspiration is more occasional. Instead of being dedicated and focused, we allow our minds to wander and to be loose. In this case, it's perfect to be algorithm-driven — sometimes we even have to deliberately "train" the algorithm to our taste.

My Solution: RSS

Then what should we do to consume information actively?

The easiest solution might be email subscriptions. However, I already have a crowded inbox every day. Email is more of a communication tool for me — to communicate with other people, to get notifications on recent purchases. If possible, I don't want to mix those communications with my information intake.

That's when RSS came into the picture.

RSS is basically an XML file that puts all the updates together for a website, most of the time ad-free. I just need to find an RSS reader that saves all those RSS (XML) links from different websites, and the reader will refresh and get the latest information.

Why it's the perfect solution for me:

• I control what I see
• All my content is in one place
• No ads or distracting visual elements
• I don't miss anything — all the updates are chronological

There are plenty of great RSS reader choices out there. I personally use Feeder, and their free plan is good enough for me.

The Takeaway

To be honest, I still don't know if RSS will completely cure my addiction to doomscrolling. I'm still trying and iterating on my treatments. But so far, everything is moving in the right direction.

And the big lesson for me is simple: be more intentional about information consumption. Be an active information consumer instead of a passive one who risks drowning in the ocean of clickbait.