Not using a phone taught me what a phone is really for. It’s not for communicating with other people, getting directions, reading articles, looking at pictures, shopping for products, or playing games. A phone is a device for muting the anxieties proper to being alive . This is what all its functions and features ultimately achieve: cameras deliver... See more

Downgrading is the radical decision to step backward in an age of dizzying, almost compulsory forward momentum. I have watched many people attempt to reduce their screen time, an agonizing process requiring constant vigilance and self-restraint. Removing the option altogether, I’ve found, is the surest way out.

Normally, I would trade in my old phone whenever I upgrade, but this time I decided I was going to hold on to it and use it as my “social media” phone (called ‘the SM Phone’ from hereinafter). There’s no number connected with the SM Phone, and I only reach for it when I need to upload things, answer DMs, or when I want to doomscroll (I’m not going... See more