Teens Say Social Media Are Stressing Them Out. Here's How to Help Them.
In this NPR feature by health reporter Michaeleen Doucleff, Emma Lembke discusses how founding the LOG OFF Movement grew out of her own anxiety disorder and OCD, which she says social media use amplified rather than caused. She describes a personal habit-change approach — a timed 'five-minute power scroll' paired with a friction-adding browser tool called HabitLab — that she credits with cutting her own screen time by roughly 80%. The article situates her account alongside Pew Research figures on how widely and heavily US teens use social media, and offers practical, non-clinical strategies parents and teens can use to build more intentional habits. TechKids Foundation cites this piece for its first-person account of a youth advocate's own behavior-change approach, distinct from her policy-focused testimony and statements.
The article cites Pew Research Center data that roughly 95% of US teens report using some form of social media.
The article cites an August 2022 Pew Research Center finding that roughly a third of US teens describe their social media use as 'almost constant.'
Lembke says her own screen time dropped by roughly 80% after adopting the HabitLab friction tool and a timed 'five-minute power scroll' habit.
Doucleff, Michaeleen. "Teens Say Social Media Are Stressing Them Out. Here's How to Help Them." NPR, May 17, 2023.