It started with the realization that I couldn’t focus for more than a few minutes without reaching for my phone. Not for anything urgent, but more for a fear of missing out. Whether it was for breaking news, a quick scroll, a text notification or anything else, it was all just a hit of dopamine.
I'm not alone. According to a report from the Washington Post, 66% of Americans use their phone within 10 minutes of waking up. The same report also suggests that if you pick up your phone more than 110 times a day, you may have a problem.
While I'm not counting, I knew I needed a reset. So, I asked ChatGPT to do something that I didn’t think would actually work: “Create a 48-hour dopamine detox plan to help me reset my focus.”
Had I known it wasn't going to give me a flip phone ultimatum, I would have done this a lot sooner. Instead of telling me to stay off social media forever, it created a structured path through the discomfort of "needing to know" or "being bored." I followed it exactly for a weekend. Here is the breakdown.
