It’s easy to lose track of time while scrolling endlessly through videos on platforms like Instagram or TikTok. What often begins as a brief break can quietly stretch into half an hour or more before users even realise it. Reported by 1News.
For many people, that trance-like scrolling is occasionally interrupted by creators who do the opposite of what the algorithm encourages — they ask viewers to stop watching.
One such voice belongs to Olivia Yokubonis, a content creator who appears in feeds with a calm tone and science-backed reminders about attention and memory. Often, she gently points out that viewers may not even recall the video they watched moments earlier.
Online, Yokubonis is known as Olivia Unplugged. Her content is specifically designed to challenge mindless social media consumption and prompt people to close the app they are currently using.
Many viewers appreciate the interruption, seeing it as a timely nudge to step away from their phones. Others, however, respond with sarcasm or criticism.
“People will comment and they’ll be like, ’Oh, (it’s) ironic that you’re posting. And I’m like, ‘Where else am I supposed to find you, Kyle? Outside? You’re not outside. You are here, sitting here,’” she said. “For us to actually be seen, we have to be where people are.”
Yokubonis’ videos resonate with a widespread feeling — that many people are spending far more time on social platforms than they realise.
“Most people have no clue how much time they spend on social media,” said Ofir Turel, a professor of information systems management at the University of Melbourne who has researched social media usage for years.
According to Turel, when individuals are confronted with their actual screen-time data, the reaction is often intense. He found that people were practically “in a state of shock,” and many voluntarily reduced their usage once they became aware of how much time they were spending online.
Yokubonis is part of a growing group of creators whose content exists to disrupt scrolling behaviour. Some use blunt or aggressive tactics, while others take a softer, reflective approach.
Some creators only occasionally address social media overuse, while others, like Yokubonis, dedicate their entire online presence to the issue.
She is employed by Opal, an app designed to help users “reclaim their focus.” However, many viewers engaging with her content may not realise this, as her page avoids obvious branding.
There are no prominent logos, repeated calls to download the app, or overt marketing tactics visible in her videos.
“People love hearing from people,” she said. The millions of views her videos attract suggest that approach is effective.
“It’s a fine line and a balance of finding a way to be able to cut through that noise but also not adding to the noise,” she added.
While some experts find this emerging genre of content promising, questions remain about its effectiveness. Ian A. Anderson, a postdoctoral scholar at the California Institute of Technology, said he finds the concept intriguing but wonders whether it truly motivates change.
He also questioned whether those with deeply ingrained scrolling habits are actually engaging with the message.
“If they're paying full attention, I feel like it could be an effective disruption, but I also think there is a degree to which, if you are really a habitual scroller, maybe you aren’t fully engaging with it,” he said.
“I can think of all sorts of different variables that could change the effectiveness, but it does sound like an interesting way to intervene from the inside.”
With billions of active users across platforms such as TikTok, Instagram and YouTube, concerns about excessive screen time continue to resurface. Alongside this, the idea of social media addiction remains a recurring topic — and a deeply contested one.
Is social media “addiction” real?
While researchers and psychologists broadly agree that some individuals spend too much time on social media, consensus often ends there.
Some experts argue that the term “addiction” may not be appropriate unless users display clinical symptoms such as withdrawal, intense cravings, or a loss of control.
Others, including Turel, acknowledge that while the term may be imperfect, it resonates with how people describe their experiences.
Anderson noted how casually people describe themselves as being addicted to their phones and questioned whether such language is harmless.
His research suggests the issue extends beyond academic debate. In a representative sample of active Instagram users, Anderson found that many people overestimated their level of addiction.
On self-report measures, 18% of participants said they were at least somewhat addicted to Instagram, and 5% strongly agreed. However, only 2% were identified as being at risk based on clinical symptom criteria.
Anderson said that believing oneself to be addicted can actually make behaviour harder to change.
“If you perceive yourself as more addicted, it actually hurts your ability to control your use or your perception of that ability and makes you kind of blame yourself more for overuse,” Anderson said. “There are these negative consequences to addiction perception.”
Cutting down on screen time
For those hoping to reduce their social media use, Anderson recommends small but intentional changes. Moving apps to less accessible locations on a phone or disabling notifications can act as “light touch interventions.”
More significant changes — such as keeping phones out of bedrooms or avoiding them in spaces where scrolling becomes habitual — may also help.
Numerous tools and services aimed at reducing screen time already exist, but they rely heavily on self-awareness and motivation. In contrast, creators who interrupt feeds with insights into the psychology of scrolling may help plant the initial idea that change is needed.
Another creator working in this space is Cat Goetze, known online as CatGPT. Drawing on her background in the tech industry, she produces content that explains why platforms are so compelling, while avoiding a patronising tone.
Goetze has also been on a personal journey to reduce her own screen time and often explores why people remain on apps far longer than intended.
“There’s a whole infrastructure — there’s an army of nerds whose only job is to get you to increase your time spent on that platform,” she said.
“There’s a whole machine that’s trying to get you to be that way and it’s not your fault and you’re not going to win this just (through) willpower.”
Goetze also founded Physical Phones, a business that produces Bluetooth landline phones designed to connect with smartphones, encouraging users to reduce device dependence. Inside the packaging, customers find the message: “offline is the new luxury.”
She credits her social media audience for helping accelerate the company’s early success — a paradox that reflects the broader tension in this space.
The popularity of Physical Phones, she said, highlights the growing demand for practical solutions to high screen time.
“Social media will always play a part in our lives. I don’t necessarily think that’s a bad thing. If we can get the average screen time down from, if it’s 10 hours for a person to one hour, or from three hours to 30 minutes, that is going to be a net positive benefit for that individual and for society,” Goetze said.
“That being said, I’d love to be the person that they’re watching for those 30 minutes.”
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