What Is Bloomscrolling? How to Make Social Media Work for Your Mental Health

Bloomscrolling is the habit of choosing uplifting, calming, or meaningful content on purpose while using social media. Instead of letting the feed decide what shows up, the person scrolling decides.

That content can be anything that leaves someone feeling a little lighter afterward: a recipe, a nature clip, a funny video, a local success story, or a post from a friend. Some people call it bloomscrolling or say they “bloomscroll.” Related terms include hopescrolling, joyscrolling, and happy scrolling. The names differ, but the idea is the same: scroll with intention and let the feed help rather than drain.

In short, bloomscrolling is about changing what fills your screen.

Bloomscrolling grew as a response to doomscrolling, the habit of scrolling through upsetting news and posts long after it stops being useful. According to the American Brain Foundation, the term doomscrolling was coined in 2018 and became widely used during the COVID-19 pandemic, when many people spent long hours at home following the news online.

Doomscrolling can feel like staying informed. But a steady stream of distressing content can set off the body’s fight-or-flight response. Stress hormones rise, and the body never gets the chance to settle back down. Over time, that may show up as:

• Irritability and anxious thoughts that are hard to shut off
• Low mood or depression
• Panic attacks
• Mental tiredness and trouble concentrating
• Trouble sleeping, often from scrolling long past bedtime
• Headaches, muscle tension, and neck or shoulder pain
• Less time with friends and family

Research from Texas Tech University looked at people whose news habits had become compulsive. About 16.5% of the U.S. adults surveyed showed signs of severely problematic news consumption. Those with more problematic habits reported more mental and physical health problems.

Bloomscrolling flips that pattern. The phone stays in hand, but what fills the screen changes.

Bloomscrolling is a new term, but the idea behind it has been studied. In two experiments, researchers at the University of Essex had people spend a few minutes on social media. Some saw pandemic-related news, some saw stories about acts of kindness, and some saw nothing at all.

Just two to four minutes of negative news lowered people’s mood and, in one of the studies, their sense of optimism. Kindness content did not have that effect. In the video version of the study, watching acts of kindness left people feeling less negative than seeing nothing at all.

The researchers pointed to negative news, not social media itself, as the real problem. In short, what fills a feed may matter as much as how long someone spends on it. More research is needed on bloomscrolling as a daily habit, but these findings provide some early support for intentionally choosing more positive content.

Bloomscrolling tends to work best when it is built into the feed itself. A few ideas to try:

Follow Your Favorite Hobbies

Follow accounts tied to things you already love, such as gardening, baking, knitting, woodworking, running, or birdwatching. Hobby content tends to feel calm and doable, and it can nudge people to put the phone down and try something themselves. Slow, low-pressure pastimes, sometimes called cozy hobbies, may be especially soothing.

Good News in Your Community

Follow local libraries, parks, farmers’ markets, animal shelters, schools, and community groups. Their posts often highlight neighbors helping neighbors, upcoming events, and small wins that make a place feel like home.

Curate Your Social Media Feed Carefully

Most apps learn from what people engage with, so small choices add up. Try these steps:

• Unfollow or mute accounts that leave you feeling anxious, angry, or not good enough
• Notice content that pulls you into comparing yourself to others and scroll past it
• Use “not interested” or similar tools to tell the app what you would rather not see
• Save, like, and share the posts you want to see more of

Nature, Animals, and Wholesome Content

Nature scenes, animal videos, and simple wholesome content – a sunrise, a toddler’s first steps, a cat napping in a sunbeam – are classic bloomscrolling picks. They can also be a gentle reminder to look for the same comfort offline, from the benefits of nature to the bond between pets and mental health.

Learn Something New

Short lessons on cooking, history, a new language, science, or art can turn idle scrolling into something that feels worthwhile. When the topic is health, be sure to look for information shared by credentialed professionals.

Creators Who Share Kindness

Some creators build their whole feed around good deeds, gratitude, and everyday kindness. Pairing that content with a small daily habit, like taking a moment to practice gratitude, may help the good feeling last beyond the screen.

Keep Bloomscrolling in Balance

Even with uplifting content, boundaries are important. A few habits can help:

• Pause every 5 to 10 minutes and check in with how you feel – if your mood is dropping, it is time to stop
• Turn off news alerts so headlines do not pull you back in
• Set a daily time limit, since even good content can crowd out sleep, movement, and time with people
• Keep the phone off the nightstand at night
• Take it offline: try the recipe, visit the park, or call the friend

For a bigger reset, a short digital detox may also help.

Bloomscrolling can be a helpful habit, but it is not a fix for everything. For some people, scrolling becomes a way to cope with stress, worry, or feelings that are hard to sit with. If cutting back feels impossible, or if time online leaves you feeling worse most days, that is worth talking about.

A therapist can help sort out what is driving the habit and build healthier ways to cope, such as mindfulness and other stress management skills. When anxiety or depression is also part of the picture, a psychiatrist can talk through whether other treatment options may be appropriate.According to a study of thousands of LifeStance patients, 79% showed clinically significant improvement in anxiety symptoms and 73% experienced clinically significant improvement in depression symptoms. With the right support and a feed that works for you instead of against you, social media can become a place where hope has room to grow.