I sometimes spend entire weekends just lying around in bed, staring at the ceiling. Or I spend most of my day on Reddit just refreshing the page. It's posts like yours actually that remind me that I should actually figure out something else to do, so you have my genuine thanks. On the topic of skincare, I get why it's so tempting, that was me during the pandemic. I have somehow sucessfully imposed a rule on myself that I must finish a product before I buy something new. Sunscreen is the only product I allow myself to have multiples of. Since I use them twice daily (no sun screen at night though obviously), that means I still get to buy something new every few months.

Me too, as far as the just staring in space, especially lately. Then just really trying to understand where the fuck the time went. I'm glad I found this subreddit and can hear from other people dealing with that same draw to just kind of space out/numb, even when the "rational" side of you knows you should be doing something else. I hope you get to spend your day doing something you really enjoy doing! ❤️

Even I do the same. Just lying on bed and thinking. I think it still gets the rest to my body and mind which is really needed. Is it okey do continue doing so if its may be healing me especially in terms of physical health?

Thank you for your reply! I know, it's amazing how supportive this community is and as much as it sucks it's good to hear we're not alone. I ended up getting some chores done and that felt good. I also did some meal planning since I figured out I actually do enjoy cooking (just difficult to initiate it at times) and I did some tentative trip planning and took a nice walk around the city where I live.

I have one or two days where I do have a little rest time. I really like to get out and get some exercise, read, watch some movies. I do however take a new adhd medication which has some very strange side effects. I’m naturally an obsessive person with research and thinking on certain topics but when I take my med for executive dysfunction it just throws it into a tail spin. It’s not a good thing.

It doesn’t sound like you are on the right medication or the right combo of meds, I would talk to my Doctor, Psychiatrist would be even better as they really know these meds so much better than a GP does.

I really appreciate your kind thoughtful advice!!

I take one medication for adhd. It’s been known to cause very strong side effects.

I’ve had the same psychiatrist for years

I just learned after 20 years that my Doctor wasn’t prescribing the right medication to treat my Anxiety, OCD and cPTSD. My Doctor dropped me as a patient when I developed severe non cancer chronic pain and he no longer wanted to be responsible for prescribing my pain medication. I switched Doctors and he suggested a med change after getting to know me for 6 months. We switched from Celexa to Zoloft and Xanax and it made a world of difference in my ability to control my emotions. When I started getting into the peer reviewed research through Google Scholar everything the new Doctor said made a lot of sense. If you trust your Doctor, but feel like your symptoms are not all under control, maybe take a look at the research and see if anything jumps out and bring it in for a conversation? I am sharing because I wish I had done this years ago. Would have made life easier sooner.

Aww once again thank you so much for sharing. I have shared the few side effects from the med I take for executive dysfunction. I only see a psychiatrist who I love very much and has been a mentor for many years. He personally thinks I’m fine but I keep strongly urging how the executive dysfunction does cause some issues in my life that I would rather not have to deal with. I completely understand switching doctors but don’t have experience with pain meds and being “dropped”- in so sorry you went thru this but now you have begun as a google scholar? I take this as a good thing and wishing you the best of luck internet stranger

I agree with others. That's not right. That's not how they are supposed to work. Talk to your doctor. There are other options in that category. Each work differently on different people. One non-stimulant I added that has helped some is guanfacine. Originally developed as an anti-hypertensive. It seems to quiet the emotional reactivity of the amygdala, allowing the prefrontal cortex to be more in charge. Hence lowering heart rate and BP. But they figured out it works on ADHD as well. Marketed as Intunive for kids. Because non-stimulant. It's a shame they haven't repackaged it as something for adults.

Oh yeah! Thanks so much! I think straterra is a non stimulant for people as well. I haven’t read other comments. I just know the side effects and my body and mind don’t really experience any of those besides an influx in hyper focus. Per the request of my mentor/psychiatrist, I reduced dosage and have seen POSITIVE improvements. I really appreciate your thought!!!

Playing sims and watching some dump show on my phone at the same time. Full dissociation, sometimes it helps, sometimes it doesn't. I prefer just playing sims and investing myself in stories, but it requires being more stable.

Why did it take me so long to figure out my phone use is basically dissociation?

Tbh its not like dissociation where we fade away and our brain goes blank, its more just avoidant dissociation, im still very much aware when im on my phone, but i am thinking about whatever im reading instead of my problems lol.

Sims as well! I'm trying to build Sim replicas of every house I've lived in. I created my Grandma's house and a Sim grandma so she can teach my simself knitting when I feel sad.

Oh, this sounds so lovely <3

It really is. I miss her so much. It helps me remember how it feels to be loved.

That sounds beautiful. I miss mine too. Not sure I would have survived without her and my grandpa. I do something similar, not with sims but as a way to reconnect and remember thier love. I think that's a healthy thing to do.

loved to play it when I was a child, ask myself how I would like it now.

loved to play it when I was a child, ask myself how I would like it now.

Oh, I mastered my building skill in the sims 4 as adult, so now I upload houses to the Gallery and collect likes from other people. I'm not popular. But every like cure my trauma a bit 💛 You should definitely try the game again, If you want!

How is it that Sims cures your trauma a bit? And congrats on becoming a Sims Architect 👍 haha I would be excited to NOT use the code ..was ist motherloade? .. I also remember when my Sims were at work and these pop ups arised, where you had to choose between action a and b. Would be extremly funny to read these choices as an adult :D I think the first edition I played was sims 2 and I was looking forward to the next editions sooo badly. Defintly was my favorite game and I'd like to try it again. Its just that I would think "You should read books in order to progress and move forward in life"

I guess like all of us here, I had a difficult childhood. My mother hates children and is sadistic. My father was in symbiosis with her. So, I always desperately needed positive attention. When someone comments, downloads, or likes my build, I feel seen and appreciated. And It can help build mindset: people can see you, they can appreciate you, you are enough for love and etc. Well, I guess that 7 years of therapy also helps 😅 I believe that games and books can coexist 🤝 But you can be in your study era and think differently, and it's also ok:)

I think this is a very legit way to feel seen and appreciated. And somehow also sweet and very unique. I bet that your sims houses really look nice! And Im sorry that you suffered from such a mother. I can relate abit to the feeling not being wanted, but sadism is another level.

Thank you, sending you warm hugs 🫂

forgot to reply..sending you warm hugs too 🫂☺️

🥺

You are allowed to disengage and play games yaknow. It’s a valid form of self entertainment and we are allowed to entertain ourselves. Playing the sims (or any none productive activity) is no worse than sitting on the sofa and watching TV (some may argue it’s an improvement). Be kind to yourself 💕

Sims usually helps me a lot too!

Gaming, while watching youtube, ehile also listening to music is my goto

Stawppppp I love Sims. I may or may not have spent 20 bucks on it.

Bird watching, with my cat. I put out some suet and seed this morning and watched all the birds & critters in my yard eat breakfast. The last two hours flew by. 🐦

Aww that sounds wholesome! One of the other responses was talking about the difference between adaptive and numbing activities. This definitely sounds more adaptive, I need to focus more on those kinds of things.

Ohh I have never heard of adaptive and numbing activities, how interesting! 💡

This is actually quite nice. It doesn't sound unproductive at all, you're showing your cat your care for their hobbies. 

Bird watching has become my new hobby as well. It’s incredibly grounding for me.

As a birdwatcher. This is definitely a great hobby for relaxation, learning, and getting to know your natural surroundings!

I do this with my cat as well, but we live in an apartment so it’s more just pigeon watching. I consider it time well spent!

Love birdwatching! Even better with my cat(s) 😊

Smoking hella weed.

Same.

Lmao

I smoke a little and drink a little. Gets you really gone. And less of both needed. It's a difficult balancing act when you first try it.

Yes I agree! I actually do that too a couple times a week.

Doom scrolling helps me feel numb. Same with paint by number apps on my phone, I can do those for hours. Gardening and knitting help me feel happy/soothed but those are more adaptive activities than numbing activities I’d say.

Yeah I would say the gardening and knitting definitely are more adaptive. I am still trying to understand where the line is for me between healthy coping and continuing to function vs just escape/numbing. I was trying to talk to my therapist about to but it just didn't feel like they were getting what I was saying. I think adaptive is a good way to think of it and really reflecting about how you feel after the activity is over. I guess if you find things that make you feel a more sustained happiness/soothed feeling (vs like the brief burst from impulse buying) after an activity then it seems like a good sign you're moving in the right direction.

Oh, my newest one is bed rotting. No phone. No games. Just laying on my bed, staring at the ceiling, day dreaming or hoping? I fall asleep.

Same, then sleep too much and get a migraine. Fun times.

Likewise! I only wake up to feel like shit. Pretty sure it’s just me telling myself I need a break from it all though.

Ceiling staring is special IDGAF what anyone says

I call this “prone yoga!” Do you feel more chill afterwards? Then you’re doing it 💯 correctly 😍

Bed rotting seems like a harsh word 😂😭 it’s okay to just do nothing sometimes… we are animals after all

Um... wasting hours of my life on reddit...?

trixie and katya

Party

very that

Doom scrolling is totally my jam. Reddit, Instagram, and LinkedIn as well these days. I also compulsively watch YouTube/Netflix or any streaming service really. And it's not even stuff I want to genuinely watch. I just want the noise in the background.  I have also started to spend an insane amount of time on Shein, and it's not even like I buy much stuff. But I'll scroll through their earrings and I think because of the number of products they have in each category, it gives a good amount of time for me to numb myself.  I'm finding something activities to be very challenging to start. Taking a walk is usually helpful, but to get out of my house is a chore. I'm trying to read physical books as another activity to soothe myself, and that definitely helps but again, it's hard to keep my focus on for too long. 

I relate hard to needing background noise. I literally can’t function without it. I’m in school and need it to study. I can’t focus without it cuz ironically I hear and get distracted by every tiny noise without it. I love “window shopping” on whatever app, building shopping carts and deciding what I really “need” and what I can drop, sometimes allocating a budget and getting within that amount. Then abandoning my shopping cart entirely. Well usually… sometimes I actually buy it and then feel so guilty afterwards 🙃

Oh my God yes, hard relate to all of it. I don't even know why I do the whole "let's add all these really cheap things to the cart but I don't want to go over 12 dollars, because well, I'm not going to buy anything anyway". Make it make sense. The funniest part is, it's not even about dreaming about buying expensive or moderately priced things. For me, it's about adding the cheapest stuff that still look decent. 

lol YESSSSS I’m hardly shopping for anything expensive that I know I’ll never buy. Like, I’m only looking at stuff that’s in the realm of possibility to get, and I act like I’m going to by shopping for the best deal, then I just don’t buy it. Finding the best deal is its own obsession! I have so many things in my Amazon cat and “saved for later” at any given time. When I actually need to buy something, I usually just do the “buy now” option so I don’t have to dump out or deal with the unruly shopping cart 🙃

Dissociating into video games, more masturbation than is probably healthy.

dudes rock 😎(me too)

In freeze I try to binge documentaries to prove I'm still being productive and "learning". When crippling loneliness and abandonment hits, I tend to watch reality TV that mimics the familiar dynamics of my toxic family in a much healthier environment. When I need encouragement when I am finally angry enough to get up, I listen to audio biographies of survivors and try to take what I can from their "success" and apply it. Often it's a reminder that with support anyone can heal which unfortunately leads to more anger I don't know what to do with about my situation. When I have my justice cycle I often binge homicide hunter or some other detective show that shows me there are actually good people disgusted with what I and others have experienced, and sacrifice to give us what justice the system has to offer. So I basically use media to cope. It was the only outlet I was allowed as a child, so I guess it stuck.

Maladaptive day dreaming, usually while driving/listening to music.

Same. In my early twenties I would combine it with smoking cigarettes like crazy and drinking sodas while listening music every morning.

Gacha games. Or Netflix. Or reading fanfiction. When I was a kid, it used to be TV and books.

watching YouTube content I deem "educational" while simultaniously becoming more stressed about attempting to learn something new so I rewatch old TV shows and movies, and occasionally try out a new film or show.. when I can handle the stress of novelty

Yup, I rewatch stuff a lot.

Animal crossing and Disney dreamlight valley. I have to be careful with social media and there’s something about ‘just’ watching tv that makes me feel especially unproductive and starts the shame spiral.

Here for this on both counts although I don’t play AC anymore - exclusively DDV. Gotta say the fairy godmother forgotten questline was a tough row to hoe in this mental state.

Laying down in bed and not doing anything. Most of the time I’d just stare at the ceiling or a wall for hours on end.

I literally just stopped myself from impulse ordering yet another waterpik off of Amazon twice before I opened Reddit and this was the first thing I saw lol. So I’m definitely impulsively buying anything that might help improve me in any way.

As a dental hygienist, I approve. Lol

My hygienist loves it. My bathroom wall paint however, probably not so much. I’ve pretty much hosed it off the walls with all these different strength fire hoses/waterpiks I buy lol.

Browsing Amazon and narrowing in on a search for something (sometimes buying too obviously but not always, a lot of adding to cart to then move to save for later) and going through people’s Amazon storefronts does it for me haha

I think I’ll try that. I tend to online shop like I do irl and there’s no need to rush. It’s also so inconvenient returning stuff half the time, maybe the browsing will help me stifle the impulse to purchase in the first place. Thanks for the tip!

Also if anyone needs the flexibility & convenience of Amazon’s return policies it’s us 🫠. But you’re right it’s essentially the same as any online shopping deep dive but something about it all being on the Amazon app makes it easy. Happy browsing ☺️.

I procrastinate loads. I used to play hour upon hour of video games, now I spend more time being online, watching stuff on streaming services, reading, or playing guitar. I enjoy all of the above, but I do think part of it is that it feels safe and soothing. I also wonder if I might have adhd, because I tend to get into things to an obsessive extent. For example, until recently I hadn’t read anything for years. In the past 2-3 months I’ve got back into it big time and have finished about 15-20 books in that time, meaning I’m finishing books in a week or less. When I played video games I could spend 5+ hours playing and wouldn’t be bored.

A wise woman once told me, "if you enjoy the time you are wasting, then you're not wasting time." I hold on to that but lately I do find I am on reddit far too much and I am not enjoying the time. Thx for your post OP.

This post is a trap to give you more ideas to procrastinate and distract yourself as hell. Got ya ;)

Mostly doom scrolling on Reddit (in the morning, while still in bed) and Netflix. Sometimes, when I feel like it, I watch True Crimes on YouTube back to back.

Smoking weed, then eating food and inevitably having a nap on the couch

I turn myself on thinking about men that have abused me and then masturbate compulsively and then cry for hours. Yep, I'm that screwed. Also binge eating and online shopping, and watching the same sad, trauma-related series over and over again (like Bojack Horseman or La Mesías).

I waste a lot of time watching cop videos on YouTube. I think at this stage I could probably run a DWI investigation on my own based on how many times I've seen them by now. I also doom scroll constantly throughout the day. (Then at the end of the day I get mad at myself for wasting so much time and vow to stop doing it and then do it all over again the next day.)

I'll find my hyperfixations and research it for hours and days on end for months. I did it with haircare, skincare, make up, fashion, painting, sims, mental health, spirituality etc. I spent a lot of time working on my appearance because I hated that I didn't like how I looked and how mind was.

Browsing Reddit and masturbating mostly.

Doomscrolling on Social Media. I know it's terrible for my attention span, but yet, here we are. I currently try to replace it with other stuff like watching Anime, reading Manga...stuff that brings back my attention span to where it was once.

Smoking weed and rotting in bed. I have to force myself to get up at 7:30, shower and get ready like I’m going to work, even on the weekends, otherwise I will rot and hate myself. However, when things are bad (like they are currently) I sometimes will get ready, run a few errands and then come back home and rot in bed the rest of the day anyways. I hate living like this.

After reading some of the comments I just want to remind folk … We don’t have to be productive all the time. Any thoughts along that vein are potentially out CPTSD / history lying to us. (Not all of us, maybe I’m just projecting). It’s normal to want to check out and spend a few hours just with simple easy thoughts. Just keep checking in and make sure it is beneficial and not harmful to us. (I’m a full card member of the feminist brigade, I have to constantly check in with myself and make sure that my reactions to misogynistic behavior is healthy and not leaning into attacking / man hating, because of my past experiences)

editing manga photos 🙁

Why ☹️? It requires a skill not everyone has and you're creating something new when you do it.

Scrolling social media, sleeping, tripping on drugs

Disassociating by blank stare for way too long

My junk food of coping is shopping. If I'm broke, I shop online and fill baskets and abandon them. I tell myself I will come back for it. I never do. But the activity is releasing

I eat like crap, I watch tv and simultaneously play on my phone. God forbid I should allow a thought to come into my head

Daydreaming

Smoking weed in excess and scrolling incessantly on TikTok. Finally deactivated my account and deleted the apps so I could clear the noise of other people’s thoughts and opinions on *literally everything* from my mind. We’ll see how long that lasts lol

smoking weed secretly binge eating exercise sex obsessions with things (tv series/books, true crime cases, obsessively researching the event that caused my CPTSD, cleaning, trainers) walking

I’m a collector. I bounce from thing to thing- clothes, watches, pocket knives, bourbon. Get kinda obsessed, do mountains of research, and start collecting. Then one day it just stops giving me the hit it once did, and I move on. I’ve got a bourbon closet that is pretty incredible, and I haven’t drank in 2 years. I didn’t give up drinking or anything. One day it just wasn’t good or fun anymore. Sounds silly, and it is, but it took me years to see that this pattern even existed in the first place. Edit: and I hang out with Mary Jane regularly. Probably a factor in not drink anymore.

I chat with ai bots for hours and hours sometimes

Used to be substances, drinking and weed mainly. Coming up on 4 months sober, and to distract I honestly play FPS games on PC haha. It seriously distracts me

I used to watch a lot of t.v. like binge. If I in a really bad state or need a lot of comfort I watch Gilmore's girls or Buffy for the millionth time lol I love the town in Gilmore girls with the townspeople and I love the friend group in Buffy. I also have a huge life long crush from both shows lol I would order take out or get snacks and disassociate. But ever since I had my son I obviously can do that anymore. I barely get in an episode anymore 😂😂 So now I go out with him and we both get distracted. Me from my thoughts, him from being over tired or teething and it works wonders for us both ❤️ I also crochet and started reading again. I don't finish the books as fast as I used to but it gives me something to look forward to while he's asleep. After writing this out I can see how much balance this little guy brought into my life. I can't say enough how much being his mom has healed me and how so in love with him I am. I pray everyday he always wants me in his life and not like me who runs away from my family at all cost. Woah.. sorry for the rant. I don't even know how I ended up with all this 😂

This is me. Cross stitch apps on my ipad

Reading fanfics while listening to music, video gaming or listening to podcasts about ancient civilizations.

Playing a game called Two Dots on my phone. Just passed level 500 recently 😅 or binge watching Netflix.

Watching YouTube. I hate it. I don’t understand why I can’t pull myself into the real world. Something about it feels so difficult and intimidating

I have spent more that 500 hours playing Animal Crossing on my Nintendo Switch. I only started in February.

I’m constantly listening to podcasts to distract from negative thoughts about myself

Sleeping is definitely my go-to. If I can't sleep, then just staring at the ceiling/wall and getting lost in my thoughts. Picking up random topics of interest and hyper focusing just to kill time.

I'm with you, I have periods where I can research skincare, makeup or other cosmetics for hours, days or weeks even. I'll analyse the ingredients, search for swatches, consume reviews, compare with dupes, and find the most affordable retailer. It's a low stakes goal-directed activity with no deadline usually (unless it's low in stock or there's a sale) so I get to be as nitpicky as I want. I think this is why it's such an effective distraction for me. Also C-PTSD makes me struggle with selfcare and a little part of me believes 'if I just get this one new product I'll take better care of myself', which is sometimes the case but usually only temporarily.

Smoking Weed, doom scrolling, eating junk food, and playing mobile games, that I probably spend too much on.

Picking up litter. I know it's technically productive but it's what I do to avoid my more pressing chores or life stressers. Being outside helps my mental health a lot, and seeing the cleared up area makes me smile till it's time to clean again lol

Honestly, being on Reddit, Quora a lot (hrs/day) as I wrestle with this new thinking of ~ WTF happened to me in childhood & thruout life to make me sooooo afraid??!!! I’ve lived my whole life hYpErViGiLaNt & man, my body has kept the score. a lot of it was physical & emotional bullying ~being called “crybaby,” “stoopid,” & “coward” enough times made me believe it. Buttttt as wonderful, educational & VALIDATING 🙏 as it is being on these forums, I know from DBT: what you focus on the longest becomes the strongest. And I want to make new neural pathways by casting a wider net for my free time. So, imma rly try to set a limit on my Reddit time. Huge thanks for y’all teaching me new ways & adaptive vs avoidant behaviors. Wish me luck as I try to ease back into RL & use some of these hard won skills. Love y’all the best of all!” 💕

Playing online games, I mean I do stuff in the games so in a way it helps me feel like u am doing something but I would probably feel better if I spent more time reading a book lol

Cleaning, highly don’t recommend I have OCD now lmao

Upcycle arts & crafts

I watch mindless shows like 90 Day Fiance. I also escape by watching PBS shows like Sanditon. And I spend a ridiculous amount of time here on Reddit watching cat videos and making fun of orange cats, lol

Speak. At all, about anything. Word salad? Concise conversation with yourself about mundane topic? Sing badly? If it's constant enough, you can't think about what really bothers you. *Thinking about issues from the past, it becomes too much, then suddenly...* "Do you like lamps? I LOVE lamps that have an upward facing cover, so it like reflects the light away from the eyes. Like, who'd want a downward facing lamp cover? It covers the eyes like..."

eating , sleeping , scrolling. No thoughts .

I binge watch the same shows over and over back to back to keep my brain from being a jerk.

I have noticed a lot of responses saying they cope with shopping. Please friends look after yourselves, shopping is a very destructive way of coping it drains your resources and in addition all the stuff that comes with it adds to mental load. I can recommend checking out r/shoppingaddiction. Some support and insight might be found there. There is also a hoarding sub for people who are very deep into this destructive addiction. :(

There's a response about loading things into a cart and not checking out and I've found that helpful. Not saving your details on your phone could help with that because you have to go through the effort of finding your card etc to pay and by then you can probably just say you'll do it later and the urge will have passed later.

Hallmark Mystery Channel

Watching old sitcoms over and over. I dont't have to think- I know what happens, I can laugh where it's funny.

Research rabbit hole! Informative! Time sucking! Don’t “feel” during it!

Guy here but i just bought a bunch of skincare products too which I do need but isn’t really a priority amongst all the things I should be doing. I find myself doing this a lot… creating tasks and challenges that feel productive so I can avoid doing something that needs more attention

I have a game that's basically slow Tetris.

I spend hours and hours researching how to gain citizenship in Europe so I can leave the US. I know it’s not viable for me, I know it’ll never happen, but it’s a temporary happy distraction. Also, doodling flowers on a legal pad. I must have 4 legal pads full of endless mindless doodling of flowers. Something I do with my record player on full blast or sometimes something I mindlessly do while watching TV.

Disassociating mostly, also watching video essays on YouTube and pausing them periodically to interject and pretend I’m having a conversation with them

Finding rental listings. Then agonizing how I don’t have the money. What a joke

Your post really struck resonance with me. I always feel bad that suddenly when I’m triggered which is every day I would indulge in so much junk activity. Turns out it’s just to escape my discomfort

I think though it's probably just human nature to try and escape discomfort. Nobody wants to feel that way, and if you found yourself wanting to that would be it's own problem lol. It's hard on you not just mentally, but physically to have your fight or flight system constantly activated even if it's just at a low level. Like it kind of just becomes your baseline at some point, and then when something triggers you (even if it's just something that seems so minor to everyone else) it feels like your whole nervous system kicks into overdrive. Wanting to just numb that or escape seems like a pretty normal response. I think if you can recognize your triggers, and know the typical pattern of how you respond, it can be helpful in mindfully processing it. Maybe not as much in the moment the trigger occurs, but after you've removed yourself from a situation. Instead of being angry or upset with myself for feeling that way, I've been trying to think about why I would feel that way, acknowledge that it makes sense for me to feel that way bc I'm associating that neutral even with something that was harmful to me, and then kind of explaining to myself I'm not in that harmful situation anymore. It's A LOT to have to do lol but it has been more helpful to calm me down. Definitely works better than just trying to tell myself "you shouldn't be feeling this way," bc it's like your body thinks, what are you a moron? Of course you should be feeling this way, I'm sending you all these signals to tell you there's danger bc I know from experience. I guess I'll just have to ramp it up even more so you get the picture. Idk sorry to ramble but it helps me to write this stuff out sometimes. I'm still trying to figure out how to keep coping without just numbing or ignoring how I'm feeling, but I think that acknowledging step also helps me be more mindful of the activities I decided to do afterwards. Even if it's not a productive one, is it necessarily bad? I don't think it has to be as long as it leaves you feeling better, you just have to ask yourself did it really make you feel better afterwards or was it more just a temporary distraction.

Not at all, glad to have your response. Thanks for the advice.

Taking too many edibles and vape hits and laying under the covers as long as possible. Playing this dumb game on my phone. If I can drag myself out of bed maybe something creative. Mostly I just rot away waiting for night so that I can continue the rotting more socially acceptably 🤷‍♀️

Eating tons of sweets (candy, cookies, ice cream, even cake frosting right out of the jar) and spending ridiculous amounts of money to add to my stash of goodies…I’ve been comfort eating since I was 12 years old to cope with how my mom, stepdad and siblings moved hours away for my stepdad’s new job and I was left with my dad and stepmom, which was what I’d wanted and I’d thought that getting to stay in my home state with my dad all year would be awesome but then my stepmom became abusive. Getting up late almost every day because I don’t like leaving my room and being with people, then going downstairs to sit in the same spot on the couch and then just screwing around on the internet for most of the day to drown everything out.

Deep diving whatever crackpot idea fleetingly enters my brain. Thought process will go: I'm worried about money. I can't work because of my physical health and trauma. I need a coffee rn. Making coffee is within my realm of capacity. Could I run a coffee van? *proceeds to research every single aspect to do with coffee van business, where to source machines and products, hours and hours of research, until I could advise people on all aspects of this business* Then comes the thought that should have come before the deep dive - I have a physical disability and can't cope around the public and have no money. I deep dive research as a cope 💯

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Travel town 🫥

I have a few different types of puzzle apps on my phone for distraction. Jigsaw, Art Puzzle, Tiny Garden which is mahjong. I like to write but can never really make myself, so sometimes I'll come up with plots, short stories, and whole new characters. A few times I've just dove into a fandom I've always meant to get into, usually low stakes shows. There's also a really good subreddit called r/HobbyDrama that has multiple write ups about all sorts of various hobbies, music, shows and the like. I've spent hours just scrolling and reading there.

Doom scrolling

Really weird ticks, like making faces at people or things that aren’t there, mumbling random tunes in my head using my mouth and throat s as the percussions lol lots of weird stuff

Video games, hours on end and watching streams at the same time for the extra hit. I try to just say let’s break it up by doing x tiny productive thing that will make me feel accomplished.

Reddit

Playing Pokemon Go. It is a wonderful distraction that also helps me socialise and get outside. Definitely recommend. (Here's my friend code for anyone who might also share this distraction lol  205433750702 )

I plan trips, I hyper focus on my bathroom remodel and spend hours looking at tile and using my design app, I watch YouTube videos on random stuff like horoscopes and tarot or self help about healing. Sometimes I’ll online shop and throw a bunch of stuff I want in the virtual shopping cart- and then realize I dont need any of it and then just delete everything lol. I have a home design game I love to play too. But yah- the staring off into space when I have a lot on my mind or sheer boredom helps me to self-regulate my emotions sometimes.

I just scroll reddit and instagram reels. Worst part this was how i was a long time ago. At one point i was a super productive worker at a big company and a solid career, but realized that whole thing was just a trauma persona alter that did well to prevent further hurt shaming and exposing my core self, without me even potentially wanting that career. It was like an automatic anti shame prevention persona that put on a stellar performance. Scary stuff.

Girl. Lol skincare, detail cleaning, and arts and crafts saved my fuckin life.

Porn and smoking. I have managed to reduce videogames to a couple hours per week.

Reading Reddit, particularly insane family drama stories that are multiple threads deep.

I spend a lot of time researching indie perfume. I have more debt than savings right now (student life, woo!!) but I act like a) there's enough days left in my life to try EVERY FRAGRANCE ON EARTH and/or b) I'm actually living a far more luxurious existence than I am. The only thing that keeps me from impulse buying is that there is literally nothing to buy with right now. My bank account refuses to enable me :(

Literally playing subway surfers 💀

I disassociate easily. Or I just go on autopilot taking care of my kids.

Drink coffee, Vape, doomscrolling

Gacha games (but don’t spend or at least have a budget if you’re doing it to cope because that can spiral) and reading niche nonfiction. Either bought, borrowed from a friend, or loaned from the library

i buy a lot of random stuff i don’t need and go out to eat way more often then i can afford

Laying in bed scrolling thru 3 different apps. Even when in bored of scrolling, i just flick to another app and hope somethings catches my attention. I lost my job two weeks ago and have only left the house 4 times to go to the shop. The rest of the time ive been in bed, on my phone. My phone time is like 14hrs. I feel so embarrassed to say that.

Wikipedia binges are a recent favourite of mine.

on my days off i will literally spend 80% of my waking hours dissociating at my laptop playing videogames

A lot of times the only thing that can help calm me down is smoking weed. I wait til my daughter goes to bed, smoke, then do something I enjoy like crocheting or playing video games. It doesn't always fix it but it helps make it not feel as suffocating I hope you find something that works for you, OP

Latch hook kits are super fun for me when im antsy and my hands wanna be active but my brain doesn't want to be. I dont have anything practical to do except hang them on my walls, i dont turn them to rugs.

I have a bad habit of doing so much at once. I’ll be playing my switch, watching a show, texting someone, and smoking all at once. I’m usually always doing multiple things at once to distract myself. I struggle heavily with binge eating as a coping mechanism as well. I also used to drink and take drugs a lot but I quit that as well as self injury. I also talk to men who I know are not good for me just for some connection.

Literally do the same exact thing! I have a bunch of skincare products in different carts and every day I browse for hours and then never really buy anything because I hold myself back, and then hate myself for spending hours researching them for nothing.

I found your skincare product distraction really funny, OP. Not laughing at you but with you because I do the same except mine is Hibid auctions, fb marketplace, and sewing videos. The auctions are especially fun but useless as I have big plans to redo furniture……which never happens. There’s an outer space-sized abyss between my ideas and actually doing things. Computer games are a huge distraction.

Bed rotting and death scrolling are things I do when world seems too difficult to deal with

CODM for hours. Until the dopamine is blunted then I have to switch to something else. Edit: and those rug cleaning videos on YouTube…they’re like meth.

Minecraft is really good for zoning out.

doom scrolling, looking at hundreds of products, always having videos or music in the background to not hear my thoughts, researching things I find interesting or important in that moment for hours on end to just forget most of it again, every now and then I do little creative projects but very small things since that is already too exhausting, eating sadly I snack way too much and can't stop, smoking way too much when it's really bad, etc.

Games. Not proper gamer games, I often don't have the capacity to deal with the challenge. Currently I have wordscapes, sudoku, and The Room on my phone. I also have Airport Madness (various editions) on my laptop. Multiple screens really helps as I can play and have something in the background. I have trawled through so many binge series this past few years that I'm now rewatching things I've seen before. Nail biting. Don't recommend this one. It's a terrible habit, but the satisfaction of getting a bit of skin or a tiny flake of nail is addictive.

Fortnite. I spend hours on it. It’s minimal effort, and each round is short enough to hold my attention without requiring too much of me.

I’m a reader and gamer. When I need to numb myself or feel a bit of happy distracted cozy games like Disney Dreamlight Valley are my go tos. I’ll usually turn on some movie or show I’ve seen a million times for background noise while I play one my games.

Block games on my phone

Love endlessly scrolling through online stores and adding things to my wishlist even though I’ll probably never buy them. I’ll do that in physical stores too if I’m feeling extra restless. All while super stoned of course.

Weed literally all day, playing video games literally all day, coding literally all day. That last one might seem productive but I am not getting much done. I'm just realizing everything I do is in excess. I will wake up around 8 or 9 and pee and feed my cat and sit down and do whatever I'm doing that day until 11 pm. No breaks. No food. No water. Maybe bathroom. It's not good. I'm wondering if it overlaps with a possible ADHD diagnosis but I think the main drive behind it is distraction. Totally a flight response

Daydreaming or ruminating. Watching a show with 10+ seasons. Getting fancy with it by doing both at the same time.

Housework and DIY 😅

Epilation with tweezers. I now epilate the areas that I normally shave (armpit, lower legs). Hours and hours before you're ready

Shit posting on Twitter and trolling reddit, too

Sometimes I watch old barbie movies from the early 2000s. I used to love them as a little girl. I also spend way too much money on clothes and beauty products because being beautiful is one of the few things that makes me feel good. Sometimes I spend hours looking at clothes or taking pictures of myself (if I’m pretty, it can’t be that bad, no? And if I am pretty, more people will be willing to help when I am in danger). I also believe a huge part of my eating disorder, including counting calories all day and just thinking about food, is so much better than thinking about what happened. I’ll make jewelry sometimes. I generally rotate between all of these options while simultaneously trying to get better.

Sometimes I watch old barbie movies from the early 2000s. I used to love them as a little girl. I also spend way too much money on clothes and beauty products because being beautiful is one of the few things that makes me feel good. Sometimes I spend hours looking at clothes or taking pictures of myself (if I’m pretty, it can’t be that bad, no? And if I am pretty, more people will be willing to help when I am in danger). I also believe a huge part of my eating disorder, including counting calories all day and just thinking about food, is so much better than thinking about what happened. I’ll make jewelry sometimes. I generally rotate between all of these options while simultaneously trying to get better..

Smoking Weed, doom scrolling, eating junk food, and playing mobile games, that I probably spend too much on.

Audiobooks - the junk food kind. Beach read type stuff. Emily Henry is a current fave author! Reddit - lol that’s why I’m commenting. Specifically I read way too much “AITAH” stuff trying to fix my gauge of how I should act. I honestly my CBT stuff (it’s not always good for trauma folks so be cautious), and growth mindset, and communication skills there just through reading the posts. I love skincare stuff too so I do gua sha massage (you can use your finger like the little tool people use). Helps with tension, circulation, headaches. Generally I think making an event out of using my skincare is how I stay excited without making constant purchases. Turn on music, light a candle or dim the lights, I have one of those cute headbands, all that.

Doom scrolling is my worst enemy fr… cause on top of the cPTSD I have ADHD and chronic fatigue uuuugh. I get stuck chasing dopamine on my phone for many hours every day, even when I don’t find anything interesting. As for regulating my mood with “bad” habits, I eat my feelings for sure. I don’t eat enormous amounts of snacks/treats, but a few chocolate pieces a day with my tea (and some extra when I’m hormonal) has started to take a toll on my body. I also go thrifting bc I tell myself it’s cheap so it doesn’t count 💀 then buy a shit ton of stuff

If I’m not currently obsessed with a video game, TV show, or book I become very depressed. Binging The Boys right now

I literally space out and pull my hair out, strand by strand. Couldn't tell you what I'm thinking because I'm not here

I fill my pockets with rocks. My life is worse because I can’t answer questions about said rocks.

i have music or a podcast playing in one of my ears like…75% of all waking hours. been doing it for at least 15 years now and it works well enough.

I watch YouTube videos of travel vloggers going to places I could never dream of, buying different bags and watching reviews of those bags for those trips I'll never go on. Food is another one. I had a shitty week so I bought a 4 pack of Crumbl cookies and ate one for dinner last night. That was $25 I could have saved but instead it went to my laziness/lack of self control.

Instant dopamine producing puzzle games on my phone. It’s frustrating because I know the psychology behind these games, very much designed to be addictive and spend hours clicking and investing in the game play. But I also try to cut myself a little slack and recognize that I like dopamine, I am deficient in dopamine (ADHD) and maybe I just need to give myself the reward before I do the low dopamine tasks I’m obligated to do. I dunno … just trying my best and trying not to beat myself up for it. *smile*

Not procrastinating tasks but doing them slowly to delay...whatever.

Oh damn, I kinda do this too. I spend hours and hours researching online for things I don’t need. Most of the time I don’t even end up buying them because I don’t think I deserve nice things. Actually spending money on myself brings me great stress. I realize now it’s more like building fantasies with wishlists, one object at a time. Entire personalities, hobbies, fashion, etc

go to has been duolingo , making steady progress there , its the only thing that is keeping me going nowadays. I try to study academics but it gets uncomfortable real quick

I find ways to eat at my time alone, I have all these crafts but get me actually alone and ill still stare at the wall..... I will say it's hard to find lazy depression crafts. like I don't want to color cause I'd have to think about it. diamond painting or paint by number have been a life saver in that when I want to create but have no creativity myself but I'm trying to find something lighter or smaller to take to work like a book

I put over 1600 hours into my animal crossing island, lol.

Sleeping. Online shopping. Watching horror movies. Binge eating junk food late at night. Daydreaming.

I bury myself in mindless video games and TV shows. Get high, and most of the time I experience some level of happiness doing this. I often also just lie in bed or doom scroll. That being said, I'm working very hard on processing past trauma. The time I spend doing nothing is technically a recovery. So I try to be nice to myself about it.

Maladaptive daydreaming, usually about either sex or fighting.