how termux saved me from my doomscrolling addiction
i am a man of habits. one of mine used to be endless doomscrolling. over the past year or so, that habit has slowly been replaced by something a little more mentally healthy and sustainable: a healthier, but still full-blown, addiction to termux⇲. it’s easily my most used app now, and i don’t feel myself getting pulled toward social media anymore.
what do i do with termux? almost everything i need and want: i read books with epy⇲ (plus a personalised library and book-search script i call openbook), i read blogs and news with newsboat⇲ (and i’m still trying to get feedo working on termux, i’m close), i write in zettlemind, my personalised fork of dotmd⇲, i code in nvim⇲, i play termux-games⇲, and i listen to music with mpv⇲, using a little wrapper i made called boom.
why do i find termux helpful?
termux works for me because it’s quiet. it’s less flashy, so there’s less pulling my attention away from what i’m doing. i like working from the cli on all my machines and devices, and i genuinely enjoy the focus-driven habit-building that comes from simple work/play environments. it feels more satisfying than the false dopamine traps of social media and fancy apps.
working and playing from the cli also keeps me calm and learning. i get to investigate how .zsh scripts can improve workflows and shape my experience, technical or aesthetic, in termux (or any cli). it slows things down in a good way. i can focus on the task in front of me without the anxious urge to click away or scroll into nowhere.
i haven’t said goodbye to social media. i’m just not addicted to doomscrolling anymore. now i can use it on and off for what it should actually be for: keeping up with friends, making new ones, and sharing a bit of myself with them. no more sick dopamine loops trying to hook me. just my terminal, a shell, and a few tools and toys when i want to stay engaged.