Have you ever felt like your brain is turning into mush from endless scrolling? Or maybe caught yourself in the middle of an Instagram marathon, wondering where the last two hours went?
We’re talking about something that’s secretly messing with all of us: brain rot. Yep, the dreaded brain rot.
For those of you who don’t know, brain rot isn’t some scary disease from a horror movie. It's what happens when you spend way too much time on mindless activities, like scrolling through social media, bingewatching cat videos, or endlessly clicking on clickbait YouTube videos. You know that feeling when you’ve watched so many TikToks that you start dreaming in 15second clips? That’s brain rot creeping in.
Imagine this: it’s a typical Tuesday afternoon, and you’re trying to study for an upcoming exam. You’ve got your textbooks spread out, a nice cup of coffee, and your laptop ready. You’re determined to make this study session count. Just as you’re about to dive into Chapter 3, your phone buzzes. It’s a message from your friend.
He’s sent you an Instagram reel, and it looks hilarious. You think, “I’ll just check it out for a quick laugh.”
You open Instagram and watch the reel. But then, you swipe up to see the next reel. And the next. And the next. Before you know it, you’re deep into the Instagram reel rabbit hole. You’ve watched a dog doing a dance, a cooking hack that you’ll probably never try, and a prank video that has you in stitches.
Time flies when you’re having fun, right? You glance at the clock and realize that an hour has gone by. One whole hour. Your textbooks are still lying there, untouched. The coffee you made is now cold, and you can’t remember what you were supposed to be studying in the first place. That’s brain rot in action.
You try to get back into your study groove, but it’s hard to focus. Did you know it takes about 20 minutes to regain full focus after a distraction? Yep, that means every time you pick up your phone, you’re setting yourself back even further.
This scenario doesn’t just affect your study session. It starts to spill over into the rest of your day. You decide to take a break from studying and go grab some lunch. While you’re eating, you absentmindedly scroll through your phone again. This time, you’re on YouTube.
By the time you’ve finished your lunch, another hour has passed. You were supposed to go for a jog to clear your mind and get some exercise, but now you’re feeling sluggish and unmotivated. You decide to skip the jog and just chill on the couch for a bit. You turn on Netflix and start watching a new series. Three episodes later, you realize the entire afternoon has slipped away.
The next morning, you wake up feeling groggy. You didn’t get enough sleep because you stayed up late trying to make up for lost time. You drag yourself out of bed, already dreading the day ahead.
And the cycle continues.