Tired of Doom Scrolling? Try a Distraction Basket Instead

You don't really want to scroll anymore.

You've already checked Facebook. You've watched the videos. You've played the games. Maybe you've even put your phone down, only to pick it back up five minutes later because...what else are you going to do?

You're bored.

But here's the weird part.

You don't necessarily have the energy, attention span or desire to start doing something either.

I know that feeling very well.

I've been dealing with a flare lately that's meant a lot more time at home and a lot more resting than I'd like. And somewhere between needing to rest and being completely over staring at my phone, I realized something.

I didn't need to find more things to do. I already had plenty of things to do. I needed to make those things as easy to reach for as my phone.

And that's how I ended up putting together a distraction basket.

It's a ridiculously simple idea, but I think that's why I like it.

And you don't even need the basket.  You can use whatever you have laying around the house.

This post may contain affiliate links. If you make a purchase through one of my links, I may earn a small commission at no additional cost to you. I only share things I genuinely think could be helpful or that I would use myself.

The problem wasn't finding things to do

Think about how easy it is to pick up your phone.

It's right there.

You don't have to get up.

You don't have to gather supplies.

You don't have to decide what you're going to do.

You pick it up and start scrolling.

Meanwhile, I have coloring books in one place, colored pencils somewhere else, puzzle books tucked away, books I've been meaning to read and plenty of other things around this house that I actually enjoy.

But when I'm already settled on the couch under my heated blanket?

I'm not getting up and going on a scavenger hunt looking for something to entertain myself.

So instead of trying to have more willpower about staying off my phone, I decided to make the other choices easier.

I gathered some things I already owned and put them close to where I've been spending most of my time.

That's it.

That's the distraction basket.

Some people call it an analog basket, which you may have seen online too.

But honestly, you don't need a basket at all.

A stack of books beside the couch works.

A drawer in your nightstand works.

A tote bag works.

A pile on the coffee table works.

The container isn't the solution. Having another choice within reach is.

First, don't go shopping

I know.

I'm putting affiliate links in this article and immediately telling you not to shop.

Great business plan, Laura.

But seriously, before you buy anything, walk around your house.

I bet you have more than you think.  I know I did!

Look for those things you bought because you thought they looked fun and then forgot about.

Coloring books.

Puzzle books.

Magazines.

Playing cards.

Craft supplies.

Books you've been meaning to read.

A notebook you were definitely going to use for something.

All the things you may have bought to keep you busy during the pandemic but never got to.

I know I'm not the only one with a few of those.

For mine, I gathered a my coloring sheets and colored pencils, a word search book, playing cards, a book I've been meaning to read or listen to, a notebook and a few other things I already had.

I also added my Brain Dump notes because sometimes the thing keeping my brain busy isn't boredom. It's all the random thoughts bouncing around in there.

If you already have enough things around the house, you're done.

You don't need to spend a dime.

Pick things that match the amount of energy you actually have

This is where my chronic illness comes into the picture.

One thing I've learned is that "low energy" doesn't always look the same.

Sometimes my body hurts and needs to stay put, but my brain needs an activity to keep itself busy.

Give me something to figure out.

Other days?

I could read the same paragraph six times and still have absolutely no idea what I just read.

Those are not Sudoku days.  In fact, there are never any Sudoku days because I just can't figure out how to even start.

That's why I don't want everything near me to require the same amount of concentration.

On a very low-energy day, I might color, flip through a magazine or do something repetitive like a sticker-by-number book.

If I have a little more brain power, a word search, cards or a simple puzzle might work.  I often put free ones in my facebook group for members of that community.

If my body needs rest but my brain is wide awake, I might read, do a logic puzzle, work on a mystery or pick up a small project.

And I think this matters whether you have chronic illness or not.

Some evenings you're tired.

Some days you're stressed.

Sometimes you just don't have the attention span.

You don't need to force yourself into the activity you think you should be doing.

Ask yourself:

What feels doable right now?

That's a much easier place to start.

Make starting almost ridiculously easy

This may be the biggest trick to making this work.

If I have the coloring book but the colored pencils are in another room, I've created a problem.

So the colored pencils or markers stay with the coloring book.

If something needs scissors, keep scissors nearby.

If you're going to journal, put a pen with the notebook.

Don't make yourself hunt for the second half of the activity.

And if you spend a lot of time on the couch or in bed, a lap desk can be helpful for coloring, writing and puzzles. You absolutely don't need one, but I like having a surface to work on without needing to move to the table.

The goal is to make starting one of these things require almost as little effort as opening an app on your phone.

Because if we're being realistic, the phone is pretty hard competition.

Don't put 25 things in it

This is another lesson I've learned about myself.

More choices do not always help me.

Sometimes more choices mean I sit there looking at all of them and then I can't decide what I want to do and pick up my phone instead.

Which brings us right back to where we started.

Five or six things are plenty.

And they don't have to stay the same.

If you haven't touched the crossword puzzle book in three weeks, put it away and bring something else out.

You can rotate things.  You can trade things with friends.  Whatever works.

Something you haven't seen for two months can suddenly seem interesting again, and you didn't have to buy anything new.

Don't turn your distraction basket into a productivity basket

This one is especially important to me.

I know myself.

Give me a basket, a new idea and five minutes and suddenly we have a SYSTEM.

There will be goals.

There will be a checklist.

Possibly a printable.

We're not doing that.

This isn't supposed to become another collection of things you need to finish.

You don't have to complete the coloring page.

You don't have to finish the puzzle.

You don't have to read an entire chapter.

If something kept you occupied for ten minutes and then you put it down than it worked and did its job.

Especially on flare days, I don't need another way to measure how productive I have or haven't been.

Sometimes I'm just trying to make a long afternoon feel a little less long.

This can work for a lot more than flare days

The flare is what made me put mine together again, but this idea definitely isn't only for people with chronic illness.

Think about all the times when you or someone in your family needs something easy to do.

Rainy days.

Snow days.

Recovery after surgery.

Road trips.

Travel.

Waiting rooms.

Quiet evenings.

Grandkids visiting.

Trying to cut back on screen time.

Even keeping a few things at your desk for when your brain needs a break could work.

And I really like this idea for kids.

You could make a kid version with washable markers, coloring pages, reusable sticker books, activity books, Play-Doh, cards or simple puzzles.

And again, don't make this complicated.

You don't need to create the Ultimate Childhood Enrichment Basket.  

Grab a few things they like and put them somewhere they can get to them.

When you hear "I'm bored," they have choices.

You can rotate those choices every so often too, which might make old toys and activities interesting again.

It doesn't even need to look like a basket

I want to keep coming back to this because I don't want someone reading this and thinking they need to go buy something pretty before they can start.

You don't.

Maybe you have a cute basket sitting around. Great. Use it.

If you happen to need one anyway, this woven basket is the kind I like because you can leave it sitting beside a couch without it looking like you dumped the craft closet in your living room.

But a basket isn't necessary.

Stack three things beside your chair.

That's your distraction "basket."

Put everything in the bottom drawer of your nightstand.

That's your distraction "basket."

Throw a couple of activity books and supplies into a tote.

Same idea.

Use whatever removes the most friction between you and actually doing the thing.

That's what matters.

I also keep a few comfort things nearby

Since I'm using mine mostly during a flare right now, I realized it made sense to keep some non-activity things nearby too.

Lip balm.

Hand lotion.

Mints.

Fuzzy socks.

Little things I'm always reaching for or asking someone to grab.

So mine has become part distraction basket and part "I'm stuck here, so let's make this suck a little less" collection.

And you know what?

That may be even more useful.

You could do the same thing based on why you're making yours.

A recovery basket might have comfort items.

A kid's rainy-day basket might be all activities.

A travel version might fit inside a little pouch.

There aren't any rules here.

This isn't about giving up your phone

I'm definitely not.

My phone is one of the ways I stay connected when I'm stuck at home.

I talk to people.

I play games.

I watch stupid videos that make me laugh.

I share things.

Sometimes scrolling Facebook from under my heated blanket is exactly what I want to do.

There's nothing wrong with that.

This is for the other times.

The times when you open Facebook.

Close Facebook.

Check your email.

Nothing.

Open Facebook again.

And at some point you realize you're not even enjoying yourself anymore.

You're scrolling because scrolling is the easiest available option.

That's the problem I wanted to fix.

Not the phone.

Not social media.

The lack of another easy option.

Now there is one.

Maybe I color for ten minutes.

Maybe I do half a word search.

Maybe I read three pages.

Maybe I go right back to my phone afterward.

That's okay too.

Sometimes you don't need to fix the whole day

I think that's what I like most about this idea.

When you're having a hard day, it's easy to start looking for something that's going to make the whole day better.

And sometimes that just isn't realistic.

Especially with chronic illness.

There are days when I can't fix how my body feels.

I can't magically give myself more energy.

I can't make the flare disappear.

But maybe I can make the next half hour a little nicer.

Something good to drink.

My heated blanket.

A cat curled up beside me.

A puzzle.

Ten minutes of coloring.

A conversation.

Something that makes me laugh.

None of it fixes the hard thing.

It just makes the hard thing a little easier to sit with.

And maybe that's enough for today.

Whether you make an actual distraction basket, clear out a drawer or simply stack three things beside your favorite chair, the idea is the same:

Give yourself another easy option.

Your phone shouldn't get to win just because it's the closest thing to you.

If you're looking for more gentle ways to make hard days a little easier, you might also like How to Find Joy in the Little Things When Life Feels Hard and  How To Be Positive While Living With A Chronic Illness eBook

 Now I'm curious.

What would you put within reach that you could work on and distract you when needed?

Not what you should do. What would you actually enjoy picking up instead of your phone?

In this together,

Laura