Decluttering Your Mind: A Fall Guide to Digital Detox
A person reading a book with black cover. The book is resting on a wood table with a cup of coffee and two muffins above. There is a widow in front of the table with a blur of person walking by the window.
While summer has not quite left us in the Northern Hemisphere, we can start thinking about getting ready for fall so we are ready for it when it arrives. Fall gives us the opportunity to breathe in crisp air, play in the leaves, enjoy pumpkin spice, and potentially enjoy a routine-oriented schedule. This makes fall a great season to reset, reduce mental overwhelm, and reclaim time for seasonal joys like reading, hobbies, or spending time outdoors. In this blog post we will look at practical strategies to help you get ready for fall!
Digital Detox
Inbox Cleanup! Unsubscribe from newsletters you never open and archive old emails.
Step 1: Unsubscribe in Mass
Search the keyword "Unsubscribe": Type unsubscribe into your email search bar. This process helps isolate almost every promotional email and newsletter. If you have gmail, for example, and you have the different tabs that include Promotions that is also a great place to start.
Filter and Batch: Look at the most frequent senders. Take advantage of the built-in "Unsubscribe" link (usually found at the top next to the sender's name in Gmail/Apple Mail, or at the very bottom of the email body). If that is not an option at the bottom of emails there is an option to unsubscribe that can be used.
Step 2: Dust out the Archives
Use Date Filters: Conduct a search for emails older than a specific date (e.g., in Gmail, search before:2025/01/01).
Select All & Archive: Select all matching conversations and push the Archive (or Delete if they are junk/promotional). Archiving is pretty cool because it removes the email from your inbox view while keeping them searchable in case you need them in the future.
Set Up a "Read Later" Folder: Create a folder for newsletters you actually like and want to come back and read or reference later. Set up a filter to route them there automatically so they don’t clutter your main inbox.
App Purge! Delete apps you haven't used in months.
Step 1: Identify the Those Unused Apps
Check Usage Data:
If you are going to delete unused apps it is important to identify which apps could stand to be deleted.
iPhone: Go to Settings > General > iPhone Storage. Scroll down to see apps sorted by size and the last date you opened them (e.g., "Last Used: Never" or "Offloaded").
Android: Go to Settings > Apps (or Digital Wellbeing) to check your least-used apps.
Step 2: The Two-Touch Rule
Delete without guilt: If you haven't opened an app in the last 3–6 months and it isn't an emergency utility (like a road trip auto repair app), go ahead and delete it. You can always download it again from the cloud if you need it.
Offload (iPhone option): If you have an iPhone and you want to save the app's data/login and give yourself the space, choose "Offload App." It’s a neat function!
Step 3: Overhaul for Focus
Keep the Dock Minimal: Limit your bottom dock to your 4 most essential tools (e.g., Phone, Calendar, Messages, Maps). You don’t have to stick with the apps that are there out of the box. Make the dock match your needs.
Camouflage Distractor Apps: Move social media, games, or shopping apps, as some potential examples, off your primary home page and into an inner folder or the App Library. This will give a moment to pause and think through if you need to go to these apps so you aren't opening them on autopilot.
Camera Roll Reset! Back up your summer photos and delete duplicates to free up storage and mental space.
Step 1: Back Up Those Summer Photos
Cloud Sync: Ensure your primary cloud backup (iCloud, Google Photos, or OneDrive) has fully synced your recent photos over Wi-Fi. Keep those photos safe!
Hard Drive Backup (Optional): If you prefer a hard drive rather than the Cloud, plug your phone into a computer and save your recent summer folder onto an external drive or desktop folder labeled Summer 2026.
Step 2: Take Advantage of Built-in Duplicate & Utility Cleaners
Delete Duplicates Automatically:
iPhone: Open Photos, scroll down to Utilities, tap Duplicates, and select Merge All.
Android/Google Photos: Open the Files by Google app or Google Photos, tap Clean, and let it automatically detect duplicate photos and blurry shots.
Step 3: Search & Remove Non-Memory Photos
Use the search bar in your photo app to quickly find and delete non-memories:
Search "Screenshot": Delete all receipts, temporary directions, and old memes if they are not being used.
Search "Document" or "Text": Clear out photos of whiteboards, parking spots, or serial numbers you no longer need.
Search "Video": Sort by size and delete long, accidental videos or screen recordings taking up gigabytes of space.
Hint: Spread these tasks out rather than trying to do them in one sitting. Dedicate around 15 minutes a day—Day 1 for Emails, Day 2 for Apps, and Day 3 for Photos—to help with reducing the pressure and stress.
Setting Intentional Fall Tech Boundaries
When developing a healthy lifestyle habit the research shows that habits can begin to develop and form in about two months, but the actual time required varies a lot between individuals (Singh et al., 2024). So there is no time like the present to begin. Here are a few suggestions for tech boundaries that you can explore this season.
Designate Tech-Free Zones: Whether it is just you or you and your family, work by yourself or together, depending on your situation, to identify times and/or places where tech devices are not allowed like the dinner table or in the bedroom.
Digital Sunset: In order to protect your sleep, as sleep is essential for mental health (Howarth & Miller, 2024), set a boundary around the time that devices are put away before going to bed. Consider putting devices away an hour before bed to improve sleep quality.
Customizing Notifications: Turn off all non-essential alerts to stop reacting to every ping and give yourself the gift of not being alerted to every notification.
iPhone (iOS) Steps
Step 1: Audit & Silence Non-Essential Apps
Instead of turning off every notification completely, pare them down to only what is critical like direct messages or phone calls.
Open Settings > Notifications.
Scroll through the list of apps under Notification Style.
Tap on any non-essential app (e.g., shopping apps, news, games, social media).
Option A (Total Silence): Toggle off Allow Notifications completely.
Option B (Quiet Delivery): Leave Allow Notifications on, but uncheck Lock Screen, Notification Center, and Banners. Uncheck Sounds and Badges so you aren't alerted in real-time.
Step 2: Enable Scheduled Summary
Batch non-urgent notifications into one or two daily digests instead of receiving them throughout the day. You don’t miss anything. It just comes in a different format.
Go to Settings > Notifications.
Tap Scheduled Summary and turn it on.
Choose the times you want your summary delivered (e.g., 8:00 AM and 6:00 PM).
Select the apps you want to include in the summary (e.g., news, email, entertainment apps).
Step 3: Remove Red Badge Distractions
Those little red dots that pop up on our apps tend to create subconscious urgency even though not all of them may be urgent.
Go to Settings > Notifications.
Select the app (e.g., Mail or Slack).
Toggle off Badges.
Android Steps
Please Note: Menu names may vary slightly depending on your device's manufacturer.
Step 1: Silence Non-Essential Apps
Open Settings > Notifications (or Apps & Notifications).
Tap App notifications (or App settings) to view your full app list.
Toggle off notifications entirely for non-essential apps (e.g., retail, social media, games).
For apps you want to keep but quiet down, tap the app name:
Select Silent instead of Alerting.
Toggle off Pop on screen (banners) and Vibration.
Step 2: Customize Notification Channels
Android is neat in that it allows you to turn off specific types of alerts within a single app.
In Settings > Notifications > App notifications, tap a specific app (e.g., an e-commerce or sports app).
Look at the categories (Notification Channels).
Leave critical categories enabled (e.g., Account Security) while turning off non-essential categories (e.g., Promotions, Recommendations, or News).
Step 3: Turn Off Notification Dot Badges
Those little dot badges that pop up on our apps tend to create subconscious urgency even though not all of them may be urgent.
Go to Settings > Notifications.
Scroll down and toggle off Notification dot on app icon (or App icon badges).
Bonus Quick-Action Pro-Tips
On iPhone: When an annoying alert pops up on your Lock Screen or Notification Center, swipe left on it, tap Options, and select Turn Off or Deliver Quietly.
On Android: Press and hold the notification directly from your pull-down tray, then tap Turn off notifications or switch it to Silent.
Replace the Doom Scrolling
Fall is a great time to get outside, cozy up to read a good book, journal, or engage in a fall hobby. Here are some suggestions to try instead of doom scrolling when you find yourself in need of something to engage your mind and body!
Somatic & Outdoor Fall Activities
Mindful Autumn Walking: Head outside to a trail or park with the intention of leaving your phone in your pocket or backpack. Focus on expanding your sensory engagement by noticing the crispness of the air on your skin, the crunch of leaves underfoot, and the vibrant fall colors.
Open-Air Forest Bathing (Shinrin-yoku): Find a quiet bench or a tree to lean against in a local park or safe place in nature. Practice simply sitting and letting your nervous system adjust to the natural rhythm around you—no agenda, no scrolling, just letting your eyes rest on nature. You can either engage in some mindful deep breathing or find a more natural pace that works for you in the moment.
Apple or Pumpkin Picking: Get your whole body moving in a fun and creative way by exploring a fall environment. Reaching, lifting, and walking through an orchard provides gentle physical output that shifts you out of a passive place of staring at the screen state into active presence.
Tactile & Creative Swaps
Seasonal Baking or Cooking: Making a warm pumpkin soup, apple galette, or spiced cider engages multiple senses—smell, touch, taste—which naturally interrupts the compulsion to check social media because you are engaged in the present moment with so many senses!
Somatic Journaling or Autumn Sketching: Grab a physical notebook and a pen. Write out a brain dump, draft a fall reflection, or simply sketch the shape of a leaf. The tactile feedback of pen-on-paper activates cognitive pathways that tapping a screen never can. There is a difference between how your brain engages when writing or drawing on paper versus when doing similar activities with a screen.
Crafting & Knitting: Activities that require repetitive, fine-motor hand movements (like knitting, candle making, or leaf pressing) provide the same rhythmic satisfaction your hands seek when scrolling, but in a calming, productive way.
Cozy Mental Health & Restful Swaps
Physical Book Reading in Cozy Spaces: Swap screen time for a physical paperback or hardcopy book. Pair it with a warm beverage, a soft blanket, and a comfortable chair to create a dedicated rest space in your home.
At-Home Tea & Warmth Rituals: Create a deliberate 10-minute break where you make a hot cup of herbal tea or chai. Instead of checking your phone while the water boils or while drinking, use that window to unclamp your jaw, drop your shoulders, engage your mind with the beauty of nature you may be viewing out the window, and enjoy the physical warmth of the mug in your hands.
Seasonal Micro-Rest: Lay on the floor with your legs up against a wall for 10 minutes (a restorative yoga pose called Legs Up the Wall). It gently resets the nervous system, reverses fluid accumulation in the legs, and gives your eyes a complete rest from glowing blue light.
take action today moment:
Give one or all of the suggested tips a try!
Learn More About Digital Detoxing:
Considering a digital detox? Why it’s a good idea and what to know
References
Howarth, N. E., & Miller, M. A. (2024). Sleep, sleep disorders, and mental health: A narrative review. Heart and Mind, 8(3), 146-158. doi: 10.4103/hm.HM-D-24-00030
Singh, B., Murphy, A., Maher, C., & Smith, A. E. (2024). Time to form a habit: A systematic review and meta-analysis of healthbehaviour habit formation and its determinants. Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland), 12(23), 2488. https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare12232488