- Content: 
By Shawn Smith
Gen Z is waking up to the link between screen time and depression and anxiety, replacing doomscrolling with old-time hobbies and face-to-face conversations.
“[W]e don’t have to accept skyrocketing depression rates, year after year,” political commentator Brilyn Hollyhand told FOX AND FRIENDS. “What is the solution to that? Putting down our phones, actually touching grass…and that’s what we’re seeing amongst Gen Z. This goes back to this heart of where are we getting our influence from?”
A recent Talker Research study seems to confirm his statement.
In the survey of 2,000 Americans, 50% of the participants said that they are choosing to cut back on their screen time, with Gen Z leading the way at 63% say they are digitally detoxing. Millennials are not far behind in the trend at 57%, followed by Gen X at 42%, and Baby Boomers at 29% saying they are cutting back on their screen time.
Related: How ‘Sabbath’ Transformed Charlie Kirk’s Life
Hollyhand, part of the Gen Z crowd himself at 19 years old, encourages fellow digital detoxers to focus on relationships, especially their relationship with Jesus.
“Right now, my classmates are listening to a lot of podcast bros who tell us to put ourselves first, to focus on our jaw lines, our body count, instead of how we can help others,” he said. “And the solution to that is, in 2026 let’s listen more to Jesus than we listen to podcast bros. Let’s open the Bible more than we open social media.”
“Let’s actually make sure that we’re making phone stacks, we’re hanging out with our friends, and make an emphasis on importance with face-to-face conversation,” he went on to say.
Media Research Center host and fellow Gen Zer Justine Brooke Murray also cut back on screen time but readily admitted that it is not an easy habit to break.
“I’ve been plugged into my phone since the seventh grade, and as someone who’s Jewish, who is supposed to observe the Sabbath Shabbat, where we unplug a day every single week, I can’t even do that,” Murray confessed. “I’ve actually had to physically throw [my phone] out of the room or try to insert myself into an activity I’m not even interested in.”
The reigning Miss Garden State says she picked up basketball as a way of staying off of social media, even though she is only a 5’1” self-described “pageant girl.”
Sports is not the only pastime Gen Z is picking up in lieu of their smartphones. A reported trend among Zoomers is what has been dubbed “grandma” hobbies, such as crocheting and cross stitch.
The Wall Street Journal reported that cross-stitch patterns are up 89% in 2025 compared to last years, while according to a survey 86% of Gen Z participants would describe themselves as crafters.
One store that has picked up on the trend is Saville Needleworks in Dallas, where they offer popular beginner and advanced needlepoint classes called Sip and Stitch.
“Needlepoint provides the opportunity to learn something new, be social, and have something tangible that getting to level 6,000 on Candy Crush just doesn’t provide,” Megan Spurr head of marketing and public relations of Saville Needleworks said.
With the Talker study revealing that excessive screen time leads to about 70% of participants feeling lonely and disconnected as well as feeling overwhelmed (25%), anxious (22%) and irritable (18%), it’s no wonder that people are looking for healthier ways to pass the time — and as the young’uns would say, that’s no cap.
Read Next: Could a Digital Detox Help You Beat Your Tech Addiction?
Questions or comments? Please write to us here.
– Content: +3Share:
– Content: +4