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< The strange attraction of the online-void
The appeal of online is the appeal of other people. Humans are social beings and we want to connect. Knowing that is key to dealing with online; it can help you accept it without guilt or help you distance yourself from it further (by finding other ways to find connection).
Talking to people in real life, or, reading fiction (trying to find a connection both to the fictional people in the book and to the author that made them), or, by using awareness (of the desire to connect socially really being the driver of the appeal of online), trying to get over that desire and enjoy the hermit life.
I went with the "talking with people in real life" route when I went offline. But then pandemic made that impossible so I embraced online. It's addictive but so is food and sleep. Humans need each other.
That’s a very good point. I’m, myself, reading a lot of fiction. In fact, I want to be less on the screen to be able to read more.
On the other hand, I find real life interaction particularly tiring (I have been diagnosed with Asperger’s syndrom). I also have a wife and two children who provide me with already "too much" social interaction ;-)