Brainwashed by Algorithms

Imagine opening your phone just to check one quick message—and suddenly, you're 47 minutes deep into scrolling TikTok, comparing vacuum reviews on YouTube, and debating whether that $300 infrared sauna blanket on Instagram is the secret to your new self. You didn’t plan that. But the apps did.

This isn’t a lack of discipline. It’s precision engineering. Tech companies aren’t just making platforms—they’re designing experiences that hijack your psychology. And the scary part? They’re using everything we know about the human brain to do it.

At the center of this trap is one chemical: dopamine. That tiny hit of pleasure you feel when someone likes your post, replies to your comment, or sends a message? That’s dopamine doing its job. It’s the same brain signal triggered by sugar, sex, and slot machines. The platforms know it. They’ve studied it. They build for it. Every feature is tested and refined not to serve you—but to make you stay.

Take infinite scroll. There's no endpoint, no stopping cue. The content just keeps coming. The design was inspired by casino principles—keep the user engaged, stimulate reward pathways, eliminate friction. The inventor of infinite scroll has since gone public with regret, calling it “behavioral manipulation.” But the system he helped build is now standard on nearly every major app.

Behind the curtain, the algorithms track everything. Every scroll, every pause, every second you hover over a video tells the system something about you. They build a psychological model of your behavior: what excites you, what angers you, what breaks your focus. They can guess your insecurities, your stress triggers, even your sleep schedule. And they use that data to feed you more of what will keep you coming back—especially when you’re vulnerable.

This is where it gets real: you’re not the customer. You’re the product. Your attention is what they sell to advertisers. And the longer you stay locked into the system, the more valuable you become. It’s not just about time spent—it’s about emotional engagement. Outrage works. Anxiety works. Obsession works. Your strongest emotions aren’t being soothed; they’re being mined.

And let’s be honest—your mental health? That’s collateral damage. The link between heavy social media use and increased rates of anxiety, depression, and loneliness is well-documented, especially among young people. These companies know it. But the machine keeps rolling, because there’s no profit in moderation. Only engagement.

So, what do you do when the system is designed to pull you under? You start by becoming aware. Turn off the dopamine traps—notifications, autoplay, algorithm-driven feeds. Be intentional when you pick up your phone. Ask yourself why you're opening an app before you do it. Don’t sleep with your phone. Set limits. Unfollow accounts that drain you. Reclaim your attention before it becomes someone else’s profit.

And if you’ve ever felt weak or addicted or broken by your tech habits—let this be your reminder: you’re not the problem. The system is. It was never built for your wellbeing. It was built to exploit your instincts.

The next time you catch yourself lost in an endless scroll, remember this: that spiral isn’t an accident. It’s a business model. And now that you see it, maybe—just maybe—you can break free.

Because your mind is yours. And it’s time to take it back.