the bold dev

Three months ago, I bit the bullet and walked away from Meta and X. No more Facebook scrolling. No more tweeting into the void. No more Insta posts. My motivation was equal parts needing space and wanting to stop using products from companies that don’t care about their users.

What struck me most was this: I wasn’t really using social media to connect anymore. Not in the way it was originally made for. I wasn’t messaging friends, having real conversations, or building community. I was passively watching, comparing, and consuming. And it didn’t feel good.

The further I got, the more I started noticing how deeply integrated these platforms were in my everyday life. Leaving made space for me to reflect on a few things: what I actually want my digital life to look like and what real connections means to me.

Goodbye Isn’t Easy—Especially with X

Let me start with this: you can’t technically delete your X (formerly Twitter) or Meta accounts outright. You can only deactivate them, then wait out a 30-day timer without logging back in. It almost feels like a trap, like they’re hoping your muscle memory kicks in and you log in again.

I haven’t caved. I made sure to delete the apps from my phone and tablet. I also took the extra step of clearing out my browsers so they don’t get pulled up from my history. But knowing that my digital footprint is still sitting there, paused rather than erased, feels weirdly unresolved.

When the Apps You Like Still Depend on the Ones You Left

I’ve been exploring ways to make money online and started looking into content creation. There is an app called Kale where brands post challenges to claim and upload. It felt like a fun way to use social media. But recently, some of the challenges started including platform requirements. One of the brands was Coco Lab (formerly Coco Floss), a brand I love. I was super excited to claim a spot and make a video about them. That’s when I noticed their challenges were restricted to Instagram.

I caught myself having a moment: Do I really want to re-activate my account just to post sponsored floss content?

Nope.

But it hit me how much of the digital economy is still tied to the platforms I left behind.

Another surprise? The panic of realizing how many websites I’ve signed into using my Facebook credentials. From small apps to retail sites, they’re all tangled up. Part of me wonders: Did I jump the gun? Should I have untangled that mess before pulling the plug? Possibly. But hindsight is always 20/20 when you’re unhooking yourself from Big Tech.

Practical Problems: Finding Restaurants and Checking Events

Here’s the thing no one tells you when you quit Meta: small businesses basically live on Facebook and Instagram. Want to check hours, see if a restaurant has vegan options, or browse photos of the menu? That’s Facebook territory now. Google often doesn’t cut it.

There’s still space like BlueSky, Primal, Medium I scroll on when I really want to feed my feed habit. But none of them have the same pull to me. And honestly, I think that’s a good thing.

Learning to Sit Without Scrolling

Without Facebook or X, I quickly realized: I don’t have anything to scroll anymore. TikTok is still on my phone, but to enjoy it, you kind of need sound on and your full attention. That means when I’m out and about I’m often just… there.

I thought reading would fill the gaps, but I find it hard to focus on a book in a loud café. Maybe it’s something that gets better with practice. But that dead space we usually fill with a feed? It’s been eye-opening to notice it again.

So… Was It Worth It?

It hasn’t been perfect. I still miss things. I get the guilty urge to look people up to see what they’re up to. I still question if I’ve made things unnecessarily difficult.

But I’ve also regained a level of quiet I didn’t realize I’d lost. My attention span has gotten better. I feel less caught in the comparison trap. I’m discovering new rhythms in my day that aren’t dictated by notifications.

If you’re thinking of quitting, here’s my advice:

• Expect the inconvenience.
• Prepare for some withdrawal. It comes and (most importantly) goes.
• Give yourself permission to not replace it with another app.
• And maybe most importantly: notice what shows up when the noise goes away.

You don’t have to quit forever. But you deserve to know what your mind sounds like when it’s not scrolling.