'I'm a psychologist. This hidden phone setting kills your endless scrolling addiction.'

I'm a clinical psychologist. Most of my clinical work and research is in the area of "behavioural addictions" — gambling, pornography, sex, swiping too much on dating apps, excessive online shopping, and of course, scrolling on social media too much.

Even though I know all the tools and strategies to help people cut back on their tech use, and I'm up to date with the latest research, I still catch myself scrolling on social media more than I'd like to at times.

And there's a reason for that.

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Social media exists in an "attention economy".

It is literally designed to keep our attention, for as long as possible. Tech is intentionally "sticky," because in the digital world, our attention equals money. The more time we spend on an app, the more opportunities there are for advertisers to reach us.

Unfortunately, what's good for them and their profits, is not necessarily what's best for us.

In my clinic, I'm seeing more and more people struggling with problematic scrolling.

Sometimes it's the main reason they seek help, but often it comes up alongside issues like depression, stress, or anxiety. Many people tell me that endless scrolling leaves them feeling unfulfilled or even worse about themselves, especially when so much of what they see online is negative.

Endless scrolling can trap us in cycles of constantly absorbing new content — sometimes positive, but often negative.

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Remember the early days of social media? You'd reach the end of your feed and see a message like, "You're all caught up!" or a button that said "click to see more." That little pause was a natural circuit breaker, giving you a chance to decide if you really wanted to keep scrolling.

Nowadays, there's no such thing as "the end."

With everything happening in the world right now, social feeds are full of news about conflict, harm, and other difficult topics. If you've ever found yourself stuck in a cycle of doomscrolling, know you're not alone.

Absorbing all that negativity can really sap your mood and leave you feeling disconnected.

So, how do you know if you're doomscrolling?

Signs include losing track of time, feeling more anxious or hopeless after using social media, or struggling to put your phone down even when you want to stop.

It's worth reflecting on the difference between active and passive screen use.

Personally, I couldn't function without my phone or screens.

I couldn't even do the whole "dumb phone" trend and go back to using an old Nokia. I use my phone for so many things beyond scrolling, that I think it would make me more unhappy.

But it is important to reflect on active use of screens — like working, sending emails, engaging with friends, keep up with the news intentionally — versus passive scrolling, which happens when we wait in the café for our morning coffee, or when we are lying in bed before going to sleep.

Active screen use can actually be good for us. It can help us feel more connected, more supported and more purposeful. It's the passive use we want to try and reduce as much as possible.

If active versus passive screen use feels hard to manage on your own, then here is my number one tip for you.

Try using greyscale on your phone.

When I've used this myself, or I've given this tip to clients, they find that they naturally use their phone less without actively trying to — a huge win.

The phone is much less stimulating, exciting and addictive to the brain, when it isn't in colour. Dopamine — the neurotransmitter in the brain that's active when we scroll, and can contribute to us getting "hooked" on things — is less active when the phone is in grey, compared to when it's in colour.

I highly encourage people to set themselves the challenge of setting their phone to greyscale for a day.

See how you feel, and how long you use screens for.

Track the amount of time you spend on certain apps on your phone and compare the screen usage on days when it's in colour, versus days when it's on greyscale.

The results will surprise you.

Feature: Getty.