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This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at UFL chapter.

A wonderful quote I’m constantly thinking about is, “Comparison is the thief of joy” and “Don’t compare your chapter 5 to someone else’s chapter 25.” These quotes come to mind when I think about scrolling through the TikTok algorithm as a young woman in society. As college students, it’s safe to say a lot of us are on TikTok. The algorithm is constantly showing you other people’s highlight reels, and it can get toxic after a while, which is why I wanted to give life with no TikTok a shot. What sparked the idea for this article was the recent SNL sketch that came out a few days ago about the TikTok algorithm and how ridiculous and time-consuming it is. I also listened to an incredible podcast episode by the one and only Emma Chamberlain about how spending two weeks with no TikTok completely changed her life (and look at her now – she’s interviewing celebrities at the Met!). This gave me the idea to delete the app for a few weeks and see how my life changed. Spoiler alert: this has been the best four weeks I’ve had in months! Here are a few almost immediate life improvements I noticed after deleting the app: 

  1. Your sleep will improve. 

One of the main reasons I wanted to delete TikTok was because of the ways it was affecting my sleep habits. Right before I went to sleep each night, I would open TikTok to check it for a few minutes, and then by the time I realized it, two hours had gone by, and it was 1 am!! This is particularly inconvenient when you have to wake up super early the next morning. The hour of scrolling I spent on TikTok could’ve been spent sleeping, so I could feel refreshed the next day.

  1. You’ll get back into your actual hobbies. 

The first few days of deleting TikTok will feel strange, and you’ll likely search for the app out of habit, but then you’ll slowly replace your TikTok scrolling with other, less detrimental apps and even start to do things that bring you joy, like your hobbies. Two of my favorite hobbies are cooking and reading, and after deleting TikTok, I spend much more time doing them. I’m now signed up for a 5k race in three weeks and have finally gotten around to making that viral green pasta dish I’ve been wanting to try!

  1. Your mood will improve.

The first 10-20 minutes spent scrolling on TikTok feel amazing. The algorithm is probably serving you funny, engaging, helpful, and relevant content. After the 20-minute mark, you start scrolling through rabbit holes, and then the next thing you know, two hours have gone by. The algorithm also starts to know your goals and desires, so it, in turn, shows you people living extravagant “perfect” lives. Deleting TikTok stops you from constantly being shown everyone else’s highlight reel, so you can focus more on yours. Focusing on yourself and what your true desires are fuels your purpose. Instead of spending the time before bed comparing myself to others, I spend it reading quality books that interest me. 

  1. You’ll feel more organized. 

With more hours back in your day, you have more time to get organized and think through what you need to do for the day or the week. I’ve also noticed my routine is back, and I have more time to actually make a healthy breakfast in the morning and slowly ease into the day. 

Ultimately, I’ll probably keep TikTok deleted for the rest of the semester. The way my life has drastically improved has been wonderful. If you’ve been considering deleting TikTok for a bit, let this be your sign!

Allison Jimenez is a University of Florida graduate student majoring in Mass Communication. With an undergraduate degree in Advertising and Public Relations, Allison loves all things creative writing. She currently serves as Senior Copywriter at The Agency, and completed an internship at NBCUniversal as a creative copywriter in the corporate communications department this Summer.