Somewhere between the endless scroll of TikTok, the bite-sized hot takes on Twitter/X, and the rapid-fire carousel of Instagram Reels, we forgot what it meant to sit down and watch something. Not skim, not scroll, not swipe away after five seconds watch. Our attention spans, sharpened into slivers by the dopamine hit of short-form videos, have been struggling to stretch. But recently, I’ve been experiencing something unexpected: the quiet joy of going back to long-form entertainment.

I’m talking about YouTube vlogs that unfold like diary entries, fragrance and book reviews that run twenty minutes long, fashion hauls where you actually see the clothes styled multiple ways, and even sitting through a full-length documentary on Netflix or Disney+. It feels almost rebellious in a culture that demands quick, endless consumption.

The Doom Scroll Fatigue

There’s a unique exhaustion that comes with doom scrolling. You open TikTok or Instagram, telling yourself, just five minutes, and suddenly you’re an hour deep into contradictory “For You” content: finance tips, celebrity gossip, skincare hacks, political commentary – all layered with conflicting opinions and voices. It’s overstimulation disguised as leisure.

That fatigue has been creeping into my daily life. My brain wasn’t resting; it was ricocheting between endless perspectives, snippets of arguments, and bite-sized humour. And while I still adore TikTok, it’s a playground of creativity and cultural conversation, I realised I wasn’t even allowing myself to enjoy it fully. I’d scroll past a video after two seconds, never letting the story unfold. My attention span was fraying.

YouTube: A Return to Control

Then, almost instinctively, I returned to YouTube.

What struck me immediately was the sense of control. Unlike TikTok’s algorithm-driven chaos, YouTube allows me to choose my entertainment. If I want to watch a 40-minute fragrance review where a creator dissects the nuances of iris or oud, I can. If I want to spend an afternoon watching book reviewers debate Colleen Hoover or analyze the prose of Ayọ̀bámi Adébáyọ̀, I can. If I want to indulge in a luxury fashion haul where the stylist actually explains fabric, tailoring, and longevity rather than tossing an outfit on for three seconds, I can.

This control feels liberating. I am deciding what my evening looks like, not an algorithm with its opaque logic.

The Ritual of Watching Again

There’s also something soothing about returning to the ritual of long-form viewing. When I sit down to watch a documentary, be it a crime series on Netflix, a cultural deep dive on Amazon Prime, or a beautifully shot BBC history special, I now put my phone away. The rule is simple: one screen at a time.

The difference is staggering. Instead of half-watching, half-scrolling, I’m immersed. I catch details I would have missed: a narrator’s subtle humor, the way a director frames a shot, the rhythm of a scene building toward an emotional peak. Even in lighter content, like lifestyle vlogs or “day in my life” videos, I find myself feeling more present, more calm, more connected.

Reclaiming Attention Span

This experiment has also reshaped my relationship with short-form content. I’m no longer flitting away after three seconds on TikTok. Now, when a video pops up, I watch it all the way through. I let the punchline land, the tutorial finish, the thought be completed. I’m not just scrolling for noise; I’m consuming with intention.

It’s not about abandoning TikTok, it remains one of the most exciting cultural platforms we have but about reshaping the way I engage. Instead of being consumed by the content, I’m consuming it consciously.

Back to Basics, Forward to Joy

In many ways, this feels like a return to basics: reading a book without checking my phone, listening to a full podcast episode, sitting down for a film without pausing to scroll. But in another sense, it feels radical. In an era where multitasking is worshipped, reclaiming your attention is an act of self-care.

And it’s not just about attention, it’s about joy. Joy in discovering a creator’s world over 30 minutes, joy in revisiting the long-form culture that once shaped us, joy in knowing that not everything has to be fast, loud, and fleeting.

So, consider this your gentle nudge: pick one long video tonight. A vlog. A review. A documentary. Whatever sparks your curiosity. Put your phone aside, sit with it, and let yourself watch. You’ll be surprised how much peace you find in giving your attention back to yourself.

Because in reclaiming old habits, we’re reclaiming something bigger, our ability to focus, to choose, and to enjoy.