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A busy mother has decided to stop using Instagram after accumulating seven hours of screen time each day.
Kassadi Gabriel, 29, frequently found herself reaching for her phone to add items to her grocery list, only to end up scrolling through various social media platforms instead.
The mother now dedicates more time to connecting with her children instead of scrollingCredit: SWNS
The mother would often grab her phone to add something to her shopping list, only to find herself scrolling through InstagramCredit: SWNS
Kassadi Gabriel has activated “landline mode” on her phone to combat her seven-hour-a-day scrolling habitCredit: SWNS
She found Monday mornings particularly challenging with her three-year-old son and realized she needed to prioritize her relationship with him to "reset for the week."
Kassadi recognized that her phone was a distraction and decided to activate “landline mode” on Monday mornings. She created a custom setting that only allows calls and texts to come through loudly while blocking other notifications.
Now, she makes it a point to leave her phone on the kitchen counter instead of carrying it around.
Kassadi has also established a rule not to use her phone when her son is home from school until his bedtime at 8 PM.
The mother claims this change has made her a “better” parent, allowing her to feel more “present” and “patient” with her children.
On Friday, October 10, the Princess of Wales remarked that screens contribute to “an epidemic of disconnection” within families.
Kassadi, a stay-at-home mom from Denver, stated, “I was doing a lot of unintentional scrolling.”
“My screen time was seven hours a day—it’s embarrassing to admit. It was interfering with my life and caring for my kids.”
“I feel like a better parent. I feel more present, more patient—not snappy,” she expressed.
Kassadi, who also has a seven-month-old daughter, always found Monday mornings difficult as she tried to establish a “normal routine” for her family after the weekend. Her husband, Blake, 30, returns to work as an attorney, leaving Kassadi to manage the children alone for the day.
She said, “I realized how important it was to prioritize my connection with my son on Mondays. My phone was hindering that.”
Kassadi noted that she wasn't addicted to her phone, but her usage had become “habitual.”
She explained, “I’d reach for my phone to add apples to the grocery list, and then suddenly, I was on Instagram.”
“I was carrying my phone around with me ‘just in case.’”
“It became a habit. I was on autopilot—unaware that I was doing it.”
She discussed this issue with friends, and they talked about how some individuals were returning to landlines, which sparked an idea for Kassadi in June 2025.
“If I’m scrolling now, I want to do it because I’m consciously choosing to.”
She thought, “Could I turn it into a dumb phone?”
“It began with me ignoring my phone.”
Kassadi then discovered she could create a custom mode, which she named ‘landline mode.’ Now, she leaves her phone in one location—on her kitchen counter—set to loud, just like a landline would be.
She also established a boundary of not using screens when her son is home from school.
She utilizes a device called Brick, which temporarily removes apps and notifications from her phone.
This has reduced her screen time to four to five hours daily, allowing her to connect more with her son, who she says now appears “calmer.”
“I’m able to respond more calmly and patiently from the start. I can do more activities with him that I wanted to do.”
“We bake more often and do arts and crafts. I’m no longer preoccupied with what I might be missing out on.”
Kassadi admitted that she initially missed being on her phone.
She said, “At first, I felt like I was missing out on social media. It was a gradual adjustment.”
Kassadi still spends time on social media, but not while she’s with her son, and only when she’s “
