Stimulus stacking: The 21st century addiction

The other day in the library, I noticed a teenage girl — probably in high school — reading a book. But she wasn’t just reading. Every few lines, she glanced at her phone and started scrolling. One moment with her book, the next with her screen. Back and forth. Paragraph, scroll. Sentence, swipe. It went on like this for quite a while.

I’m not judging her — the truth is, she’s not alone. In fact, she’s a mirror of our times. What she was doing has a name, and it’s something many of us do without even realizing: a modern addiction known as stimulus stacking.

What is stimulus stacking?

At its core, stimulus stacking is the habit of layering multiple sources of stimulation at once to maximize short-term pleasure. It’s when you binge a show while scrolling through TikTok. Or chat with friends while checking social media notifications. You’re doing more than one thing — not because you have to, but because your brain craves that rush of constant input.

Is this a dangerous addiction?

It may not land you in the hospital like smoking or drugs, but stimulus stacking is quietly eroding your ability to focus and enjoy the moment. The reality is that we’re terrible at multitasking — and deep down, we know it. As Naval Ravikant warns us:

Any moment when you’re not in that moment, you’re dead to that moment. Your mind is off doing something else or living in some imagined reality that is just a very poor substitute of the actual reality.

The supposed enjoyment we get from doing everything at once is often less than the satisfaction we’d feel from giving just one activity our full attention. Watching a movie or scrolling social media is fine. But doing both? Neither ends up truly satisfying.

I’m reminded of a Chinese proverb:

A man who chases two rabbits ends up catching none.

Entertainment is a good thing — in the right dose, at the right time. But trying to consume it all at once leaves us restless and empty. There’s a time to watch a movie. A time to be with friends. A time to read. A time to… you get the idea.

Is this one of your addictions?

So, how’s your own stimulus stacking habit? Are you in control, or is it running the show? What combinations do you find yourself doing — even though you know they don’t belong together?

I’d love to hear from you.