Phase 3 of 5
Days 19–26 · 8 days
Relapse, why, delete
Slip, understand, decide.
Most people slip back. That is stage three, not the end. Find your own why, then decide: a long break or delete for good. Both are valid.
“Initially it feels good to be free but the dopamine hits and social pull, pulls you back in the digital grind.”
In this phase you will
- Treat a slip as a lapse, not a restart from zero
- Write your why and two if-then plans
- Choose a long break or deletion, knowing the tricks
What the research says
Missing one day did not undo habit formation in Lally's study. Specific if-then plans have a medium-to-large effect on following through.
- Lally et al. 2010, EJSPEvidence: Moderate
- Gollwitzer & Sheeran 2006Evidence: Strong