We’ve all been there. You’re sitting on your couch, scrolling through a feed that feels more like a chore than a hobby, or looking at a grocery receipt that looks like a car payment, and you wonder: When did it all go wrong? It's a heavy question. It’s also one that millions of people are typing into search engines right now. They aren't just looking for a date on a calendar. They’re looking for a reason why the world feels a bit more "broken" than it used to.
Maybe it was a specific cultural shift. Or maybe a series of tiny, invisible dominos that finally fell over.
The Digital Tether and the Death of "Away"
If you ask a sociologist, they might point to 2007. That’s the year the iPhone launched. It sounds cliché, but honestly, that’s when the barrier between "work life" and "real life" evaporated. Before then, if you left the office, you were gone. You were unreachable unless you were sitting by a landline or carrying a clunky pager.
Then, suddenly, the office lived in your pocket.
We transitioned from a society that used the internet to a society that lives inside it. This is a massive distinction. According to data from the Pew Research Center, the percentage of Americans who say they are online "almost constantly" has soared over the last decade. It’s not just about being busy. It’s about the cognitive load of never being truly alone with your thoughts. When we ask when did it all go wrong for our mental health, the answer is often found in that transition from "connected" to "tethered."
The constant ping of notifications creates a state of "continuous partial attention." We’re never 100% anywhere. You're at dinner, but you're checking Slack. You're at your kid's soccer game, but you're looking at a stranger's vacation photos on Instagram. It’s exhausting. It’s a low-grade fever of the soul that we’ve just accepted as the new normal.
The Great Decoupling: Why Your Paycheck Feels Smaller
Let's talk about money. Because usually, when people ask when did it all go wrong, they’re looking at their bank account. There is a specific chart that economists call "The Great Decoupling."
Up until the early 1970s, productivity and wages grew in lockstep. If workers produced more, they got paid more. It was a simple, fair deal. But around 1971, those two lines on the graph diverged. Productivity kept climbing—thanks to technology and harder work—but inflation-adjusted wages basically flatlined.
- The 1950s/60s: Productivity and hourly compensation both grew by about 90%.
- Post-1971: Productivity grew by another 60%, while pay only nudged up about 15%.
Why 1971? Some point to the end of the gold standard (the "Nixon Shock"). Others point to the decline of unions or the rise of "shareholder primacy"—the idea that a company’s only job is to make stock prices go up, even if it means squeezing the employees.
The result? You’re working harder than your parents did, but you’re likely struggling more to buy a house or pay for college. It’s not your imagination. The system actually did change its internal math. When we look at the economic "wrong turn," this is the smoking gun. It’s why a "middle-class life" feels like a luxury item in 2026.
The Algorithm and the End of Shared Reality
Then there’s the social fabric. Remember when we all watched the same news? Or at least, we all argued about the same set of facts?
Enter the algorithmic feed.
Somewhere around 2012, social media platforms shifted from chronological feeds (showing you what happened, as it happened) to algorithmic feeds (showing you what will keep you clicking). This changed everything. It created "echo chambers" that aren't just a buzzword—they are a psychological reality.
If you think the world is ending, the algorithm will feed you evidence. If you think everything is fine, it will show you that, too. We no longer share a "town square." We live in digital bunkers, throwing rocks at each other through the windows. Tristan Harris, a former design ethicist at Google and co-founder of the Center for Humane Technology, has spoken extensively about how these platforms are literally "downgrading" our humanity to sell ads. They’ve figured out that outrage is the most profitable emotion.
The Loneliness Epidemic
U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy has been sounding the alarm on something called the "Loneliness Epidemic" for years. It sounds dramatic. It is.
In 2023, his office released a report stating that loneliness can be as deadly as smoking 15 cigarettes a day. How did we get here? We traded "third places"—the cafes, libraries, and social clubs where people used to hang out for free—for digital interaction. We replaced "hanging out" with "engaging."
It’s efficient, sure. But it’s hollow.
Humans aren't built for digital-only connection. We need the micro-expressions, the shared silence, and the physical presence of others. When we ask when did it all go wrong for our communities, it's often the moment we decided that "convenience" was more important than "presence." We chose the DoorDash delivery over the restaurant seat, the Zoom call over the coffee date, and the "Like" button over the phone call.
The Illusion of Perfection
Let’s be honest about the "Lifestyle" aspect of this. We are the first generation of humans who compare our "behind-the-scenes" footage with everyone else’s "highlight reel."
Before the internet, you only knew if your neighbor got a new car or if your cousin went to Hawaii. Now, you are bombarded with the curated, filtered, and often fake lives of thousands of people every single day. It creates a "status anxiety" that is impossible to satisfy.
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You’re not just competing with the guy next door; you’re competing with a billionaire in Dubai and a fitness influencer in LA who doesn’t even eat the food they photograph. It makes us feel like we’re failing at a game that isn’t even real.
Is There a Way Back?
So, if we know when it all went wrong, can we fix it?
You can't change the global economy or delete the internet. But you can change your "surface area" to these problems. It’s about intentionality. It's about realizing that the world is designed to keep you distracted, broke, and slightly annoyed because those states are profitable for someone else.
The "fix" isn't a grand revolution. It’s a series of small, almost rebellious acts of normalcy.
Actionable Steps to Reset
Instead of wallowing in the "when did it all go wrong" mindset, try these specific shifts to reclaim some of that lost ground.
1. Reclaim Your Attention
Turn off every notification that isn't from a real human being. You don't need to know that a brand is having a 20% off sale or that someone you haven't spoken to since high school posted a story. Use "Do Not Disturb" like your life depends on it. Because your focus actually does.
2. Seek "Third Places"
Commit to being a "regular" somewhere. A coffee shop, a park, a local bookstore, or a hobby group. Physical presence in a space where you aren't "productive" is a radical act in 2026. It breaks the digital spell.
3. The 24-Hour News Rule
Stop checking the news every hour. If something truly world-changing happens, you will hear about it. Constantly checking headlines only feeds the "outrage machine" that the algorithms love. Check in once a day, or better yet, once a week via a long-form periodical.
4. Opt for "Slow" over "Fast"
Whenever possible, choose the less efficient option. Write a letter. Walk instead of driving. Cook a meal from scratch. The "wrongness" of the modern world is often tied to an obsession with speed. Slowing down is how you opt-out of the madness.
5. Audit Your "Comparison" Points
Unfollow anyone who makes you feel "less than." Even if they are inspiring, if their content leaves you feeling like your life is a mess, they are toxic to your psyche. Curate your feed to reflect reality, not a polished fantasy.
The world might have taken some weird turns since 1971 or 2007, but you aren't a passenger. You can still choose how much of the "wrong" you let into your daily life. It starts with putting the phone down and looking at the actual room you're sitting in. That's the only place where things can actually go right.