In 2012, election posts sometimes seemed to fill my Twitter feed. I wrote about Twitter Doghouse, a playful service that could temporarily unfollow an account and follow it again after a chosen period. It could even send a message when someone left the “doghouse”. It was a time-bound answer to a familiar feeling: the person is interesting, but their posts on this topic are too much right now.
I cannot confirm Twitter Doghouse's current availability, and its old post commands are not current instructions. The idea behind it remains relevant. You can adjust your information environment temporarily without treating every connection as an all-or-nothing decision.
Choose the least disruptive step
X offers a mute function that removes an account's posts from your feed without unfollowing or blocking. According to X, the person is not notified and you can unmute later. That resembles the aim of my old tip, but it is not an automatic timer for temporarily unfollowing.
If you want to see less of a subject, check whether your current app can mute keywords or alerts. If you no longer want to follow the person at all, unfollowing is clearer. Choose according to the problem: a few days of campaign posts, a repeated topic or a connection that is no longer relevant.
Plan your return
A temporary change works only if you review it later. Set a reminder for yourself if needed. Otherwise “temporary” can easily become permanent. My old Twitter Doghouse article was lighthearted, but its practical point matters: you can shape what you see every day without judging or publicly rejecting the people involved.