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Help! I Need Off This Horrible Group Text Message Chain!

Here, the tactful way to do it

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Your aunt Sheila really wants to nail down what everyone is bringing for Thanksgiving. But now you’ve got 39 unread text messages from 11 different people. Here, how to exit the conversation without causing a big scene.

What you need: An iPhone (one that’s running iOS 8 or higher)

What you do: Click on that impressively long group-text-message stream and tap the “Details” button in the upper-right-hand corner. Scroll down and hit “Leave This Conversation.” You’re out. (Note: There have to be 4+ people in the chain for it to qualify as a group.)

But what if I want to read all the texts later? There’s another option. Under “Details,” you can toggle on “Do Not Disturb.” This will mute the back-and-forth text notifications but give you a chance to catch up on who’s bringing what later.

So? Tell Sheila you’re bringing mashed potatoes, then peace the hell out.


Rachel Bowie Headshot

Royal family expert, a cappella alum, mom

Rachel Bowie is Senior Director of Special Projects & Royals at PureWow, where she covers parenting, fashion, wellness and money in addition to overseeing initiatives within...