We spend a startling amount of time in front of screens—phones, TVs, tablets, laptops, the list goes on. The growth in technology in the last two decades has provided some important conveniences and distractions for the human race. We can watch TV shows and movies anywhere, engage in virtual realities, and, in particular, social networks connect us to each other in ways that were not possible before.
With so much available to us at once, it’s no wonder some people are thankful for having a childhood playing outside with buckets and sticks before technology became such a time consuming aspect of our lives.
So maybe you didn’t play with buckets and sticks as a kid, maybe your thing were slinkies. Either way, you’re getting old. A majority of kids these days are essentially born with smart phones in their hand. In fact there was an entire tag (#TodaysKidsWillNeverKnow) on Twitter and Instagram dedicated to memes that wax nostalgic on all the toys, fads and television shows older generations of kids had to occupy themselves with before cell phones evolved.
While it might seem ridiculous that anyone would seek professional help for social media addiction, these attachment issues are becoming very real. There is a growing movement of people dedicating time to look up from their device screens in order to spend time in the real world like old people had to do back in the day.
Why it’s Harming You
We often get in the habit of using our devices as crutches in awkward social situations. Standing in the middle of a crowd or waiting for a friend by yourself? In a conversation and there is a sudden long unbearable pause? Go ahead and casually pretend like you’re getting an important notification. We are so attached to them, it has become difficult not to whip out our phones whenever we feel idle or antsy while watching a movie, hanging out with friends, eating with family or on a date.
However, it isn’t just unmonitored device usage that is problematic. Think of it as more of a gateway. Along with it comes the apps that we overindulge in. Social media can often come at the detriment of your personal life, confidence levels and mental health. Trading likes for likes and creeping on other people’s half lives isn’t necessarily the best self-esteem booster.
So you’re sitting on the couch with your cat while everyone you know is out partying. Depending on what other people choose to share, their posts give off the illusion that their lives are exponentially more interesting than yours. They are more successful than you, more attractive than you, cooler than you, smarter than you. How depressing it that? You may not realize it right away but your self-worth is seemingly and suddenly tethered to how much traffic your profile draws in.
Social media is also a huge pitfall for relationships. If you value your relationships, keep your business and drama to yourself. If you are involved with someone, don’t fall into traps set by prowlers on your profile. Your DM’s and mentions better be as spotless as a boy scout’s criminal record.
Some people have the urge to share every little thing they do, even the mundane and weird. They can’t stop oversharing. Ironically, it is the oversharers that often threaten to deactivate their accounts, especially after they weave a tangled web of digital drama.
Sometimes, it is best to step back and reevaluate before continuing to post self-destructive things that make your mutuals think you have lost it. No one likes crazed emotional rants cluttering their feed.Waking up scrolling and going to bed late, squinting at your phone in the dark is also a terrible habit to nurse as well.
“By living in a connected world, our mind doesn’t get an opportunity to rest…” said Darla Bunting, 30, an education advocate from Washington D.C. She has hundreds of Facebook friends, and 1,300 Instagram and 4,000 Twitter followers. “In the digital age…we acquire a lot of information, but we lose our ability to focus.”
Ways to Cope
Starting January 1, Bunting decided to detox for an entire year. However, Bunting circumvents the role social media plays in her workplace by delegating scheduled posts, tweets and updates to her teammates.
Levi Felix founded Digital Detox as a way for people to go off the grid on a four day retreat. With a tagline like “disconnect to reconnect”, it is clear their mission is to provide rehabilitation and education to people who need to put their digital lives on pause if only for a little while. This is either someone’s idea of a great vacation or a horrid angst filled nightmare.
In a statement on their website, they make an excellent point in stating that technology has and continues to develop at a rapid and global scale. Thus, it makes it nearly impossible to create a code of behavioral ethics, social etiquette and positive habits and cultural norms to keep up with the growth. The internet is literally a lawless wasteland, a digital western frontier if you will.
So maybe an entire year or a four day hiatus are a bit much for someone, but a whole 24 hours wouldn’t kill you. The National Day of Unplugging begins the first Friday of March and lasts from sundown to sundown. The project was taken on by an organization called Reboot who based it on the religious tradition of the Sabbath. On their website you can even order a Cellphone Sleeping Bag to keep your phone snug in. Out of sight, out of mind.
Unplug: If you are serious about giving your device some breathing room here are small ways to not fall off the wagon.
1. Buy an alarm clock instead of using your phone as one so you won’t be tempted to check notifications in the morning. Notice once you open your phone you are more inclined to sit in bed scrolling as opposed to actually starting your morning routine.
2.Carry a journal with you instead of browsing on your phone at meals. If you are bored waiting somewhere doodle in your journal or write your thoughts down.
3.READ A BOOK. Wow books, do you remember those? They still exist with paper and everything.
4.Take up a hobby. Learn how to do something new. Go for a run, teach yourself how to paint, cook a meal or bake a cake. Clean your room already, it’s been a month. All of these tasks are so time consuming and exhausting you won’t bother looking at your phone or even remember that you had one in the first place.
5.Creating a no phone zone at dinner tables and when hanging out with friends is a good way to force people to stare each other in the face again without the barrier of devices.
Zhana Johnson
Senior Features Editor