6 minute read
LIFE, UNINTERRUPTED
lifestyle
Tips for a digital detox
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WORDS JANE ZATYLNY
The term “detox” once meant abstaining from alcohol, tobacco or drugs. Today it also applies to sugar, fat, carbs and those other delightfully addictive things: our smartphones, televisions, computers, tablets and social media sites.
There are many reasons why you might want to give up or reduce the time you spend on your devices. Maybe you’d like to focus on social interactions with friends and family without the distraction of incoming texts or other messages. Maybe the 24-hour news cycle is causing stress in your life, or the struggle to keep up with the Joneses on Instagram is taking its toll.
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I had a different reason to reduce my screen time. I needed to start sleeping again. In her book, The Sleep Revolution, Huffington Post founder and sleep advocate Ariana Huffington writes, “Our houses, our bedrooms — even our beds — are littered with beeping, vibrating, flashing screens. It’s the never-ending possibility of connecting — with friends, with strangers, with the entire world, with every TV show or movie ever made — with just the press of a button that is, not surprisingly, addictive.” I’d fallen into the habit of using my phone as an alarm clock, waking to the cheery sound of chirping birds or the poetic lyrics of the late Leonard Cohen. Problem is, when I woke up in the middle of the night and checked the time on my iPhone, notifications from friends in other time zones glowed enticingly. Before I knew it, I was fully engaged with texts, emails and then, predictably, world news. Even with the rose-coloured “night shift” option toggled on, it was very hard to return to sleep.
Like you, I also use my phone to take and share pictures, listen to music, record interviews, check my flight status and make appointments. Turns out, there’s very little a phone can’t do, which of course is why we’re so addicted to these devices.
In 2018, Google researchers authored a paper about the tech “attention crisis” that surrounds us. Consider the couple on their cell phones at the next table, eating dinner together while tapping messages to other people on their phones …the throngs of people in airports, walking face down, staring into their handheld personal computers … or the half-listening friend, who scrolls through her social
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Rediscover reading a paper book and spending time where you can’t use your phone.
media feed while you’re shopping together. The researchers suggest that we are sucked into the vortex by the “fear of missing out.” But what if FOMO itself is causing us to miss out on life?
THE DIGITAL DIET PLAN There are many ways to do a digital detox, from “digital sabbaticals,” once-weekly recesses from device use, to apps — like Flipd, Cleverest, AppDetox and OFFTIME — that claim to improve digital self-control. There’s also the cold turkey method, where you put down the phone entirely for a defined number of days. For me, complete abstinence is neither practical nor desirable. But it had become clear that some sort of reduction in the time I spend on my devices was in order. It was time for a digital diet.
FACING THE MUSIC I began by turning on a setting on my phone that calculates screen time: the digital equivalent of stepping on the scales. I had a feeling it would be high, and it was: nearly four hours of screen time per day on my personal devices. I felt better when I read that the average US adult spends around 11 hours each day listening to, watching, reading or interacting with media.
SETTING A GOAL I rely on my devices to read the news. I thoroughly enjoy posting and viewing photography. I love connecting with friends at home and around the world. It’s the mindless scrolling, particularly in the middle of the night, that I need to eliminate. So I set a realistic goal: no more than 1.5 hours per day of screen time.
REMOVING TEMPTATION This next step was like removing all the goodies from the kitchen cupboards. Huffington recommends “gently escorting” all digital devices out of the bedroom, and stopping use of electronic devices 30 minutes before bed. I re-installed my clock radio next to my bed and purchased a Swatch analog watch (so far, so fun!). Then I moved my charger to the kitchen and left my iPhone there every night. Finally, I turned push notifications off on my social media and email apps.
SETTING BOUNDARIES A few days into my digital diet, I realized that it was pretty easy to set boundaries for my device use. For instance, I stopped looking at my phone during meals, when I’m spending time with friends, or when I’m hiking, shopping or just walking down the street. I catch up on news and social media posts at set times throughout the day now and I have a 45-minute limit on social media posts. I pick up the phone to call or text friends more often.
ONE WEEK LATER With my phone spending nights in the kitchen, my quality of sleep has improved enormously, and my screen time has decreased to my goal of 1.5 hours per day. My real-time social interactions have increased and, best of all, the “fear of missing out” has completely dissipated.
A FINAL WORD Whether you choose a digital fast, a one-day digital sabbatical or a digital diet, as I did, the process can initially be a bit uncomfortable. Hang in there. The rewards of choosing life uninterrupted are well worth the effort.
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