I was so proud of myself the other day. I made a big decision to come off Social Media. At least to make sure I was on it a lot less, not posting, no doom scrolling. I was in fact so proud of myself, and content with this decision, I suddenly wanted to share this lightbulb moment, to let everyone know that I had made this decision. But yes, you guessed it, the irony of going onto my social media platforms to tell everyone that I was no longer going to be on social media!
So who could I tell? How could I tell them? Who was I going to run to whenever I had a revelation or a mind blowing idea?
This began the unravelling. My existential moment of thinking about “who even cares what you’re doing anyway” and I began to question why we feel the need to share our ideas or tell people our thoughts (or what we had for lunch!)
Then came the social media detox. I just decided not to go onto social media.
I realize I’m from an era that existed in a more peaceful world. A time when the brain could actually switch off without constantly being bombarded by life. We could turn the TV off, and even if we didn’t, it all stopped at night anyway! If we didn’t want to speak to anyone, then we didn’t answer the phone! I would head to the library on a Saturday to do my homework, and if there wasn’t a book with the answer I needed then I didn’t have the answer! Simple, it was all much simpler.
Now don’t get me wrong there are aspects of technology that I love! There are several apps I use regularly; Life 360 allows my daughter and I to know where we are without constantly texting “where are you?” Being a Brit I’m obsessed with the weather. so I have all places I like. or where family live on the app so I can see how everyone is fairing! I also love being able to look immediately back at my photos and videos.
However, the rest of technology can be all consuming and draining. So how do we live a life that affords us the feeling of interacting and knowing what’s going on but also being able to switch off? And why do we feel the need to share everything, how can we do all of this in a healthy way?
What can Social Media make you feel:
It can make you feel depressed because you’re constantly trying to “Keep up with the joneses”. This is from an era where it was believed everyone compared themselves with the next door neighbor or whoever lived on your street. Nowadays, we have a comparison to the whole world!
You can easily get distracted and forget what you’re doing. Hours seem to disappear when you doom scroll.
You start to question your own life, the way you live, and the choices you make
Being able to compare yourself to the whole world is not only unhealthy but impossible, in USA we are in the top 97 % of the world for wealth and how we live yet according to our day to day interaction, it’s not enough, we want more. More followers, more money, more fame, but actually what we need more of is time and energy. Which ironically can be achieved by having less.
What can Social Media be used for in a positive way:
I Live 6000 miles from friends and family, so it is a way to connect and stay connected with people all over the world.
To find jobs or make connections with people that would have been impossible in the past.
5 ways to use Social Media in a healthy and mindful way:
Navigating using it for a constructive purpose like sales or work
Learn something new
Only go on if posting something beneficial or to check messages
Only post once a week, intentionally choose what to check, be proactive not reactive.
Keep it simple by only having one social media page and one platform that works best for you. Take apps off your phone and just have it on your computer.
What I’m now going to do with my social media detox:
Instead of seeing what friends are doing online, I’m going to message them. Social media made us get lazy. It’s a badge of honor to say I haven’t seen or spoken to you in years but that’s ok I know what you’re up to, I see you online!
Instead of looking at cute videos of rescue pets online that make me feel better, I’m going to go to a dog shelter and help. Everything we do on social media can be turned into a real life practice.
I’m obsessed with anything “Italy” so instead of just looking and dreaming about going there, I’m going to plan my trip and go there… or at least begin by reading a book about it, or learning the language.
I love looking at positive quotes, so head to the library or second hand book stores and read a book about or create my own.
If I want to know what’s going on in the news then I can go and buy a newspaper. This means exercise by going for a walk, and interacting with people at the newsagent.
Already, I have many more hours in the day. I can sit in peace and quiet and meditate or do my visualization. I can be creative and write. I thought I had reduced my usage enough, but the red dots give me anxiety so I turned off my notifications. It’s a work in progress, removing myself from just looking at other people’s stuff, reducing the noise. My parasympathetic nervous system wants to feel calmer and switch out of fight or flight mode. Last week and this week I feel so much better. It’s just the beginning of me being in charge of my technology as opposed to the other way around, I’m going to keep going!
Good luck!
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