Lately, I had started noticing that whenever I had a free moment, I would automatically reach for my phone to check all my social media apps. I would scroll down my Facebook news feed, post or look at other pictures on Instagram, pin or repin on Pinterest, and scroll down my Twitter feed. I decided it was time to go on a digital hiatus. It was not until I began this week-long journey that I realized just how much I was addicted to my social media and how much I was on it. I learned several things from my "digital detox," as my husband put it.
The first day, I literally was tight in my chest for the first few hours from not being able to grab my phone or computer to see what was going on in the world. I laughed at myself outwardly, but inside, I was anxious. That was my first wake-up call.
Something else I noticed was how much more time I had to spend with my kids this past week. Since I work from home most days, one-on-one time with my kids is always a struggle to fit in so that they feel noticed and loved; but I noticed just how much time I allowed my digital life to interfere with my one-on-one time with my kids. I noticed too that when I thought I had a free moment to grab my phone, it was not always free. I sometimes created that "free" time so I could check my phone. Therein lied one of my biggest challenges of reprogramming myself.
My kids also seemed to pick up on the "new" mom vibe in the house. They were happier, had fewer outbursts, and were more calm. It was not a drastic change by any means, but it was a change nonetheless that had me feeling grieved for the time missed with my kids. The fact that my kids previously felt the need to act out more so they could gain my attention caused me some much-deserved pain.
If you had asked me on the first day how my week was going to go, you would have received a very negative answer. Looking back now I see that I remained more calm in my day-to-day activities than I normally would have. With house hunting, school schedules, allergies, work, and trying to sell a house, I would by no means say that I was not stressed during the week at times. However, I found that as those times came, I had one fewer distraction so that I felt a little more calm than I normally would.
Of course, all week my phone kept pushing those notifications in my face, but I would just clear them out without reading them. I did not cheat once. Really. Trust me, there were many times when I wanted to share my little bit of the world or see what was going on in other people's lives. Like when we were out house hunting and Addy just started throwing up macaroni and cheese everywhere (by the way, you can wash five times and still not get the smell out of your hands...or your hair...or your daughter's hair, arms, legs, hands..). We had to strip her down to her diaper on the side of a road by a busy intersection while trying to clean her and the car with baby wipes, and then take a thirty minute ride home with the windows rolled up because it was cold outside while trying to keep two others from also losing their lunch. Or share with the world how amazing my husband is and how fortunate we all are to spend another of his birthdays together. Or to follow what's going on in my city. There is a corruption scandal with my city's mayor. Of course his neighborhood had to be close to mine so that when I hear nothing but helicopters all afternoon flying over my house, the first thing I want to do is look at Twitter and Facebook to see what's going on...but I could not.
By the end of the week, when I had a free moment, I did not reach for my phone. I looked around me to see what I could do, who I could play with, or just relaxed. I think a digital detox week is something everyone should do once in a while, and something I will certainly do again. It is a great way to ground me back into the real world, the world that is seen in front of my face and not through a phone screen. Will I use social media again? Yes. This time, however, it won't use me.
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