I spend hours a day staring at my touchscreen device. I admit to doing it when I’m having a conversation with someone, when I should be studying, every morning when I wake up, and even when I’m at red lights in traffic. I like to know what is going on.
Recently, I was diagnosed with anxiety, a mental disorder causing me to constantly worry about every little detail. I wanted to quit social media to allow myself to be removed from all the information out there. So to help find my peace, I didn’t log onto Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, or Snapchat for one week..
Since the foundation of Facebook in 2004, over 1.2 billion Facebook accounts have been made, meaning that about one out of seven people on the planet have signed up for an account. When you log into Facebook, you’re connected to the site with the friends you have added. I can click the home button and I know where my sister went to lunch or about the yoga class my best friend went to last night.
Within the first few hours without social networking, I was showing signs of withdrawal. I sat staring at my phone with nothing to do. I felt an emptiness on my home screen. I began to worry in the absence of the red notifications on my phone and felt like I was missing out on things my family and friends were posting. I felt useless in certain relationships because I couldn’t like my friends posts to show my support. If I wanted to do things and talk to people, I had to reach out to let them know about my life. All I wanted was to re-download the apps.
The first thing I noticed to change in my physical life was how long my phone battery lasted. Before the social media cleanse I was charging my phone two to three times a day, where now it could last all day and still have battery life. A daily ritual for me when I wake up in the morning is to check up on everything I missed overnight, but when I lost the social apps, I just rolled out of bed when I woke up.
I spent less time looking down at my phone walking to classes and at meals, which resulted in higher quality conversations. I never realized how little I actually listened to people when I was busy sending Snapchats on my phone. When I was with other people while they were on their phones, I felt annoyed about how little they seemed to care about what I was saying. The world of social networking sites provide a whole other world for people to escape being present. What was even worse was when conversations were all about something that happened on Instagram and I had no idea what was being discussed.
After a couple days, my mind was no longer in the mindset of how I can turn an experience into a good post for likes, but rather in the mindset of how I can make the most of an experience for myself.
During the week, I had more free time, which I used in very productive ways. I cleaned my room, updated my computer, wrote emails. I did all things I had been putting off. I caught up on sleep and got a head start on my homework. My routine without social media looked completely different, and I wasted much less time. A quote by Jarod Kintz states, “It’s what you do in your free time that will set you free–or enslave you.” I have begun to wonder if society is a slave to social media sites.
In the last few days, although I still used my phone for texts and phone calls, the device was nearly useless. It spent a great deal of time in my pocket for the week, if not left in my dorm.
Abstaining from social media for one week was not easy. In fact, it may have been one of the most difficult things I have done in my life. I believe I really got a feel of what it is like to quit an addiction. I felt very alone and that no one could understand what I was going through.
I challenge all of you social media addicts to take a break from the screens. Unplug for a couple hours, days, or a week and see what changes. I promise you that the experience is life-altering, and you will learn something new about yourself.
