I relate to needing social media for business, but opting out due to the constant pull of the apps. We went camping in a no-internet & phone zone for a few days, and when I returned, I knew that I was going to create this situation for myself every new moon. There's so much beautiful connection that happens when contact isn't available. The intentional ritual helps clear my head and keeps me committed to avoiding the patterned bored/tired scroll. Instead of this behavior, I am turning to audio books, lectures and films more often, and learning so much more. Thanks for being willing to write about this. I think it's necessary to share how addictive and brain-changing the apps can be.
What a great idea, Sonya. I've done this in the past with "media fasts" but I like the idea of introducing it as a ritual and cleansing. As an add-on to your note about bored/tired scroll, I have also learn we scroll when we experience stress, since our minds are primed to scanning for new information when we're feeling stressed or threatened -- a very old feature of our brain that goes back to our ancestors having many more threats on the land, or needing to stay awake at night to scan for potential danger. Thought you might like that bit!
I relate to all of this so much. I've also tried only using social media on computers, setting a schedule, deleting everything from the phone only to add it back because you can only access certain features that way (boo), keeping the 'apps phone' in my office..... glad you found a solution that works!
I had an "apps phone" when I still used a flip phone as my regular phone. (until 2021) Maybe I'll see if it'd be effective again! My issue is that I'm home almost all the time, so it's still really easy just to pick up whatever device. (Maybe this means I need to do more backcountry exploration lol)
I've been surprised at how little I care about the workhorse. Something dramatic happened psychologically when I made the switch. I only use it when I need to, and it otherwise just sits there! I don't have the willpower so I do think there is something that happened when I made the apps unavailable on the phone that I can take with me or that I use for everything else. I'll be curious to know if it works for others!
So well written, thank you!
I relate to needing social media for business, but opting out due to the constant pull of the apps. We went camping in a no-internet & phone zone for a few days, and when I returned, I knew that I was going to create this situation for myself every new moon. There's so much beautiful connection that happens when contact isn't available. The intentional ritual helps clear my head and keeps me committed to avoiding the patterned bored/tired scroll. Instead of this behavior, I am turning to audio books, lectures and films more often, and learning so much more. Thanks for being willing to write about this. I think it's necessary to share how addictive and brain-changing the apps can be.
What a great idea, Sonya. I've done this in the past with "media fasts" but I like the idea of introducing it as a ritual and cleansing. As an add-on to your note about bored/tired scroll, I have also learn we scroll when we experience stress, since our minds are primed to scanning for new information when we're feeling stressed or threatened -- a very old feature of our brain that goes back to our ancestors having many more threats on the land, or needing to stay awake at night to scan for potential danger. Thought you might like that bit!
I relate to all of this so much. I've also tried only using social media on computers, setting a schedule, deleting everything from the phone only to add it back because you can only access certain features that way (boo), keeping the 'apps phone' in my office..... glad you found a solution that works!
Thanks, Heidi. So you've tried an apps phone too?
I had an "apps phone" when I still used a flip phone as my regular phone. (until 2021) Maybe I'll see if it'd be effective again! My issue is that I'm home almost all the time, so it's still really easy just to pick up whatever device. (Maybe this means I need to do more backcountry exploration lol)
I've been surprised at how little I care about the workhorse. Something dramatic happened psychologically when I made the switch. I only use it when I need to, and it otherwise just sits there! I don't have the willpower so I do think there is something that happened when I made the apps unavailable on the phone that I can take with me or that I use for everything else. I'll be curious to know if it works for others!
Ha...nice work, M. I hope you don't even read this post....