Unplug From Your Phone for Your Health
Our digital lives are more convenient than ever. We have access to information and communication tools that were once unimaginable. Still, being connected all the time has serious drawbacks. Here are 10 benefits of a digital detox and 10 tips to be successful.
1. Reduce Stress
The constant parade of notifications for texts, posts, and breaking news is stressful and exhausting. It also keeps our brains in an unhealthy state of alertness. A digital detox can reduce these triggers and help you feel calmer.
2. Better Quality of Sleep
We stay up late to doomscroll, or we check our notifications if we wake up in the night, or our phones are the first thing we reach for in the morning. Being connected to the digital world harms our sleep routines, so detox and enjoy consistently better rest that will improve your life.
3. Improved Focus
Your phone constantly interrupts and distracts you, reducing your ability to focus. Stepping away from your screen can help restore your attention span over time, and you'll be able to complete tasks with greater efficiency.
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4. Improved Productivity
Whether it's in our personal or professional lives, we can't be our most productive selves if we're constantly on our phones. Unplugging from our phones and social media will increase our productivity and help us meet deadlines and excel at work.
5. Stronger Relationships
A digital detox forces us to build relationships in the real world and develop our social skills, and not rely on emojis to convey our feelings. Having more meaningful relationships is a true benefit of a digital detox.
6. Greater Creativity
Our phones hinder our creativity because it bombards our brains with a non-stop stream of content that distracts us. A digital detox can help you creatively explore ideas without distraction, and become a better problem-solver.
7. Healthier Posture
Extended screen time can result in bad posture and pain. A detox promotes posture awareness and can encourage you to move more and not sit around texting.
8. Improved Self-Esteem
Social media can make us feel like we're missing out and that we're not good enough. By taking a break, your self-esteem will increase and you'll stop feeling the need to compare yourself to others. You might also realize that the lives you watch online are curated, and yours has a ton of value.
9. A More Active Lifestyle
Our devices take up a lot of our free time. By detoxing, you'll be motivated to go outside more and get some much-needed exercises. A simple 30-minute walk a day instead of TikTok can do wonders.
10. Less Eye Strain
Staring a different-sized screens for hours every day is bad for our eyes, and can lead to vision problems. The equation is simple: less screen time will help our eyes become less strained.
1. Set Clear Goals
Before starting your digital detox, define what you hope to achieve. Common goals of these kinds of detoxes is more family time, less stress, or more restful sleep.
2. Start Slow and Small
Don't start your detox by having a full-day without your phone or social media. It won't work. Instead, start with an hour without anyhing digital for the first week, and build up from there. Gradual steps will help you ahcieve your goals.
3. Adopt Phone-Free Zones
To ensure your detox is successful, you should designate rooms in your home as device-free spaces. Your bedroom and the room where you eat can encourage you to be more present and foster connection and communication.
4. Turn Off Notifications
Did you even know you could turn off our notifications? It might feel weird, but disabling the alerts on your phone can help you get through a detox. Start by disabling the unimportant alerts and then work your way up to all of them.
5. Replace Screen Time with Fun Activities
Replace the unhealthy activity of scrolling through TikTok with a run around the block, reading, or even having a drink with friends. Substitution detox has proven to work better than the cold turkey method. Just make sure that your replacement activities are ones that you enjoy.
6. Embrace Analog Alternatives
Replace your phone and tablet with books, notebooks, and paper maps. It's a lot of fun, and also helps reduce your reliance on your devices and reduces your screen time. Journaling with a pen and notebook is a very healthy way to get through a device-free period.
7. Tell Your Inner Circle
By telling your friends and family about your detox, you will feel more accountable to stick with it. The last thing you want is to have your mom asking you how your detox is going when you quit two weeks earlier. Also, you could inspire others to take a page from your book and try their own.
8. Keep Devices Out of Reach
Keeping your devices in the family room while you're eating dinner, or downstairs while you're sleeping, will help you minimize temptation and complete your detox. Remember, it's out of sight, out of mind.
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9. Use Apps
This might sound counterintuitive, but apps like Screen Time and Freedom can help reduce your reliance on technology. This tip is best used after a few failed attempts at a detox.
10. Embrace "Digital Sabbaths"
This approach is to designate one full day a week to completely unplug from your devices and the internet. This tip will help you create a ritual that prioritizes rest and self-care, and will create a weekly opportunity to spend time with friends and family.
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