“On social media, we’re all plants, leaning towards the sunlight we can’t get enough of, seeking the warmth of likes, hearts, and retweets. But staying rooted and grounded is important. Being intentional about how you use social media and having your own strategy gives you time to process how it’s affecting your life and find what you may want to change.” -Tiffany Shlain - 24/6 The Power of Unplugging One Day A Week
Have you ever felt like your eyes and brain get really tired from technology use? Do you feel creatively drained, experience brain fog or get easily stuck in comparison mode? Many of us have a bad habit of consuming social media and/or having a screen on as soon as we wake up and right before we fall asleep.
About a month ago I found myself dreading the thought of even opening my laptop. I couldn’t stand the thought of opening Instagram or sending a text. I was teched-out! But when I looked at my work to-do’s or thought about my online community; they weren’t the problem. It was my overuse and consumption of screens. I’m a millennial and I run online businesses. I freaking love how connected technology has allowed us to be. I love working from wherever I have a wifi or data connection. But it was affecting my health and I knew it was time to explore this topic to find solutions.
I hope my tips and tricks will invite you to become self-aware and encourage a more mindful habit of tech consumption. It will be hard at first to adjust and break a few habits but trust me it is worth it and you will feel so much better. Most importantly don’t allow a few too many hours of mindless scrolling, Netflix binging, or TV watching to affect how you show up and how often you come to your mat to practice with us. There is a balance and I believe I’ve found a few solutions for you! It’s important because there’s a thin line between enjoying the benefits tech has brought to our lives and it negatively affecting our physical and mental health. Commit to taking deep care of yourself. That means YOU choose when screens are on and you’re consuming content instead of tech running you on autopilot! Are you with me? Let’s dive in!
Do Your Own Research
I’m reading 24/6 The Power of Unplugging One Day A Week by Tiffany Shlain and I’m sure your local library will have several books on this topic to dive into. If you’re more into watching a documentary, Netflix has a popular release called The Social Dilemma. Simply searching on Google will give you thousands of blogs, articles and videos with ideas and perspectives from tactical ideas to more scientific evidence-based research.
Downtime Settings on Apple Products
Technology is intelligently designed to make us want to use it often and for a long period of time. That’s part of the reason apps are so visually pleasing. When I have the Downtime setting enabled on my phone, the apps are all dimmed and have an hourglass symbol. I get a notification each evening at a time I’ve chosen to remind me that my “downtime” begins in 5 minutes. I use this as a signal to put my phone down for the rest of the night. I have the same setting for the morning so I can’t open my social apps until 7:00am. It helps eliminate mindless scrolling before bed and filling my mind with other people’s highlight reel as soon as I wake up.
Schedule Your Yoga Practice Ahead of Time
Since we are often using our phones and laptops to connect with our family, friends and community in a safer manner during COVID or to complete a number of tasks to make our lives simpler (like online banking, ordering groceries ahead of time, shopping, making appointments, etc); it invites us to use our abundant screen use wisely. I find it helpful to schedule my yoga classes ahead of time using the Mindbody app so I have it carved out and I can look forward to it. Mindless scrolling is not going to serve you like a yoga or meditation practice will. Both often require a screen so be mindful and choose what is healthier for you.
I find myself getting distracted on my mat somedays so I’ve made a new rule for myself to put my phone on silent during my yoga practice and set it down across the room. You are a priority; everything else can wait while you fill your cup up.
Blue Light Glasses
I bought a pair of blue light glasses over a year ago and notice a huge difference in my sleep quality and have experienced less eye strain. Because almost all of my work requires the use of a screen; my eyes can get tired quickly but wearing blue light glasses has really helped. It’s worth a try!
Create Your Own Guidelines
So where can you start? I began observing how often I grabbed for my phone or how often I had Netflix playing in the background. Do this observation exercise over a 48 hour period and write down what you noticed were your own tech habits. Then maybe you start small and try any of the above tips I’ve found helpful and build from there. Creating boundaries for yourself around your own tech use will encourage those around you to do the same or at least recognize their own usage. These little boundaries will add up. It’s incredible how quickly I started to feel the benefits of being more mindful and making intelligent choices like the above. I now have more energy, I’m sleeping better, my creative ideas are flowing regularly, I’m comparing myself less to others on social media, and have found an inner calm that I can hang onto longer throughout the day.
Here are a few more ideas!
Unplug from social media (or limit all screen use) for 24 hours once a week.
Go for a daily walk outside without your phone.
No phone for the first hour of waking up.
Plug your phone in to charge in a different room.
You can watch my short IGTV with a little more insight here.