A Digital Detox
an opportunity to think and get creative
These days we are almost always connected. From the moment our phone wakes us right through until bedtime when we check our emails and social media one last time. When is the last time you enjoyed a digital detox of more than an hour or so while you have been awake?
We have become more dependent and often, addicted to our devices. Digital companies ensure that where possible, we get a dopamine hit each time we log on thereby encouraging us to stay glued to them. However, it comes at a cost. Studies are showing that social media increases anxiety and contributes to declining mental health. We are losing the ability to stay present and the ability to concentrate for longer than a few minutes. In the rush to record everything, we lose the chance to embed memories in our mind. We also move less than before.
When you are at a restaurant, it is striking to see both couples and large groups on their phones rather than engaging in each other’s company. Are we losing the ability to be present in one another’s company? Connecting with each other is a basic need, especially after Covid.
A digital detox can allow space for creativity, a chance to think and evaluate the big picture, a chance to engage our parasympathetic nervous system and relax our dopamine pathways. It is a discipline to put your phone away or move away from devices, however, the benefits can be enormous.
And I can’t finish without issuing a plea to keep devices out of the bedroom! It is far too tempting to peek at e-mails or social media one last time before bed or to have our phone be the first thing we look at when we wake. Neither is helpful for our mental health however, the electromagnetic waves that radiate from phones and devices are not helpful for a proper sleep. The brightness of the light and the type of light is a sleep disruptor!
