Disconnect// Digital Detox

After waking up, opening my eyes, and immediately grabbing my phone to check all social media sites (for countless days in a row)...I decided I needed a break from it. Do not get me wrong, as you can probably tell, I am a huge Instagram lover, obsesser, and avid-user. It was just getting a bit overwhelming. My mom and I had a intriguing conversation talking about comparisons, the image people display over media, and the point of it all-will social media sites ever get old?

So, a little over a week ago, I took to an experiment and deleted it all off of my phone. Twitter, Pinterest, Tumblr, Facebook, Snapchat, and yes, Instagram. At first, I didn't quite know what to do when I would just pick up my phone out of habit. Then I realized, I was literally picking up and looking at my phone when I had any free second whatsoever. Here's what else went down on my little digital detox. 

Without the distractions of social media on my iPhone, I left my phone at home way more often when going out with family because I knew there was nothing on it I needed. It was nice to truly not be distracted and be in the present moment all of the time. 

In a strange way, I felt less pressure to take a "perfect" photo when I went somewhere. Although, I still took photos because that's just something I love to do! 

My head became more clear. I woke up each morning with a fresh mind and set my intentions for the day. I felt happier because the first thing I was doing in the morning was based upon my life, not instantly looking at photos of the best part of other people's lives and subconsciously comparing it to my own. 

And what I thought would be challenging about doing this, seemed to have the opposite effect. I didn't miss social media. The goal was to not go on any of it for at least a week...while I ended up leaving it off of my phone for even a few days longer. It's pretty unnecessary and a bit silly when you really think about social media and what it's become.... but in other ways social media sites are super freaking awesome, creative, and an amazing way to connect (yes, that was a pretty big contradiction.) 

So, I learned that yes people do share the best parts of their lives. Everybody does! When we have a good time or take a cool picture we want others to see it- but just remember that a person's life is not perfect and a lot of the times things aren't as they seem. Use social media in moderation! Set a limit for yourself to check it, say, once a day, once a week. There's really no need to check three times an hour or whenever you're feeling the slightest bit bored (it's not goin' anywhere). Read a book instead. Watch the news. Write in a journal. Doodle. Go walking. Think about your future plans. Live in the moment. Get creative. 

I personally only put Instagram back on my phone and am trying to only check it once a day. 

I challenge you to delete the social media off of your phone for at least a week. See what happens and how it personally effects you! & I'd love to hear as well. 

There's an article on a rad website-Greatist-about a woman who "unplugs" every Saturday. Here's the link to check it out. http://greatist.com/connect/tiffany-shlain-technology-shabbat Greatist also has other digital detox articles if you're interested!

Thank you for reading, and I hope you live each day this week full of positivity and kindness!