Digital Detox

This weekend, as part of my ‘new me’ challenge for lent, (which really isn’t going very well, the squat challenge is taking up far too much time now); I decided to do the digital detox.

I entered into the detox with trepidation.  My phone is glued to my side at the best of times.  I am constantly checking Facebook and emails, answering whatsapp.  I have noted that I check instagram at least once a day, whilst reading twitter on average twice a day – All through my phone.  Ignoring my laptop wouldn’t be such an inconvenience, but what would I do whilst I am waiting in a queue in the shops?  Or sat in Starbucks whilst my daughter is having a nap?  My husband Ian on the other hand, is always complaining about me being on my phone.  Would it make any difference to us?

The only way for me to figure this out would be to live it.  My laptop was hidden away by my husband, and my phone and two iPads locked in the safe.  It was a far cry from the Digital Detox  available in the UK, where you leave your electrical equipment at the door.

 The first half of the day was a breeze as I had so much to do, but I really felt it when I had to get in touch with my husband later in the day to discuss the event we were going to that afternoon.  What did people used to do all those years ago?  I have had a mobile phone since I was 17 so not being able to whip it out and make that call to find out that bit of information immediately feels alien.  Later that evening, when I wanted to get the number for the Chinese to be delivered, I absentmindedly started looking for my phone, even asking my husband if he had seen it (he just laughed loudly and said, “Safe.”).

Considering I am reading Pride and Prejudice at the moment (on kindle, so I had nothing to read either this weekend), it did get me to thinking about their reliance of mail and how we have moved on, and how much smaller the world is now because of it.  Is it for the better?  Back then, women used to worry about marrying well, but on the whole, certainly Jane and Lizzie had a calm unstressed life in comparison to women today.  Is this because with the advent of technology we are forced to work around the clock and be at everyone’s beck and call because there really is no excuse not to be, “I haven’t been able to get hold of you all week!” exclaimed my friend Kerry Ann on Sunday morning.  “I phoned, text, whatsapp’d you and have even PM’d you on Facebook.  Nothing.  I thought something had happened!”  You see, this is the problem that people are facing nowadays.  With so many different methods of getting your attention, there really is no excuse to not be able to get hold of people.

On top of this, you then have the selfie culture.   This is not something that I subscribe to, so I wasn’t having palpitations at being away from a camera, but everywhere you go, people are snap happy, taking photos of themselves and immediately uploading them to all of their social media sites.  How would they react to this situation?  This trend is worrying, especially when you take into account the likes of Danny Bowman, the 19-year-old selfie taker from the UK who attempted suicide after being so obsessed with selfie taking.  Dr. Karrie Lager, a child psychologist practicing in Los Angeles told the Huffington Post, “In moderation, social media is a great way for people to connect with others and express themselves.  However excessive internet use can have series negative consequences.”  The danger Lager could see is that the constant bombardment that teens have to alcohol, drugs, other people’s lifestyle and glamorous, thin people are warping their views of society in general, as well as their views of themselves.  Not to mention that those addicted to selfie taking feel depressed if they don’t get enough ‘likes’ for the photo of them that they have just posted.  Their taking it personally, can lead to bigger issues such as depression.

I have to admit; the first 24 hours made me feel like I had lost my left arm.  It felt so strange not to have a device sat in the palm of my hand.  Not to mention the fact that there were a couple of times that I would have recorded a video of my daughter so I could email it to my family in the states and the UK.

The second day Ian, after realising that he had several messages asking him where I was on FB, thought it best to post a message to let everyone know.  The day passed in a blur of too-much-to-do, but I did feel a great relief on Sunday morning when I got my phone back.  I was beginning to worry about being out of contact in case of emergencies.  Also I noticed that in the evenings, when I would have been on my phone reading my guilty pleasure the Daily Mail while Ian sat next to me complaining, was actually the time when he was sat on the sofa with his eyes glued to his phone.  Ultimately, this is not an experience that I want to repeat in a hurry.