Admit it or not, most of us have become smartphone addicts. We can’t start our day without checking on our phones and can’t even sleep without them. Most of us spend hours staring at these small screens, which has become an integral part of our lives.
Scrolling endlessly as chunks of time pass by without you noticing it? According to research, you are amongst the 61% of people addicted to the internet and digital screens. Note that this addiction affects your quality of life and can be devastating for your senses.
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Digital Detox
If you’ve started consuming digital content excessively, its time to take a break from social media or apps that you eat up your time. The best favour you can give to yourself for better mental and physical health is to stay away from screens – as much as you can.
This is what Digital Detox is and it can be your saviour. Simply saying, it is the period during which you lower the time spent on digital screens. The best way to digitally detox yourself is to take a complete break or disconnect yourself from devices for some time.
Why Do You Need a Digital Detox?
The simple answer to this question is that it rewires your brain and has numerous benefits, like enhanced productivity, strong relationships with people around you, and lowered stress levels.
According to a study, 25% of smartphone users between 18 and 44 don’t remember the last time their phone was away from them. Staying online every time and consuming too much digital content can lead to:
- Lower self-esteem
- Insomnia
- Stress, Depression, Anxiety
- Self-image issues
- Weight gain
- Blurry eyesight
- No physical activity
- Unhealthy diet
- Work ethic problems
- No time management
- Lack of confidence
Experts have also found that excessive smartphone use causes changes to your brain functioning negatively. With each scroll or swipe, dopamine is sent to areas of the brain that respond to addictive stuff or drugs like cocaine.
Benefits of Digital Detox
Unplugging from electronic devices for a certain period or breaking the habit of using them excessively is a lifesaver. Technology overuse comes with severe consequences. It disrupts our mental condition and results in disastrous physical health.
Researchers have found that digital detox improves the quality of life. It helps uncuff us and escape the sweet trap of healing from the harm inflicted by digital screens. Detoxing digitally comes with numerous benefits. Some of these are explained below.
Lowers stress and anxiety.
Taking a break from the digital world helps to calm down your nerves. You feel content about yourself and your life. Multiple social experiments prove that taking a break or even lowering the use of digital devices helps lower stress levels.
You feel more satisfied. You can better focus on your present, your productivity increases, and you pay attention to things around you.
Your benefit from enhanced productivity
Consuming time on social media, playing online games and streaming videos, etc, or surfing the internet takes a lot of your time. For instance, if you spend four or five hours using a smartphone in unproductive activities like scrolling, listening to music, liking, or commenting, etc., it eats up a good chunk of your time.
This time could’ve been spent much better, like learning a new skill, talking or spending time with your immediate family, or fulfilling your responsibilities. Lowering screen time helps to better focus on your goals, and you are better able to tick more things in a day than usual.
You feel good about yourself
People who are social media maniacs often end up spending hours and hours of precious time doing nothing but staring at the screen, scrolling, liking, posting and commenting etc. On these apps, other people post stuff about their extravagant lives, luxury lifestyle, and things that portray opulence, wealth, and pleasure.
Thus, you automatically tend to compare yourself to others, and if you are not that well off, it affects you big time. You start looking down on yourself and the lifestyle you are living. Hence, it is better to cut back on social media. It helps to boost your self-esteem and self-image.
Achieve better health.
You know that staying glued to your smartphone for hours or using a laptop overly results in eye strain and other eye problems like blurry vision, dry eyes, and headaches. Tell you what, I was also a smartphone addict, which led to me suffering from blurry vision until I opted for a digital detox.
Another problem most youth and teens face is bad posture. You must have noticed young people around you hunched over as they are looking at the phone screen. This becomes a constant problem for those who overuse their devices.
It results in lower back and neck problems. So, going for a digital blackout for a few days helps you focus better and provides much-needed relief to various parts of your body like eyes, back, shoulders, and neck.
You sleep better.
Your body releases a chemical called melatonin when it’s time for sleep, which helps you relax and fall asleep. However, staring at your phone right before bedtime can keep your brain active and delay the release of melatonin, making it difficult to sleep.
A prolonged lack of sleep can negatively impact your mood and health. Engaging in a digital detox can assist your body in regulating your sleep cycles better.
Bond strengthening with those around you.
The more you spend time on your devices, the less likely you are to interact with your family and friends. It can affect your relationships with people around you. If you are always busy on your laptop or mobile phone, those around you will feel that you don’t want to interact with them & spend time with them.
One vital benefit of detoxing digitally is that it helps to improve your relationship. You spend more time with your loved ones, talk, discuss, have laughers, share jokes & banters, enjoy high fives, and indulge in fun activities that don’t require technology or an internet connection. A digital detox is directly proportional to better social life.
How to Get Started?
If you feel excessive usage of tech and devices is affecting your physical or mental health, its time for a digital detox. It will replenish you from the inside. Remember, it doesn’t mean giving up on devices and tech completely. In fact, you also lower your usage of a smartphone or laptop.
You can get your focus back and feel better by putting your digital devices aside for a few hours every now and then and working out a way to lower the usage. Finding how to use it or disconnecting from the internet for a day or two also helps.
To get started with digital detox
Get to know your emotion when using a phone
When using your handset, try to understand the relationship between you. Ask yourself questions like, is it the right time to use the phone, am I using it too much, or why am I always using it, etc.
You’ll get answers to these questions automatically. Are you using it to kill boredom? Do you use it for work? Using it because you’ve become habitual? Checking on your phone every now and then makes you feel better. While using it, do you feel better or worse?
Experts believe that getting a sense of emotions can help you control the urge to use the smartphone. If phone usage is taking a toll on your mental and physical health, you are spending hours and hours scrolling, browsing, and streaming, and you can’t sleep better or focus, cut back your phone usage and only use it when necessary. This way, you’ll use it in a better way.
Take a break from your phone
If you’re obsessed with your phone and think it has become an addiction, the foremost step you can take is to set out intervals to check your device. For instance, set a break of 30 minutes where you won’t touch it and only check it once the 30 minutes are gone.
An easy way to achieve the 30-min goal is to keep your phone at a distance while you’re having a meal, studying or working. This will help you focus better on eating well, studying, or working without distractions.
If you find it hard to stay away from your smartphone, place it far from you. For instance, in a drawer or in another room where you cannot easily reach it. You can also manage the timings when you use it and when won’t like ‘no phone rule’ in a family gathering, when strolling outside, or after ten at night.
Track your phone usage
The best way to control your phone obsession is to track your daily usage. You can check the usage of different apps and the time spent on these apps from within the phone settings. It’s a bit difficult, and there is also an easy way to it.
Use a specific app for it. Open the Google Play or Apple Store, and you’ll find plenty of screen time control apps to beat your smartphone addiction. Some apps keep a close look at the time you spend on different apps, while others even limit your access to social media sites for a given time.
These time-tracking apps also give you a detailed report on how much time you spend on what. Having such an app on your smartphone helps to manage your time better and lowers the time spent on different time-taking apps on which you waste time. In short, you take back control of your time.
No mobile before bed
It is proven that using a phone before bedtime or while lying on the bed disrupts your sleep. Try not to use the phone in your bedroom. Disconnect yourself from it before sleeping, or switch it off when you enter the room to sleep.
These pre-emptive measures will surely benefit you as you’ll start enjoying improved sleep and develop a sleep routine.
Turn off notifications
If you check your mobile for every notification received on your phone, it’s time to turn off the notifications from phone settings. These notifications are not only disturbing, but you also lose focus while checking your mobile every time your phone beeps.
Often, you are bound to tap on the notification and start using the app, wasting time as you’ll forget what you were doing. This leads to disturbances and, eventually lack of productivity. You won’t have to respond to every beep by turning off the notifications. You can also turn on the ‘do not disturb feature.’
Best UK locations for Digital Detox
If you are looking to disconnect and want a digital detox retreat for a complete replenish and to get your focus back, here are some of the best locations in the UK to visit. Once you visit these places for a break from the digital world, you’ll praise for the tranquillity and splendour of these places.
Moreover, the data provided by Last Minute Cottages shows that these are the places where mobile data is quite scarce. And this is the best part. They offer real-life experiences, serenity, peace, and a much-needed tech-free time. You can easily find cheap train tickets to most locations where you can spend quality time. So just pack light and get going.
Polperro, Cornwall
This small and scenic fishing village south of Cornwall holds some stunning views. The place is filled with old-fashioned yet attractive fishing cottages. The purity of Polperro will give you early 19th-century vibes.
This spectacular scenery is empowered by the fact that people live simple lives, and the town is car, pollution, and traffic free. Most importantly, it’s free of mobile network reception. So, when are you visiting Polperro for a much-needed digital detox retreat?
Moreton-in-Marsh, Gloucestershire
It’s a pretty Cotswold town inviting all tech-tired people for a refreshing and re-energising experience. A blessing in disguise at Moreton-in-Marsh is that you won’t find 4G in this picturesque town.
However, you’ll find yourself occupied with many other joyful activities like sightseeing, talking walks in the calm and peaceful atmosphere, visiting different antique shops, and trying various tearooms. Best of all, you’ll spend most of your time outdoors – without those pesky digital devices – cherishing the nature around you.
Tenby, Pembrokeshire
If you want to enjoy unending blue shores and relive Greece vibes without visiting Greece, this top seaside town in southwest Wales is your perfect resort. You’ll be compelled to spend hours n hours on its harbour, soft-sandy beach, and small tidal island.
You can also explore the castle ruins and achieve a sun-kissed body by lying under the sun, close to the blue waters. One thing you won’t find here is the mobile network coverage. So, if you want to take pictures or videos for later viewing, you can. However, you cannot post them while in Tenby.
Nairn, Scottish Highlands
If you adore a dry and sunny place in the UK, this is it. Nairn is a seaside spot located near Inverness in Scotland. Known as one of the driest and sunniest places, Nairn will undoubtedly live up to your expectations as an exceptional place for a digital detox.
There won’t be any mobile network in Nairn. This is your chance to enjoy the place’s white sandy beaches, windswept dunes, and unending idealistic views. If you are travelling solo in the UK, here are some of the things you need to know.
St. Andrews, Fife
It’s a famous Scottish university town with little to no mobile coverage. This makes it a perfect location to go tech-free. Here, you can do many things like explore the medieval architecture, artistically laid streets, St Andrew’s gothic cathedral, and castle ruins.
This Scottish town attracts a diverse array of tourists all around the year who get overwhelming views and cherish countryside experiences like never before. This small city is known for its stunning coastline, lush golf areas, and a famous university.
Feel like your hands are free! Pick up a gold club and give your eyes a treat of the spectacular lawns instead of the digital screens.
Note: Make sure you’re a minimalistic traveller and pack sensibly. Don’t stuff everything into your travel bags. This is the one way to ruin your tour and you don’t want that.
Conclusion
The idea of digital detox in current times when we’ve become totally dependent on smartphones, laptops, cable, and streaming apps seems easy and achievable. However, the onslaught of digital input makes it extremely hard when planning to implement this idea.
Still, if you’ve mustered the courage to go tech-free, disconnecting yourself will benefit you immensely. It helps to avoid distractions. You can unplug yourself, refocus on what matters most, strengthen your relations with people around you, regain your health, and enhance your productivity.
It is the best thing for tech-tired people. Above all, a digital detox retreat at a far-off place keeps worldly worries at bay and satisfies your thirst for leisurely moments at a beautiful place with yourself.
Plan a digital detox today if you are surrounded by digital input and want to let go of tech-tiredness.
