“We need solitude to thrive as human beings, and in recent years, without even realizing it, we’ve been systematically reducing this crucial ingredient from our lives. Simply put, humans are not wired to be constantly wired.”
~ Cal Newport, author of“Digital Minimalism: Choosing a Focused Life in a Noisy World”
In this last week of our Cycle 2: Rest before we transition to our next lunar cycle, why don’t we take this chance to reflect on our relationship with our smart phone and other technological devices?
Digital detox is one of my top 3 tips to rest better during this lunar cycle (check out my blog here). That’s why I’ve created a mini #digitaldetoxchallenge over at our Instagram’s account @musefloweretreat this week.
But for those who are not ready yet, I’ve put together this mini digital detox guide for beginners that you can refer back later.
For the next 3 days, I invite you to follow the below steps that are totally achievable to get you started on a mini digital detox journey. Of course if you are ready to get off the grid completely, go for it!
This beginner’s guide is for those who have a lot of things going on and cannot switch off completely, but who’d still like to unplug for a little while at night.
Are you ready for some digital detox?
Day 1 of Mini Digital Detox
Set up screen time or a time limit on how long you will use for each social media application. Personally I set it up for 15 minutes each for Facebook and Instagram. If you are a heavy user and feel like 15 minutes are way too short, try to limit down to 1 hour in total for all social media apps (not 1 hour for each app).
When the time limit is up, remember to honor the limit just for TODAY. If you feel bored, put down your phone and do something that deeply nourishes you.
Bonus: Pick up a copy of Cal Newport’s book on “Digital Minimalism: Choosing a Focused Life in a Noisy World” and read it after the screen time is up.
Day 2 of Mini Digital Detox
Switch off all your devices at least 60 minutes prior to bedtime. I know, this may be hard for a lot of people including myself. In this case, try 15 minutes prior to bedtime.
But I thought I’d throw 60 minutes out there first, as the blue light coming off from our digital devices can affect our body’s biological clock and disrupt our sleeping patterns.
So if you are reading this before bedtime, switch off your phone now and go do something else for 15 minutes to wind down and to switch off your mind.
Bonus: Slip in some loving skincare ritual before bedtime. Take a warm bath with your favorite essential oil or soak your feet in apple cider vinegar mixed with warm water. Put on a hydrating face mask and listen to some soothing music or better yet, follow a guided meditation. Massage your face and feet afterwards. You’ve earned it!
Day 3 of Mini Digital Detox
Be unreachable for 1 hour (or 1 day)!. This may take some planning for some people. Remember the days when you went somewhere with no network service at all. That’s the feeling we want to achieve here.
To be completely unreachable, I highly recommend switching off your phone and all devices completely. When our phone is on, there’s still a temptation to check it.
Bonus: Combine it with Day 2’s tip, and switch off your phone one hour before bedtime.
Success! You have completed 3 days of a mini digital detox.
Now what?
After your mini digital detox, take some time and reflect on how unplugging and switching off your devices make you feel. There is no right or wrong, and there’s no need to criticize or judge yourself. Keep an open mind and heart and find what type of digital detox ways work well for you.
If you like how it feels, you can extend the digital detox journey to 30 days.
Be very mindful of how you re-introduce the technologies back to your life.
I hope that this has created a little more awareness in how you use technology in your life.
How has your mini digital detox challenge been for you? Feel free to share your journey with me!
