5 Benefits of Regularly Unplugging From Your Devices and 5 Ways to Do It
Depending on how old you are, you may find it very hard to remember a time when things got done without the need of an assortment of screens and devices. In fact, if you work online or have a writing job, the thought of being without at least one screen is near impossible these days.
But perhaps it’s time to unplug? As the time we spend on our devices increases, so do the many warnings from medical experts to switch off and recharge. For many people, unplugging provides more time for family, or even time at the gym Moore Park residents enjoy so much. If you find yourself permanently connected to a device, this article is for you!
Why You Should Unplug and Take Your Life Back
A survey done in 2022 shows that the average Australian spends 5,67 hours per day on their phones, laptops or tablets. Furthermore, Australians are spending at least 40 hours per week online for a variety of work and recreational purposes. With this in mind, the burning question should be, are we using technology, or is technology using us?
You may think there’s nothing wrong with you being connected to your phone for almost all waking hours—especially if it enables you to check things off your to do list. You may even argue that your assortment of timekeeping and calendar apps is making your day easier and more organised.
While that may be true, the real question you should be answering is—how involved are you in your life? How mindful are you of each situation? Going off screen for at least one day a week has some excellent benefits that you should consider. Let’s take a look at the most significant.
- Improve your overall health: Less screen time reduces the chance of developing repetitive stress injuries like carpel tunnel and “text neck.” Less screen time will also reduce tension headaches as well as migraines aggravated by too much exposure to blue light.
- Better sleeping patterns: Having a few hours of no screens before bed will limit your exposure to blue light and make it easier to fall asleep. Not having the phone buzzing and lighting up every time a notification comes through will ensure you don’t expose yourself to excessive blue light.
- Improved relationships: Being more involved in the lives of your family members will go a long way toward improving relationships.
- More time for other activities: Not having your phone glued to your hand, will create time for healthier activities. Not only will you have time to start exercising again, but you may even be able to join a gym with personal trainer services. A good workout with the help of an expert is one of the top ways to reduce the pain in your neck from leaning forward all the time!
- Decreases depression and anxiety: This is especially true for adolescents because they are almost obsessed with being liked. Waiting for posts to be liked and looking for the best pics to post to remain relevant can often lead to depression in teenagers. Proving to them they can survive without their phones will go a long way in making them more resilient.
Ways to Reduce Your Screen Time
If the thought of putting your phone in the other room seems a little too extreme in the early stages of regaining your life, here are a few tips to help you get started.
- Create a technology-free space: Place your devices and their chargers in a dedicated space that’s not next to your bed and not on your living room table. Make the living room and bedroom technology-free zones.
- Move the phone away from your bed: Blue light from phones and tablets is severely hampering your sleep. Your brain has a hard time switching off with a phone just centimetres from your head, so rather place it on a desk or in a cupboard, but not on the bedside table.
- Plan non-digital activities for the family: This is a perfect opportunity to get the family involved in activities that don’t require a screen or even to talk to each other more. Some activities you can try include hiking, bike riding, going on a picnic, joining the gym or even starting a new hobby.
- Disable phone notifications: With notifications going off every few seconds, it’s difficult to ignore a phone. Disable notifications that aren’t related to your family’s welfare or that’s not work-related.
- Ban phones at the dinner table: Ever notice how many families spend dinner with a fork in one hand, and a phone in the other? Doing this takes away from the quality time and conversation needed to keep a family involved in each other’s lives. Have a rule that families eat together and that phones are banned during that period.
Final Thoughts
Spending time away from your multiple devices will go a long way toward improving your overall health. It’s also an excellent way to reconnect with family and friends in the real world and actually have some real conversations with real people. Schedule an “unplug” day and see how much better you feel afterwards!
