My experience in digital detox

I'm a scientist by training (don't laugh!), so let's dig out the dictionary and find a definition from Oxford Dictionary...

Digital detox
NOUN informal 
A period of time during which a person refrains from using electronic devices such as smartphones or computers, regarded as an opportunity to reduce stress or focus on social interaction in the physical world.
‘break free of your devices and go on a digital detox’

This has been on my mind for time and I have read how it has become a bit of a craze or trend for people to forsake their digital devices and identities for a period of time.

(Before I go into the actual testimony, please can I take a moment and tell you my pet hate for the word detox(ification). For the last time, you do not need to exercise detox if you have a functional liver! One must not let personal preferences come in the way of discussing matters, so I shall hold my rant for now.)

I know I am a hypersensitive person and one of my worst weaknesses was (and still is) I overthink way too much of what people think of me. It got worse when I let it get to me, so much I imagined all of the worst case scenarios before I started. This prevented me from making an attempt into doing anything. Comparing yourself to others is the coffin to happiness, they say.

So I embarked on the journey of confessing myself to the wider world. I decided to switch to my good old notebook instead should I ever feel the need to speak up.

MASTER PLAN

1. Turn off all social media (Facebook, Twitter and Instagram) notifications on my digital devices (phone, iPad and laptop)
2. You are still allowed to access news articles but you are not to share them or discuss them on social media
3. When you feel like you have something to say, scribble them down a notebook (physical/digital)

VERDICT

First of all, I would take this opportunity to apologise to all those who were worried me disappearing for a few weeks. I really appreciate you noticing I went into complete disappearance for a few weeks but at the same time, I could not have contacted you all when I was taking some time out. It was essentially like breaking a fast for me. I'm ever so sorry for being rubbish at telling people about this.

I would not lie about this, digital detox is hard. Very hard. For a young person who grew up with Facebook and a Smartphone, this is a bit like dieting (but arguably worse). Another reason for its difficulty is the fact that I am ridiculously talkative (DUH!) and need a way out every moment of my life. Even my little brother told me off for talking to myself when I was cooking. (Oops.)

Also down with all honesty, I did cheat a little: I was found liking some posts in Twitter during the detox period (kudos to the observant peeps!) . However, in my defence, I did try to read news articles without interacting too much.

My family called me a 'snowflake', they were great believers of Sticks and Stones: 'Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never harm me.'

I, however, am a great believer of the power of words. For me, silence speaks volume and words carry great weight. For me to immense myself into the world of negativity during down time is a lot to take in. And I would rather not.

Digital detox is strangely addictive, when you discover the freedom liberated from the overflow of information. The excess time you rediscovered when living without social media is so precious. I found that I read more books while detoxing and I definitely read more books in the bottom half of the year while detoxing. It was good to pick up my cello again and rediscover the power of enlightenment in music.

It felt like going on holiday and having the privilege of leaving work at the office without a care. This highlights the difficulty of doing this on the long run. I know for my parent's generation, they might have found this slightly easier than mine. (That was only a guess, as my parents often complain about being spammed in WhatsApp when their friends were keen to throw around old and proven inaccurate/fake news. To be fair, these uncles and aunties are young in their Internet age. They need to accumulate the negative experience of the Internet and social media aka 'to grow up'.) 

When I attempted to stay away, some of my friends became very worried that if I had suffered from a love loss, bereavement or something. My identity and existence (strangely or sadly) cannot be separated from my digital identity. This is somewhat terrifying. That is why now I prefer to dig into my books and read my worry away ;)

CONCLUSION

You cannot run away from your problems for all your life but digital detox did make me re-evaluate the stance of my digital identity on social media. It is okay to take a break sometimes. I no longer flip on my phone when I go out to meet people over food and drinks. Partying means partying and enjoying the moment when I am here. One or two photos are fine but I really would re-evaluate if the person opposite me is constantly going on their phone. I also scribbled more thoughts than ever on my notebook (but this could not rescue my appalling handwriting going downhill). 

It is unrealistic to live without social media when your friends want to keep in touch. Being selective is important. How we select what we read without being deceived, however, is another question worth asking ourselves.