Lets be honest… we’re all addicted to our phones, or too embarrassed to admit so. Either way it’s sadly become a big issue and it seems to always get in the way of life.
When you read that, “get in the way of life”, it sounds pretty dumb right?! Something so silly is taking over peoples lives (dramaaatic)!
I think it’s safe to say we’re all guilty of being that person that is “always on their phone”. Lets talk it out. Take a step back and really think about how its had an affect on your life and possibly others close to you too.
If you really think about it, iPhones have been around since what, 2007? Instagram came out in 2010 but really wasn’t a huge deal until a couple of years later. From then to now, that’s a really short period of time for the social media world to explode (trying not to exaggerate here)!
It’s a weird thought to wrap your head around, that we haven’t always had this smart technology right there at our fingertips. For example, who remembers pulling over on the side of the road so your Dad could double check the referdex? And what about those crappy little cameras that we would take everywhere, but more so try and remember that it wasn’t such a big deal to get a cute pic in your new outfit (I’m not even sure that it was a thing)... because there was no gram! We lived in the real world!
Now, I know what you’re thinking, that was then and this is now and the world is growing and doing amazing things! Which it is! Just a bit of a throw back to get you thinking and maybe realise what is actually important. Don’t forget about the real life that you’re living, and the real friends and family that you couldn’t imagine living without.
Here’s a real and scary statistic for you - rates of anxiety and depression for JUST young people has risen 50% in the last 10 years and social media has been the biggest impact…
So on that note, here are 4 tips on slowly decreasing your phone time. YOU have the control;
- Ask yourself - why is Instagram/ any social platform so important to me? (Other than people who use it for their jobs) you still need to understand and realise the affect it is having on you.
- Remember - social media / phone time isn’t as important as family / friend time! I know this will sound crazy and child-like, but set yourself times throughout the day that you CAN check your phone. Control your phone usage, starting with 6 hours a day and then slowly decrease.
- DO A PHONE DETOX. Set yourself phone free periods during the day. Your don’t need your phone at the dinner table, in the bathtub, watching a movie, reading a book etc. Leave your phone in your handbag, you’ll notice you won’t even be thinking about it.
- Maybe you don’t believe that you spend too much time on your phone… well maybe some nice stats will help you out! There’s an app called ‘Moments’ and it records how much time you’re spending on certain apps. Go download it, you’ll shock yourself!
