5 Ways to Deal with Digital Addiction

digital addiction

23 Mar 5 Ways to Deal with Digital Addiction

Are you digitally addicted?

In a world where tech is intertwined with so many important aspects of our life – from socialising with family to attending work conferences – it is sometimes difficult to tell whether it is addiction glueing us to our tech, or simply a modern necessity.

Right now especially, the number of hours you spend on tech daily is probably not a good indicator of addiction. Whilst we strongly encourage you to minimise the time spent online, with so much of our work, education and socialisation taking place virtually right now, it is not uncommon to find ourselves spending close to 8 hours on our screens daily.

So, rather than just looking at your screen-time statistics, deeper introspection is required to figure out if you are addicted or not. Ask yourself the following questions: are your digital habits affecting your health? Are they affecting your relationships and time spent socialising? Are the affecting your work, your education? Your sleep?

If you cannot securely say no to these questions, then it is likely that you may be struggling with digital addiction.

This is nothing to be ashamed of; many people experience this. However, it can cause real issues for your health and wellbeing – isolation, depression and poor sleep, just to name a few. Therefore, it is important you re-examine your relationship with tech to break yourself free from its grip. Here are some tips.

digital addiction
If your tech use is affecting your sleep schedule and quality, this may be a sign of digital addiction.

1. Find a buddy

You are not alone in your struggle, so there is no need to be alone in your recovery. Find a friend, family member or even colleague who also wants to rebalance their relationship with tech, and embark on this journey together. Being able to motivate each other, keep each other in check and celebrate successes together will make this so much easier.

2. Choose real-time conversations

Prioritise maintaining real-life relationships over virtual interaction. Right now, it may be the only way that you can talk to friends and family is on the phone or through a video call. That is okay. But try to take to these options rather than just texting them or interacting on social media. Schedule times to talk with those important to you, because talking to someone in person and being able to hear their voice is so much more rewarding and natural.

Plus, this may also help curb your addiction by requiring your full attention. In a text conversation, you can flicker between other apps and pages whilst talking. You cannot do this in an in-person conversation, and this will force you to fight any distraction from your tech.

3. Structure your leisure time

Too often, we resort to our phones during free time because it is the easiest entertainment option available. However, this leaves us feeling lethargic and like we have not done anything with our free time.

To keep yourself from reaching for your phone, plan activities that you enjoy to keep you occupied. Whether going for a walk, playing a board game or cooking, it will be so refreshing to get moving and do something tactile.

4. Limit your social media consumption

There are numerous social media sites, and they all individually do their part to eat up our time. Limiting the number you have on your phone is a good way to cut down your screen-time without having to give up social media completely. You can still remain in contact with people, and follow your favourite feeds. It’s just less excessive.

5. Clean up

We all have those apps we don’t need or use. Sometimes, we even have pages of them. They are distracting and clutter up our tech, often causing us to lose sight of the reason we switched on our phone. Deleting these will leave you with a clearer workspace, headspace, and less temptation, helping you to be break free from digital addiction and guaranteeing success with your mini digital detox.

Summary
5 Ways to Deal with Digital Addiction
Article Name
5 Ways to Deal with Digital Addiction
Description
Are you digitally addicted? Here are 5 tips to help you re-examine your relationship with tech to break yourself free from its grip.
Author
Publisher Name
Time To Log Off
No Comments

Sorry, the comment form is closed at this time.

JOIN US!
Claim your FREE Digital Detox Cheat Sheet
And build a happier, healthier, relationship with screens!
No, thank you!