4 Signs you need a media fast
- You can always think of three things you should be doing or want to know the answer to. As with any behavioral addiction, you just can’t help it. If you have told yourself that scrolling is bringing your mood down or you know you shouldn’t look at that Amazon cart again, but you do— it may be that you are simply rewarded by the looking, the seeking and the urge for more. More information, stimulation, ideas, all the things.
- Your conversations are punctuated by sharing links, photos and googling answers to questions. Having linear conversation, and thought, get harder when we have trained ourselves to operate with constant streams of stimulation.
- You plan your day around what you can watch/learn/listen/create. This can be great for specific goals, but if your entire routine includes what music goes with your shower-hour and how many podcasts you can listen to on the way to work, you may need to unplug.
- You struggle to unwind and fall asleep. Racing thoughts, ideas and images can key us up for hours. Sometimes it feels like inspiration, sometimes like anxiety, but the sense of being unable to relax may be your clue to cut yourself off much earlier in the day.
As with any unruly behavior, we can typically find that we are filling a need or tuning out some emotions. Simply unplugging may be harder than you expect. Plan on celebrating small changes and consider accountability with someone who has similar goals to seek a quieter, less stimulating existence. You can do this!
