Ahh, social media. The vibrant images, the videos, the memes. The connections to people from our past and present, and the daily news updates straight into our phones everywhere we go. It all seems so sexy, so stimulating, and like it’s an instant cure for our curiosity about.. well, just about anything. It starts off simple – a quick check-in between meetings, on lunch, after work, before bed – and then the next thing you know, you’re on your co-worker’s ex-boss’s new wife’s IG page, looking at her vacation pictures from Bermuda 2008. (Admit it, we’ve all been there).

I have been riding the social media train since early 2007. It started with Facebook specifically, as I’m sure it was for many other “old millennials” (defined as those born around 1988 or earlier *ahem*). It started innocently enough with my friends and I signing up and playing around with silly status updates and profile pictures. Over the years, it steadily grew into the place to organize group events, plan holidays, upload ENTIRE photo albums after said holidays and share random images of weekends around town. 

Flash forward to 2022, and I’ve since accumulated an Instagram, Pinterest, LinkedIn, WhatsApp, and YouTube account, and those are just the ones I (think) I need. I’ve also had mini affairs with the likes of Twitter, Snapchat, and a handful of dating apps, but in the interest of other important factors (more on that below), I decided to leave those behind. 

The pandemic forced me to sit down and re-evaluate the best use of my time. Entire days, weeks, months, and now years spent not seeing friends, family, and colleagues in person gave way to a weekly screen time report that rattled me. That screen time, coupled with the additional work video calls from Monday to Friday, left me feeling physically ill (although subtly) and extremely exhausted at the end of every week. 

I had toyed with the idea of completing a digital detox for a while, so I finally committed and did one in December of 2020. I went cold turkey with just my Instagram and Facebook accounts (the two that I defaulted to every time I picked up my phone) and disabled them both. I set a deadline of one month and went from there. 

Below are the results of that “social” experiment and how I realized how social media was both helping and hurting my lifestyle.

THE PROS AND CONS OF QUITTING SOCIAL MEDIA

PROS

Increased peace of mind

The first few days without Facebook and Instagram were a bit of a struggle. The urge to check in still crept up at the usual intervals throughout the day. The craving for short doses of entertainment and distraction could not be denied. But after the first week, things started to get more manageable and a lot more peaceful. I stopped reaching for my phone first thing in the morning, and I gradually had fewer runaway thoughts about the content I had consumed on the apps. I was no more triggered by fake news, sensationalist headlines and Tweets, and fearmongering during the pandemic (and beyond). 

More spare time

Without the alarming 2+ hours spent on the internet every day, I was able to turn my attention to so many other things. I finally got down to business, started this blog, worked out more, met work and university deadlines quicker, and fit in much more high-quality family time. I read more books, walked my dog more, and had a much tidier house!

Value your authentic relationships

This might sound a bit dramatic but hear me out. The people who care to stay in touch WILL try and track you down if they notice your leave of absence from public domains on the internet. Mind you, you also have to make an effort to reach out via other forms of communication to maintain the connection with your nearest and dearest. But it’s always comforting to find out who takes the time to make the call or send an old-fashioned text message despite your inactive social media presence.

Better sleep 

I kid you not; the sleep I had while off social media was divine. Not only did I get more of it, but I also slept through the night with less disruptive dreaming. By now, we’ve all read at least one or two articles about how the blue light from our phones wreaks havoc on our sleep quality. At night, light throws the body’s biological clock (the circadian rhythm) out of whack, and your sleep will suffer. Research also shows that it MAY contribute to causing cancer, diabetes, heart disease, and obesity. Not good. 

More creativity

Believe it or not, there is a great benefit to just letting your mind wander from time to time. During my digital detox, I dedicated spare time to simply sitting around and intentionally staring off into space. During this time, I came up with blog content ideas, worked through solutions for problems at work, and figured out some concrete plans for my future. 

CONS

Okay, I will admit there were some drawbacks to being offline. They were as follows:

I felt a little uninspired.

Let me explain. Social media has served as a source of ideas and inspiration for me in various aspects of my life. I know the much dreaded “comparison trap” is something to avoid at all costs, but for me, I immensely enjoyed seeing images of goals that I could work towards. Whether it’s new places to travel, style and beauty inspirations, new books to read, or following my favourite thought leaders in fitness, psychology, and health, I found myself missing out on the source of where I got my daily dose of FRESH.

Less entertainment

As much as I am not a big fan of watching television, I substituted that with puppy videos and hilarious memes. Quitting social media led to fewer laughs and “aww” moments throughout my day, which I realized helped to lighten the mood and add much-needed comic relief during regular and global pandemic times. 

Less learning

I realized during my blogging journey that there was a lot to be learned about social media strategy and online discussion forums on Facebook that I needed to follow. These platforms served as immense resources to educate me about who the leaders in the field were and the best tips and tricks to be successful. Granted, I was able to do a lot of research through the regular internet, courses and YouTube. Still, sometimes the sheer speed and visual interest of apps like Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram can serve you well.

Even if you aren’t looking to use social media for starting a business or a side project, there is so much else to learn from it. Members of my immediate and extended family use the internet to learn new recipes, learn about pet and home care, and so much more. 

To conclude, my final take on social media use is that it needs to be strategic and intentional for me. Leverage it in a way such that it doesn’t disrupt your day or make you lose precious minutes going down a black hole of other people’s lives or memories of your own that you would rather avoid. 

Time your usage amount each day, delete the apps from time to time or do whatever else you think would be successful in not letting it take over your life. Think of it as a tool that can be used and then put away instead of it using you and your precious attention for other intents. 

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