When was the last time you were unplugged when the power wasn’t out? Was it when there was no WIFI and cell phones were in a bag in your car? What would your life feel like if you went without technology for a few days?
Last summer I was visiting my cousin during a family cookout. It was summer time and the power went out. The sun was out so there was plenty of light. All of a sudden you heard screams from throughout the house, “Dad, Dad, the internet isn’t working!!!!” The horror in their screams was palpable. As he chuckles he informs them that the power was out. Again they say with great concern, “but the internet isn’t working!!”
I am sitting next to our family friend while we are planning our upcoming vacation. We laugh at the commotion and go back to planning the trip. As we hit send to verify our reservations, we quickly realize that there is no internet. Shocked we laugh even harder at ourselves.
It occurred to me at this moment that long gone are the days of playing outside, playing games, and reading a book when there is no electricity. Technology is all around us. We use it so often that we don’t even realize it.
Challenge
I want to challenge you to try going unplugged. Pick a time frame that works for you. Maybe one day a week you will choose to go unplugged. Maybe all electronics get shut off in your house at 8 PM. Or maybe you are feeling super eager and you will take on the challenge of going unplugged for a week.
Ok, some of you are reading this and are having complete panic attacks over the thought of being without your electronics for a few days. If this is you then I recommend trying to do without something for a few days. For example, if you can’t go completely unplugged try going without Facebook for a week.
We are so fortunate to have the world at our fingertips. With the push of a button, I can text friends that live around the world, I can order a pizza, rent a movie, and play video games with someone who lives in another state.
Separation
All of this technology has a way of alienating us from those closest to us. We are so connected that we really aren’t connected at all. Humans are designed to be communicative and to be in relationships. When we get most of our interaction with one another through electronics we are really missing out on what we crave, real live human interaction.
You might be thinking that you don’t believe me! I can talk to hundreds of friends through the technology that is available today. I can see what everyone is doing and even give my opinion. Let me ask you a question. How do you feel when you make a phone call to customer service and it is a recording that asks you questions and tells you to push 1 for this and push 2 for that?
The next time you go into a restaurant look around the tables. How many people have their phones out? Do you think that they are giving their undivided attention to the people sitting across the dinner table from them? What kind of relationships are they developing with the people in front of them? How important is what they are doing on their phones, could it possibly wait until dinner is over?
How much time do you waste scrolling through your social media accounts when you could be spending it with the people you love?
Comparison
Social media is absolutely amazing. It allows me to stay connected with friends and family that don’t live near me. On the downside, it also lets me see what everyone wants me to see. The majority of the time people post A or Z posts. By this I mean we either show our A-game or our life in the absolute best light. Or we show our Z game, our life when things are really going poorly and we are reaching out for help. What we rarely see are the B-Y moments. Everyone has them, we just don’t advertise them.
Tammy from high school is probably 5 minutes late to work sometimes. I bet her kitchen can absolutely be a disaster at times and sometimes she doesn’t cook dinner. In fact, if you looked in her closet it is probably a cluttered mess and her special hubby probably burps and farts too. Yep, Tammy is not perfect even though you see her beautiful new car that she was able to buy with her raise. Her 3 precious children are always smiling, never fighting, and always have clean clothes on. Those pictures of her delicious dinners and oh-so-clean kitchen, don’t happen every night.
My point is that sometimes reading social media can be deceiving. It can cause us to feel inferior or like we need to do more, have more, or be more in order to keep up with those around us. Keep in mind that EVERYONE has B-Y moments a lot more often than they have A moments.
Stress
Being connected can allow us to always have a flow of information. Don’t get me wrong, I absolutely LOVE google. I look things up constantly. Oh and don’t forget the weather app where I can instantly see what the weather is going to be. In fact, I can literally just ask my phone to tell me the weather and it will. We should be living with the Jetsons! Who would have thought that all of this great information could actually cause us stress?
Our brains are not designed to receive stress continuously. They need a break to heal and rest. We need a chance to decompress and relax. Hearing the news continuously all day leaves us with a heightened level of stress. Getting that email from work once you are home robs you of the chance to relax from work.
Depression
Studies have shown that watching TV actually can make us feel depressed. This was astonishing to me. TV feels like a great way to just sit on the couch and relax. Our brains are not actively engaged when we watch TV. This can leave us feeling unfulfilled. We connect to characters on TV but they aren’t real and therefore do not fill our need for human connection. Sitting mindlessly watching TV, playing games, or scrolling through social media can actually leave you feeling depressed, and anxious, and cause difficulty sleeping.
Take note
Take the next week to really notice how much technology you are using. How many hours a week do you actually spend with the TV? How much time do you spend playing games on your phone or device? Here is a big one, how much time do you spend scrolling through social media? I think you will be surprised by how much time you are actually doing these things!
When I was in college I worked for a researcher at the University to keep track of how much media people were using. People would consent to be followed around. I would follow someone around and make note of what media and how long they were using it. This was before smartphones were popular. When the numbers were tallied, it was unbelievable how many hours a day people were using media.
If you had 2 extra hours a day, what would you want to do with that time? Would you spend more time with your family? Would you get your to-do list done, work on a hobby, read a book, or enjoy the sunset on the back porch? Now that you have answered that, how many hours a week do you actually do these things?
The challenge
Over Christmas, I had two foster children in my home. They screamed, A LOT. I nicknamed my house “the house of screams” while they were in my care. I dropped them off one day for an overnight visit. When I returned home, the power was out. It was the most peaceful night. It was absolutely silent.
Our brains are constantly being stimulated by what we are looking at, hearing, seeing, touching, and smelling. That particular night, you couldn’t hear anything. The furnace wasn’t rumbling and the refrigerator wasn’t humming. Even the ever-so-faint buzz of the cable box and router was silent. It was so peaceful.
As I was putting away Christmas decorations in the dark, remember no power. I thought to myself wow, this must have been what it was like hundreds of years ago, quiet. This was amazing. Then a light bulb went off! Hundreds of years ago, people used candles to see after dark. After a quick moment of feeling like a ding dong, I went and lit candles. Then I thought, wow, I have time I can read a book! I went to grab my iPad. After realizing that the book I was reading was on my iPad and there was no internet to get it from the library, I found one on the shelf.
You might be thinking, “that is great Michelle, you read a book in the dark and it was quiet. What is the big deal!?” The big deal is that you don’t even realize the peace that you are missing out on if you don’t give going unplugged a try.
I challenge you to try going unplugged for a short time. Pick your goal and stick to it. Here are a few ideas. Find the one that works for you. Then see how you feel after a few days. Warning, the first little bit of giving up electronics can literally make you feel like you are going through withdrawal. Just relax, it will pass. J
Ideas
- Take social media off your phone
- Turn off all electronic devices after 8 PM
- Put all electronic devices away when in the company of others
- Give up social media for X amount of time
- Limit yourself to 1 hour of TV per day
- Give up TV for X amount of time
- Take one day a week to go completely unplugged
- Turn your phone on do not disturb at night
- Do an extremely unplugged challenge and go without electronics for 1 week, 5 days, 3 days, or 24 hours.
You can do it and you will be amazed at how much free time you find, how much richer your relationships can be, and how much more peace you have.
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