Recently for my communication class, we read the book How To Break Up With Your Phone by Catherine Price. Let me tell you, I was shocked by how much your phone is designed to addict you. Like really. People want you to be on your phone for as long as possible so that they can make money by selling what you look at to advertisers. I think it was something that I had been aware of in the past but this book just put it all out there and it makes you realize a lot of things. So here are a few things I learned from the book:
1. You'll stop this trap of comparison to others
Social media is full of people living their best life with their best outfit and makeup on. It's easy to forget that these pictures are perfectly curated and are one glimpse into this person's life. Then there's filters and apps that help you modify parts of your body - so even that picture you are staring at and wishing you looked like, might not even be real. Taking a break from your phone and social media allows you to just focus on you and how to work on yourself without comparing yourself to others.
2. The likes aren't real
Have you noticed Instagram and Facebook both have like/love buttons? We like to know what people think and are inviting them to basically judge us. When we post a picture we are constantly checking who liked it and how many people it was. We get addicted to checking these numbers and put a value on them when in reality they don't mean much because you are worth it and beautiful no matter the number of likes.
3. We need to get to the root of our negative feelings
Sometimes when we're anxious or scared or sad, the first thing we do is go on our phones. We like to be distracted and in a way escape from our current situation. But we never get to the root of the problem. We go into this cycle of constant distraction in order to avoid our feelings. In order to relax and decompress, it's necessary to think through these issues of what's bothering us, why, and how can we make it better instead of just ignoring it and throwing it under the rug.
4. We need to take time to allow our brains to think critically
Our brain is constantly on information overload. We have so many things on our feed, on the news, articles here and there. So much information stops us from thinking critically. We don't question things, we don't think about how we ca help, or how this happened. A lot of the time we just scroll to the next post or story. Our brain needs rest from all this information to make more informed decisions and think analytically about the things about us.
5. We need to allow time for creativity
Creative ideas pop up into our brain when we're bored. You have nothing to do and your sitting there and suddenly you start drawing, singing, doing anything creative. Our phone's stop this from happening. When we're bored, we pull out our iPhone like it's second nature and because there's no boredom we lose that creativity.
6. Your sleep needs it
I'm sure many of you have heard of the blue light your phone emits. If you're staring at your phone when you're about to go to sleep, it stops your production of melatonin and makes you feel awake! While yellow light increases melatonin and makes you feel sleepy. So, when its midnight and you're staring at your phone watching a YouTube video, its no surprise you won't feel sleepy because of all that blue light. This can lead to chronic fatigue if it becomes a habit and can really hurt your health.
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