February 14th marked the beginning for the Lent season for practicing Christians. Lent is the 40 days between Ash Wednesday and Easter Sunday. It is 40 days in trying to mirror Jesus' sacrifice for us as he spent 40 days and nights in the desert. Typically it entails fasting on certain days, giving up meat on Friday's and a personal sacrifice for the full 40 days. Each year I find myself struggling on what to give up because 40 days is a long time. I usually try to give up different types of food, usually sweets and junk food. It never really works out so this year I am taking a different approach.
This Lent season I am giving up social media. I decided this a week late so it isn't the full 40 days but hey, I'm trying. I'm also not doing this 'cold turkey' and deleting everything at once but each week I will delete a different social media app from my phone and log off of it from my computer. I have always wanted to try and go social media "free" and thought this was the perfect time to try it!
Week 1, February 20th - Instagram
Making the decision for Instagram to go first was hard. I find myself scrolling through my feed pretty often. It was almost natural for me to open my phone, scroll to the 2nd page and click the location of Instagram. I decided to lose it first because it's not really used for direct communication, rather just posting pictures of a night out. I thought I could go the longest without seeing all of this. The first day I deleted it, I felt kinda lost when I was bored. If I had a spare minute I usually would go to Instagram and just scroll. At this point I typically just found myself going to Twitter or Facebook instead.
By Thursday, I already adjusted to being 'Instagram free' and rarely felt the need to go check it. I like the fact that I felt less dependent on it in just 2 days.
Week 2, February 27th- Twitter
Twitter was probably the easiest social media to give up. I don't usually tweet or check it regularly throughout the day. I only found myself missing it in the mornings/ night when I'm bored laying in bed and want to look at funny tweets.
But this week I found myself less attached to my phone altogether. I downloaded a "Word of the Day" app to give myself something to read in the mornings and made it a goal to use that word at some point throughout the day. I also started a new book since I didn't find myself on my phone all the time.
Week 3, March 6th- Facebook
Facebook has by far been the hardest social media to give up. Whenever I find myself with a spare minute or bored I have nothing to scroll through. I don't have a way of posting pictures anywhere or seeing what others have shared. Instead of scrolling through my phone at night waiting to fall asleep I read until I am tired.
However, not seeing people post every detail of their lives has brought me closer to those long-distance friendships I have. When I get a chance to text or call a friend at another school we get to really catch up and talk about what we have been up to. When my friends at school and I hang out I found us laughing and talking more instead of us all sitting there on Instagram.
Weeks 4, 5 & 6, through Easter Sunday- Social Media Free!!
It was definitely hard but I did it!! I deleted Instagram, Twitter and Facebook for a total of 6 weeks! I was able to prove to myself that I was not reliant on my phone, which is difficult in today's society. I can't say I didn't miss it, there were days I wish I could have posted a cute picture on Instagram, update my life on Facebook or scroll through funny memes on Twitter. But overall I have to say I found myself to be more productive in these 6- weeks with no access to social medias. I spent my extra time at night either reading or studying a little more for my exams rather than scrolling through something on my phone. When out to breakfast or dinner with my friends I barely touched my phone and actually spent more time talking to one another.
I am proud to say I successfully followed through with my sacrifice this lent season and also have gained a new perspective on life that is social media-less.
