Being a millennial, I, just like many of you, have fallen into this trap of technology and social media. I mean, how can we not get sucked in when a new iPhone comes out quicker than I go through a gallon of milk? That may be a bit of an exaggeration, but you get my point. I am guilty of spending hours a day checking Instagram and Snapchat or binge watching Netflix as if it were my occupation.
One night after a few glasses of Moscato, I began to think heavily about why I had this urge to spend hours on my phone while lying in bed at night. It has become an unhealthy habit of mine over the past few years. And yes, I do mean unhealthy. In a course that I took a few semesters back, we discussed the negative side effects that spending time on our phones before bed can have on our bodies. The bright exposure of our phone screens has more of an effect on our sleep schedule than drinking a double expresso. This sounds absurd and if you are anything like me, you are probably doubting it and possibly Googling it. If that is the case, though, I encourage you to try to avoid using your phone right before bed.
I decided to leave my phone on my dresser before bed for a week straight and I began to see a major difference. I was able to fall asleep twice as fast and did not find myself waking up in the middle of the night. This was only step one, the next day I decided to turn my phone off for an entire twenty four hours. At first, I began to question what I would possibly do during my twenty minute breaks between classes. It sounds kind of ridiculous, right? I did not realize how much I rely on my phone for, from communication and reading news articles to Facebook creeping. So during my lunch hour I decided to take a walk outside, enjoy the fresh air and view the world around me through my own eyes rather than on a screen.
When I got back to my room after a long day of work and classes, rather than picking up my phone and seeing what everyone else around me was doing, I focused more on myself. I took the time to pick up a book that I had been meaning to read for weeks. I lost track of time, of course, because my only way to track time is from my cellphone. I did not mind, though, because I felt so much better at the end of the day, after taking some time to do things that I enjoy. I was focused on doing things that made me happy rather than all of the fun and exciting things that people were posting online. Then I realized, it has become the “norm” for our generation to post any and all personal information for the whole world to view. At least I had my privacy for twenty-four hours..
