Now more than ever, teenagers and adults just can’t seem to put their phones down. They are on it for work, communicating with friends and family, or just scrolling through social media. A New York Times post even stated a scary statistic that both teens and adults check their phones approximately 150 times a day, or every 6 minutes! This obsessive amount of screen time is not only bad for physical health, but for mental and social health as well. Here’s why you should pick your head up from your phone and focus more on the world unplugged:
Physical Benefits:
Staring at a screen all day can cause several impairments to your physical health, including eye strain and sleeping problems. Catching up with your friends over a coffee date instead of a FaceTime call, or going for a hike instead of scrolling through Instagram, are great alternatives to help alleviate the decline of your physical health due to excessive screen time.
Mental Benefits:
Ever feel insecure, jealous, or lonely after seeing a post on social media? Have a fear of missing out? Feel pressured to look a certain way? If you answered yes to any of these questions, it is most likely because of your smartphone! Especially through social media, but also through texts and emails, several teens and adults can feel left out or not good enough, and constantly having your head in your phone worsens these feelings. Spending less time exposed to these photos, texts, and posts will help clear your mind of any negative thoughts and focus more on the positive.
Social Benefits:
It seems more and more people tend to just text someone instead of talk to them in person or even call them. This is leading to a lack of personal relationships and communication skills. Don’t let your phone stop you from engaging in in-person conversations and meeting up with friends and family more often.
Ways to Unplug from Your Phone:
Unplugging or reducing your screen time can be a lot simpler than it sounds. Here are some ideas to take some time off from your daily screen time and some activities you can complete instead of scrolling:
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putting your phone away or on silent
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designating a tech free time or place
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having a tech bedtime
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taking a break from social media
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committing to zero technology the first hour you are awake
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going old school (flip phone instead of smartphone)
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read a book or keep a journal instead of scrolling
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involve your friends
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live in the moment
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leave your phone behind when you go somewhere
I hope these facts and ideas encourage you to spend a little less time plugged in and more time enjoying the screen-free world around you!