5 Powerful Hacks For A Digital Detox That Sticks
The average person reaches for their phone about 150 times a day and spends more than 3 hours daily on their phones.
And the effects of that screen time are frightening from increased anxiety and depression to high blood pressure and low self-esteem.
Though you probably don’t even realize how long you spend online because social media apps are designed to be mind-numbingly addictive.
You might pick up your phone to quickly check a bistro’s opening hours. Then you look up and it’s 2 hours later.
Heavy social media use:
- kills your attention span
- impacts short-term memory
- impacts your sleep
- increases loneliness, obesity and depression
- reduces the quality of your real-life conversations
- triggers envy and resentment
- raises stress levels and anxiety
Managing your screen time is the single most powerful change you can make in your life.
Stepping away from your screen will make you a much happier, productive and grounded person.
A digital detox leads to:
- improved mental clarity
- better sleep
- increased productivity
- stronger real-life relationships
- stronger self-esteem
But how do you start a digital detox that actually works?
And where do you begin when even an hour away from your phone makes you restless?
I’ve struggled with social media addiction for years and I’ve tried all the different tips and hacks out there.
So here are the digital detox tips that actually work:
1. Start a digital detox journal
I used to spend 5-6 hours a day on social media, switching from one app to another to watch the news, scroll Reels and check if anyone replied to my comments.
I’d go to sleep and promise myself tomorrow would be different.
Then I’d wake up and automatically check my phone even before brushing my teeth. Scrolling was so automatic that I didn’t even remember what I promised myself last night.
But going cold turkey never really worked and felt too much like deprivation. It felt like going on a diet and then just thinking about nachos all day.
So what did actually work?
I started journaling in the mornings, even just for 10 minutes.
Journaling gave me something to do with my hands and replaced one automatic habit (scrolling) with another (writing).
Because if you don’t have an arsenal of activities up your sleeve to replace scrolling, chances are you’ll just fall back into scrolling as your default time-filler without even realizing it.
Use these journal prompts to uncover the deeper, underlying causes of your scrolling addiction:
- Recall your most recent social media scrolling session. What did you feel when you finally put your phone down? Jealousy that your friend is vacationing in Greece and you’re not? Frustration that your home doesn’t look like the DIY influencer’s?
- Write about your most embarrassing confessions when it comes to your smart phone. Do you eat meals while watching YouTube shorts? Do you scroll in the bathroom?
- How do you feel when you see others scrolling nonstop in public? Describe how it feels to see a group of friends gathered over a meal and hunched over their phones.
- Reminisce about a time you weren’t glued to your phone and describe how good it felt. Maybe you were on vacation on a beach that had no WiFi. Maybe you were hiking and enjoying the scenery without posting photos of the landscapes.
- What have you neglected because you’ve been scrolling? Is your home cluttered because you keep telling yourself you’ll clean it this weekend? Do you have errands to run that you keep putting off?
2. Track your screen time
Ask yourself how much time you really spend online. Maybe you’d guesstimate that you spend 1 or 2 hours scrolling.
I can guarantee that you’re vastly underestimating how many hours you spend on your phone. At the height of my social media addiction, when I spent 5 or 6 hours online, I would have probably told you I don’t scroll for more than a couple of hours.
Download a screen time tracker that’s going to tell you, in a no-nonsense objective way, how much time you really spend scrolling.
Surprise surprise!
It’s going to shock you. But it’s a good kind of shock that will also motivate you to finally start taking control of your time.
I use the StayFree app and I highly recommend it. But there are dozens of similar apps that will track your screentime with minute-by-minute precision.
3. Imagine a different life
Take the hours you spend online and ask yourself what else you could have done with all that time?
It’s depressing and even infuriating. But the truth will set you free.
Now imagine the person you’d be right now if you spent all those hours differently. Imagine the books you could have read, the projects you could have tackled, the wholesome fun you could have had.
Imagine the art, the deep relationships, the home-cooked meals, the evenings at the local park, the online classes, the hobbies, ambitions and dreams.
Let yourself feel those feelings of regret and frustration. Because those feelings are catalysts for real, life-lasting changes.
Spend 20 minutes journaling and let yourself feel those thoughts. Write whatever comes to mind and don’t stop writing until 20 minutes is up.
Here are some journal prompts:
- Make a list of 5 new things you’d love to try.
- Describe your perfect slow phone-free morning routine. How would you greet the day?
- Describe your perfect slow phone-free evening routine. How would you end your day in a peaceful way?
4. Don’t make excuses
How are you going to keep up with your local book club if you miss their Instagram posts?
Social media brings lots of goodness into your life. It connects you with friends, family and other like-minded people.
And that might be true.
But ask yourself: do you really need 3 hours a day to reap all those benefits?
How many recipes have you actually made from the countless food accounts you follow? How many crafty projects have you actually tackled from the artsy accounts you follow?
Don’t justify hours of online time by telling yourself you’re learning or getting inspired.
Get back into procuring richer knowledge through long-form content like books, documentaries, libraries and real-life lectures.
5. Get back on the wagon
Don’t use that accidental 3-hour scrolling binge through YouTube Shorts as an excuse to give up.
Don’t tell yourself you’re not disciplined enough to manage your screen time. Take your lapse in stride and learn how to recover quickly.
Because there’s a lot at stake. Your mental health, your relationships and your very life are on the line. And that’s worth fighting for.
Forgive yourself because a short lapse or two is inevitable in a world where everything revolves around screens.
Use your relapse as a learning experience to better understand yourself.
Think about the last time you binged on social media after a period of controlled calm. What motivated you to binge? Were you feeling bored or anxious?
Read next:
10 Best Slow Living Magazines (To Inspire You)
54 Life-Changing Simple Living Quotes (To Inspire You)
9 Essential Tips To Make A Vision Board (That Really Works)
Reclaim your life from the digital noise.
Join my one-day Analog Workshop to get practical resources and interactive sessions to help you close the screen, defeat distraction and design an intentional life.
