A friend once commented to me that I was 'always on my phone' and it jolted me into reflecting on that throwaway comment. Being radically honest with myself I realised he was right! I was on my phone constantly ~ scrolling in bed morning and evening, constantly checking my phone, even in the presence of friends and social gatherings. I vowed to change this habit immediately as I recognised I had fallen into bad habits!
I committed to not scrolling in bed, turning my phone & wifi off at night, and not looking at it until I was up an hour and instead spent this hour upon waking journaling, meditating and spending time outdoors catching the morning light. I also adjusted notifications to just essential apps.
The difference I felt in myself was incredible, I had not realised how much my phone usage was affecting me. I felt better ~ more motivated, more energy, more focused, more present, less anxious and I experienced a more elevated mood. I was in shock at just how detrimental it had been on my overall sense of wellbeing and even more fascinating to me was that I had not even noticed until I experienced a new way of relating to my phone.
Roughly 60% to 80% of adults frequently use screens right before bed, and studies consistently show that between 38% and 65% of those users suffer from sleep disturbances directly linked to their late-night screen habits.
This is having a huge impact on quality of sleep by causing spikes in adrenalin and dopamine, triggering psychological alertness and interrupting your circadian rhythm, degrading sleep quality (and contributing to the wider problems lack of sleep can cause).
Three tips to practice better phone or device hygiene:
#1
Turn off your WIFI, your phone or put it into airplane mode during sleeptime
#2
Activate your screen’s red light mode after darkness falls and avoid looking at your screen for an hour before bed and upon waking
#3
Turn off notifications on non essentials apps to reduce noise and activity on your screen
I invite you to reflect - could your phone or device usage be negatively affecting you too? If so, the three tips shared can help to get you started on a better relationship with your phone!
Let me know your thoughts, or is there anything you would add ?
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