Techniques for Happier Screen Time
Originally published in The Nugget newspaper, Sisters, Ore. Aug 2018.
Part Five of a series.
By T. Lee Brown
Are you mired in Facebook depression, falling down rabbit holes of political news, losing sleep to Netflix and YouTube? Are Snapstreaks and Epic Tavern more important than exercising or keeping your grades up? Yeah, you’ve got a problem.
Even if it connects you with friends far away, even if following the play-by-play of Russian investigations makes you feel like a good citizen — excess device engagement drains your energy, time, and perspective. It’s hard to connect with real people or make positive political change without those precious resources. See related article in this issue.
The folks who design social media technologies and program addictive news call it “hijacking your brain.” (Disclosure: I myself have been known to work in marketing and media, and have worked in online content and community for over 25 years.) Here are a few techniques for reclaiming it.
1. Reduce Visibility
Out of sight, out of mind. When you’re on a diet, do you leave a candy dish on the counter? No, you’re too smart for that. Find a dark cubbyhole where you can plug in your phone, and leave it there except when you really need it.
Out in public or at home with family, pretend your phone habit is like a drug problem. Gotta do it? Don’t flaunt it. If enough people take this approach, our kids (and their grownups) will no longer think that glueing yourself to a screen and ignoring the world around you is normal and acceptable.
2. Take the Wait Until 8th Pledge
Parents: Worried that your kid will be the only one without an iPhone? Worry no more. Parents across America are signing the pledge to keep their kids off smartphones until eighth grade or later. (Flip phones and other basic phones for emergencies are still OK.) Register at www.waituntil8th.org and fill in your school’s info, or type in “Homeschool” for school name and Sisters 97759 for the city/ZIP. Encourage friends to sign up, too.
3. Schedule a “Digital Sabbath”
No, that doesn’t mean streaming Ozzy every Sunday. In many religious traditions, people take a weekly Sabbath Day for rest and reflection. For the non-religious, that might look more like walking along Wychus Creek with a friend. Sit down with your family and agree to try one day a week offline, for a month. Plan ahead to avoid logistical hassles. If a full day is too difficult, start smaller. Write a promise to each other, sign it, and hang it on your fridge. For example: “Sundays from noon onward, we’ll stay off our devices.”
3. Turn Off Notifications
To foil the corporations who are making money off your state of distraction, go into your device’s settings. Find notifications and turn them off. Now when you look at your device’s face, it won’t show you a million things you ought to be concerned about right now. Want to know whether track practice is running late? Click on your text message app and see if the coach texted. Try not to read all those other, irrelevant texts alongside it.
4. Try a Bummer Break
Pick the media that’s bumming you out most. Resolve to stay off it for a big chunk of time — a month, if you can; if not, try ten days. It takes more than a couple days to come out of the haze. Don’t replace your Bummer with a different game or app. Instead, find a real-life activity you can do when you’re bored or stressed (drinking doesn’t count). Ask friends and family to be supportive for this short period of time.
5. Learn from Cheating
Suppose you try to disengage — and find yourself slipping. First, know that you’re not alone. Habits are tough to break, and these technologies are intentionally engineered to cause addictive behaviors. Keep a little notebook on-hand to jot down notes about when you “cheat” and why. (Your notebook is also a handy replacement for grocery lists, etc., instead of having them on your distracting phone.) Note, especially, your mood. Were you hungry, bored, stressed, tired, or sad? Which app or notification hooked you in? Read through later on; patterns will emerge. Find out what triggers your worst screen-zombie habits.
6. Get Some Help
In the Wild West we like to think we’re independent cusses. But there’s no shame in helping a neighbor round up stray cattle. No shame in barn-raising and potlucks. No shame in talking to your doctor, pastor, or a counselor, either. Most bad habits play on our traumas and insecurities, relationship troubles and the stress of everyday life (not to mention deep existential angst). There’s no need to navigate all that alone.
Here in Sisters, professional therapy is available from Audry Van Howeling, M.N., of She Soars Psychiatry, who takes an integrative approach; Dr. George Mecouch, D.O., with a Jungian-focused practice; and Brianna Morzov, LCSW, of Sacred Space Counseling, who offers EMDR therapy. Reach out if you need to.
There’s more to come in The Nugget’s ongoing series about digital media, nature, and our health. Email us your tips and tricks for moderating screen time. If you give our tips a try — we’re interested in hearing how it goes. We can keep your real name out of the newspaper. Email freelance writer T, tiffany (at) plazm.com.
