Quitting Facebook for 99 days
A new study claims the secret to being happier is quitting Facebook for 99 Days. According to the study, the average user would regain more than 28 hours of their life back. The challenge encourages users to sign up, change their profile photo, and remove the Facebook app from their phone. While a good idea in theory, how realistic is it?
Yes, people wonder what life is like without Facebook, but people are less likely to take permanent action to remove themselves from technology. Taking a summer detox is a great idea, but you don’t need to completely extricate yourself from social media to detox. Only 25,000 of Facebook’s 1 billion users have vowed to do this detox. It is too severe for the average Facebook user.
Are you too dependent on social media platforms? Here are some tips to unplug.
Social Media Detox Alternative:
Detox from social media platforms in moderation. Here’s how.
1. During family trips, put down your devices and focus on being present this summer. It is beneficial to spend time with your loved ones, especially when there is a generation divide on how social media may be used in your family.
2. On weekends, check email only when necessary (1x per day). Detoxing is beneficial for your health in moderation. It helps you reboot. The more you unplug, you re-energize for the upcoming week ahead.
3. Update your status and filter your photos on Sunday evening vs. during actual events. Detoxing from social media during events will help you form stronger interpersonal relationships. Focus on being social vs. on sharing how social you are on social media.
4. Do not become overly dependent on one form of social media to fulfill certain needs or goals. Download a news app to get your news instead of relying on social media platforms for your primary source of news coverage.
5. Set a timer. You can set daily timers on your phone in settings for how long you would like to be Facebook and Instagram. Setting them for 30 minutes each day will allow you to monitor your screen time. You can also strictly set an Instagram time limit on the app itself.
6. Check your screen time. At the end of the day, see how long you spent on your phone and which social media apps you have been spending the most time on. If you are aware of which apps you have become dependent on, you can slowly start to cut back.
