Welcome to this Technology Detox practice to support your ability to unwind after work.
I'm Mary Beth Hyland,
Workplace Culture Consultant and Teacher here on Insight Timer.
Today,
I'll be reading an excerpt from my book,
Permission to be Human,
To illuminate a new possibility for your sense of well-being and wellness from both the start and the end of the day.
Take a Technology Detox.
The facts are heavy.
71% of smartphone users usually sleep with their device in immediate reach and unlock their phone 150 times a day.
Two out of every three people are addicted to their phones,
Which means 66% of the world's population is in fear of living without their cell phone.
All of this and more is correlated to smartphone use and depression.
We must disconnect from technology to reconnect to our humanity,
Truly.
We are not built to be staring at computer screens for extended periods of time.
We are not built to be on Zoom all day long or scrolling on social media for hours on end,
Comparing ourselves to others.
We must draw a hard line in the sand to determine what we need as individuals to be well and not consumed by technology.
Consider these four tips.
One,
Set a boundary where you don't start to look at your phone until after you've been awake and taken care of your own needs for at least an hour.
Consider having it turned off completely or on do not disturb or airplane mode.
Two,
Find a quitting time each day where tech is off at a specific time,
No exceptions.
This especially includes work emails when they are truly not an emergency.
Three,
Take retreats or vacations where you commit to divorcing from your tech while you're away.
I often choose to go on retreats into the beautiful mountains of Idaho where I'm completely off the grid so I can't cheat and check in when my ego starts to nag at me to see what else is going on in the world.
Four,
Create an ongoing habit to reconnect to nature so you unwind and detox from daily screen time.
Mother nature is one of the best ways to disconnect from technology to reconnect to your humanity.
Research shows that just 10 minutes of natural setting helps people feel happier and lessens the effects of both physical and mental stress.
Spending more time in green spaces is linked to reduced levels of the stress hormone cortisol,
Lower heart rate,
Reduced risk of coronary heart disease,
Lower blood pressure,
Lower cholesterol,
Reduced risk of type 2 diabetes,
Reduced all cause,
Mortality,
And death from heart disease.
Pretty amazing,
Right?
It's what happens when we return to our natural state.
As humans,
We are an expression of nature.
Being one with nature is innate to us,
Yet many of us have become completely disconnected from that truth,
Especially when we live in places like bustling cities that don't have a lot of accessible nature nearby.
Many people think that they're too busy to prioritize time and nature,
Or maybe they don't think they like it.
If you happen to fall into those categories,
Know that nothing is wrong with you.
Meet yourself where you are and take baby steps to see what might be like and how you might benefit from it.
Perhaps you'd consider an outdoor walking meeting instead of a usual office space.
Or maybe you can take your lunch at a park and eat there by yourself or with others.
It's always your choice on how you use your breaks.
Whatever you choose,
Mother Nature will be there to support you in disconnecting from technology to reconnect to your humanity,
Especially as you unwind after the end of the day.
Remember that you have the power to choose how you engage with technology.
You get to set boundaries and keep them,
And you get to decide what to stop,
Start,
And shift as a result of choosing a life that reflects your values and leaves you feeling filled and not drained.
The choice is always yours.
A simple walk,
Smelling a flower,
Sitting down under a tree.
These are all ways you can choose to detox from technology to end your day and move into a state of rest and well-being.
This is Mary Beth Hyland reminding you to take a technology detox so that you can give yourself and others permission to be human.
