Teresa Bau
Journalist with a curious mind
“Do you feel the need to scroll your Twitter, Instagram or Facebook timeline every five minutes? Do you answer every Whatsapp message nearly straight away? Do you find it hard to focus and feel the need to check your phone to see if someone liked your last post? If the answer to these questions is yes, it means you are addicted to tech and that you should go on a digital diet. “
Science and technology reporter Daniel Sieberg recommends in his famous book “The digital diet” a 4-step plan to break our tech addiction and reconnect with our real lives.
First step is to Think: consider the emotional and mental effect that technology has in your life.
Second step is to Step Back from the device and switch off from your virtual life. You can start with one day and try a whole weekend later.
Third step is to restore the relationships that have been harmed by the technology in your life.
Fourth step is to learn how to live with technology in a healthy way, by spending just the necessary time in your virtual world. We should be aware of the time that we spend using our mobile phone (Apple devices show the daily and weekly screen time).
These four steps, according to Sieberg, will allow us to reconnect and to improve our communication with family, friends and work colleagues.
Some of my friends and I took up a digital diet for a couple of weeks and learnt a few important things:
- My stress levels go down when I am not using the mobile phone
- I am not missing important information if I am not connected
- My concentration and memory improves
- I have a more restful sleep
- I have more quality time with my partner, children and friends
- I enjoy my free time more
Going device-free might be hard but in my experience is totally worth it. You don’t have to quit your virtual life for good, but cutting your technology addiction and enjoying the real world is a really great discovery.
Teresa Bau.
