Last week as part of the ongoing protests in this country we were asked to do a social media free week. Some of my friends said why just one week when they have already signed off of social media.
With this blog and family that lives far away, on the other coast, Facebook has helped me to stay a little bit connected to them although not as much as when I first started on the site. I belong to groups and I have friends that it is fun to stay in touch with. In many ways it has made life easier yet it is also addicting and often takes up a too much of my day.
Then you add Instagram and Threads and other social media groups and it can become quite time consuming and well, addicting. I was willing to give a Social Media free week a try.
I signed off of all sites on May seventh and did not return until the twelfth of the month. Here is what I found. Much to my surprise I did not miss any of them. I had more time to do things that needed to get accomplished. I read a little more and had more time to ponder and enjoy my environment.
May 12th I signed back on and my behavior towards these platforms has changed. I don’t check them several times a day and I don’t want to. I am considering after the Roadtrek Rally on Vancouver Island, of enacting a Facebook Friday. I would like to think that I can leave this behind except for one day a week.
I am currently listening to a book “The Age of Magical Overthinking”. The author mentions how her generation (much younger than me) expects everything right away as that is how all social platforms keep you addicted. Is it really important to know the news immediately when it happens? Is going to the headlines every time one gets a ping on their phone important? How does that change ones life? Can’t it wait until later or tomorrow or a few days. How much is that news going to change your life at that moment?
She also states in the book, that research has shown that when we get all this information all the time peoples adrenaline remains on hyper-alert all the time. When a person might need that adrenaline it becomes slower to respond.
I gave up listening to the news after the 2016 election. So much of it was mean and hateful and divisive so I gave it up.
About two years later I decided to at least read the daily headlines so I got the New York Times headlines in my mailbox every day. When I was in Hawaii for two months this past winter I did not look at them at all. I decided I wanted to really be on vacation, slow down and enjoy the moment. Now that I have returned stateside I read the headlines every day. I find myself shaking my head often and my stress level has risen.
It is time to change that up as well. I want to live as stress free as I can. I want to be able to support and help others but when I am stressed out how can I do that. How can I support and help myself?
The key is balance. It is time for me to find balance again in my life. As this world gets out of control and behaviors seem disheartening, I need to find a way to remember to breathe, take walks and enjoy the magic that is this world.
Was this a good week? Yes it was and I am glad that I decided to give it try. If the groups ask again as part of the ongoing protests I will dive in whole heartedly and go Social Media Free again. Life is just too short to live anxiously.
Today I am thankful for good challenges in my life. Today I am thankful I can continue to grow and change. Today I am thankful to remember to enjoy the beauty of what is around me.
Today I am Thankful.
Journeys of Thankfulness 