DAWN'S DIARY

This past Sunday, I participated in a challenge for my Media Literacy class in which I went four hours without any devices– no phone, no iPad, no digital watch, not even my AirPods. The one exception I made was my MacBook for academic work, but knowing I couldn’t trust myself, I used Lockdown Browser to ensure that I wouldn’t get tempted.

To ensure that I wouldn’t be left bored, I made myself a to-do list, which mostly consisted of chores and homework assignments.

This challenge was a stressful experience, but it was necessary for me since I am certainly a phone addict. According to my phone’s data last week, I averaged 10 hours and 22 minutes a day on my phone. If I did the math correctly, that would mean that if I lived to eighty and continued to average the same amount on my phone weekly, 26 years, or 42% of the years I have left, would’ve been spent looking at a screen. Although my screen time certainly beats out the average person, many in society are still tethered to their phones for an unhealthy amount. According to Magnet ABA Therapy, the average American spends around 7 hours a day looking at their phone, which is nearly half of a person’s waking hours.

During this challenge, I spent a majority of my time knocking tasks off of my to-do list such as doing my laundry, writing cards to friends from home, completing assignments, and cleaning my room. Although I was able to distract myself for the most part, the most infuriating aspect of this challenge was not the lack of scrolling, but rather the lack of music. Without realizing it, I spend much of my day with my AirPods in my ear; I’ll put them in first thing when I wake up and I’ll fall asleep with them in at night. Forcing myself to listen to the hum of the heater and the sound of my own thoughts was torturous; this horrible feeling lasted till the very end. Not to mention, I recognized how short my attention span was; I used to be able to sit for hours on end, in silence, concentrating on my assignments, but I found myself constantly fidgeting and being distracted by the smallest disturbance in sound.

Luckily, I was able to brave the four hours successfully. Truthfully, looking back on the experience, I’m glad I was not only able to step out of my comfort zone, but cut the rope that had me tethered to my phone 24/7; the benefits I received from this challenge were both physical and mental. For example, while in the laundry room, I typically scroll on my phone or listen to music on my AirPods whenever I’m waiting for a washer or dryer. However, for once, I was forced to look up and actually look at my surroundings; I was able to make friends with two different girls while waiting since I struck up conversations to pass the time. This made me recognize how my phone was affecting my overall college experience and relationships as I never recognized how isolated I was making myself simply by scrolling. 

Looking back on my experience and the lessons gained, I’m glad I was able to take a step back and truly reflect on what mattered most in life. I didn’t realize how detrimental my technology addiction was to not only myself, but also those around me. Not to mention, my addiction to scrolling has ruined my attention span and my former ability to sit in silence; whether we like to admit it or not, with the introduction and advancement of technology, we’re constantly being stimulated and our brains have become addicted to it. According to a study by Dr. Gloria Mark of the University of California, Irvine, “…in 2004, the average attention span on any screen was two and a half minutes. By 2012, this had changed to one minute and 15 seconds, and in the last five or six years, the average has been 47 seconds.”

However, as is with many other addictions, we’re able to bounce back. For me, I definitely think my first step was doing this challenge as it allowed me to truly see how severe the problem was. Going forward, I strive to create more connections face-to-face as not even my phone could replace how much joy that brought me; as a society, it’s time to put the phone down and look up.