5 Ways To Disconnect From Technology

Technology has become an integral part of everyday lives. Especially this past year, it’s been essential to stay connected to friends, family and colleagues through devices. While there are plenty of positives to tech, there’s no doubt society has a dependency on it. Technology keeps us stimulated, feeding us new information at all times. We believe moderation is key to navigating technology in our lives. It’s important to find ways to disconnect, take time off and set boundaries. Unplugging gives our mind (and therefore, our body) time to recover from all of the information coming at us each day.

5 Ways to Mindfully Disconnect:

Keep Artificial Blue Light at Bay

Artificial blue light that comes from screens – phones, computers, iPad, televisions, LED lights, you name it – is unnatural. This blue light actually strains our eyes and releases cortisol, aiding in stress, anxiety and sleep cycle disruption. Reducing exposure to artificial blue light is crucial to our body’s natural sleep cycle. Our blog 4 Steps to Get More Sleep Tonight gives tips on ways to decrease blue light in everyday life. All in all, we suggest keeping electronics out of the bedroom completely to reduce your exposure and disturbance. Making the bedroom an electronics-free zone will create an oasis for restful and healthy sleep, the backbone to good health and wellness!

Turn off WiFi at Night

Various studies have shown electromagnetic fields (EMF) that come from WiFi can have a negative effect on our bodies¹. While we cannot completely prevent exposure to WiFi in our everyday lives, we can reduce or eliminate it at nighttime. When we sleep with WiFi on, a signal may interfere with our brains’ sleep cycle. Make it a practice to turn off the WiFi router at night to limit exposure to radiation or wireless EMF. Better yet, use the internet via a wired connection instead of WiFi. As a bonus, turn phones on airplane mode (even if it’s in the next room over).

Check out Tech Wellness’ research page for a plethora of educational articles on the harmful effects of EMF.

Be Conscious of Headphones

Be cognizant of taking your headphones out whenever you are not actively using them to let your ears breathe! Our ears were not created to be plugged. When you must wear them, choose anti-radiation, wired headphones if you can, keeping EMF as far away from the brain as possible. I use the Tauki Wired Headphones that include Air Tube Technology, which keeps you protected from radiofrequency radiation and EMF coming from your device. Also, no matter the headphones, maintain a comfortable volume level. We can seriously damage our ears if we listen to anything too loudly for long periods of time.

Make Tech-Free Times Part of Your Daily Routine.

You’ve heard this before but here it is again – don’t reach for phones first thing in the morning. Start your day calmly. Make morning coffee and get ready for the day without the stimulation of your phone letting stress creep in. During the day, set aside specific times to be technology-free. If you’re working on a computer all morning, make sure lunchtime is free of screens. Chances are you’ll come back refreshed and ready to knock out the afternoon. Make an effort to avoid using your phone when you have the opportunity to be with another person. Uninterrupted face to face conversation is too valuable to waste! Keeping family dinner phone-free is important in our house, turning all devices on silent so we aren’t tempted by beeps and notifications. We also power down all devices 1-2 hours before bed to help the mind destress and unwind².

Set Clear Screen-Time Boundaries.

Utilize iPhone’s screen-time limits or download a tracking app to set boundaries for yourself on apps that suck up your time. While social media is an amazing tool to connect with others (as we LOVE connecting with you!) it is best to set boundaries so mindless scrolling and constant stimulation of new information doesn’t get out of hand. I try to keep my phone on airplane mode in the morning to give myself space to wake up without my eyes on a screen. And then, my goal is typically to allow Instagram 15 minutes a day of my time, and no more.

Most of the time we don’t even realize how staring at a screen for so long is affecting our well being until we disconnect and feel a deep sense of relief and clarity. Digital burnout is real and can be avoided only by parting with our devices. Stay mindful and use technology in moderation. Disconnecting allows you to be present and provides more time for the things in life that truly matter.