‘Wasted Hours and Tired Eyes’: How to Start a Digital Detox and Detach from Your Phone

By Lauren Green

Most of us have a love/hate relationship with our phones. I mean, they're brilliant, right? We can access whatever we want in a few clicks, take photos and edit them in seconds, and keep up to date with anyone, anytime. But having everything within reach means that we find it hard to be without it. At times we may find ourselves reaching for our phone without knowing what we're picking it up for. Then after wasted hours and tired eyes, we resent ourselves.

A few years back, I was stuck in a complete rut and was generally quite miserable because I wasn't where I wanted to be in life. I turned to social media for entertainment, and though I told myself I was looking for tips and motivation to try and get out of the hole I had fallen into, I ended up down a different hole – a rabbit hole – and was comparing myself to others without realising.

After checking my social media usage, I was disgusted to find that I had spent at least 8 hours a day on social media platforms. One day in particular I spent 10 hours and 45 minutes on Instagram and TikTok alone; I couldn't remember a single post I had seen. What a waste of time. I knew I had to detach myself from it and find better ways to spend my downtime.

Limit your notifications

Apps love to send us notifications to draw us back in and increase our usage. Go through the apps you've downloaded, and if it's something you've not used in a while and are unlikely to use again, delete it. If it's something that you're likely to use but isn't essential to you, turn off notifications. When you're constantly being bothered by pointless notifications, even if you're not taking action for the app that's grabbed your attention in the first place, looking at your phone increases your chances of picking it up and beginning the never-ending scroll. Limit your distractions and you'll find yourself reaching for it less.

Assign phone-free areas around your home

You don't need to use your phone while eating. Make the dinner table a phone-free zone so that you can enjoy your meal more mindfully and take time to relax while you eat, especially if you have family or friends around the table with you – have a more intimate conversation!

Give yourself a time limit for aimless scrolling

I get it. You get bored and need to fill some time, or else you'll be staring into space. We all pick up our phones and scroll through social media or a shopping platform when we're feeling fidgety. That's completely fine if there's nothing else you need to do or if you're relaxing. However, if you find yourself doing it often in the middle of the day, knowing you have a long to-do list and are putting off important tasks, then you need to be strict with yourself if you're looking to break the habit.

When you feel the urge to grab your phone and have an aimless scroll to occupy you, check what time it is and allow yourself a set amount of time (say 10 minutes) to browse. Afterwards, get back to what you need to do. You can keep repeating this whenever you need to take a break.

Put your 'do not disturb' option on auto

I often find myself picking up my phone for no reason at all. However, I find that when you put your phone on do not disturb mode, and all notifications are hidden, it helps limit the urge to grab it. Depending on your phone's settings, you can set up schedules for sleeping, driving etc., so your phone will automatically be put on do not disturb mode for that period.

My phone is set to go on do not disturb at 9 pm every night, and after that time I try (very hard) not to pick it back up again until the next morning. Yes, we could all just turn it off, but we all use our phones for our alarm, right?

Reignite your passion for a hobby

Whether it's reading, drawing, doing DIY or self-care, if there's something you love that's easy enough to get on with in your free time, reach for that instead of your phone. I used to choose my phone over a hobby as it's always more accessible, but since rediscovering my love for books, I always have a book at hand so I can pick it up whenever I have a spare moment.

To me, reading a book will never waste my time as it's something I always enjoy and either learn or am inspired by, and that goes for any hobby. If you enjoy it more than scrolling for the sake of it, then choose it!

Some of these tips may sound easy, but the hard part is sticking to them. If you're serious about starting a digital detox, then gradually implement the tips above. You'll be breaking up with your phone before you know it!