The corporate world now requires us to be on the go all the time. With the rise in use of digital devices, we tend to stay connected to our work even beyond our work hours. This further blurs the lines between our work and personal lives. The adverse effects this constant exposure to devices has on our health are plenty. Thus the need for a digital detox and knowing what a digital detox is, is now imminent.
Benefits of a digital detox
A digital detox can work wonders for your physical and mental health. These benefits can greatly help in getting rid of exhaustion and tiredness that we often experience. A handful of those benefits are as follows:
1. Digital detox increases your productivity
With the average user opening their phones up to 58 times a day, it is easy to see how much time we waste on our devices everyday. It is often experienced that time passes too quickly when we are deep into the rabbit hole of our devices. But only if we let go of these and practice a digital detox, will we realize that we have enough free time on our hands. Thus a digital detox can be a tool for productivity and also increase time efficiency.
Another way the digital technology affects our productivity is by posing as yet another distraction for our minds. The constant ping of messages and emails disturbs our focus, thus reducing our productivity levels. But in the fear of missing out on urgent emails, one might be apprehensive to stop all notifications. This issue can be solved using the email management app, Mailman, whose VIP feature is a solution to your woes. Read more here to know how.
2. Improves your health
Various health issues associated with wanton use of devices and screen time have been a subject of study. The regular use of screens has an impact on our health even beyond tiredness and exhaustion. These long term effects can be avoided with a digital detox.
Prolonged exposure to the screen can have drastic effects on our eyes, including chronic dry eyes and loss of focus. With the posture that most devices require us to sit in, long term effects are seen on our posture, causing pain in our lower back and hips. The heightened sense of stress and anxiety is also attributed to screen time and device usage.
3. Digital detox helps in being more content
The constant usage of devices and the curse of social media that comes with it, makes us subjected to negative feelings. With people sharing the best moments of their lives, it is easy to feel lesser than them. Along with this, the feelings of comparison and discontent follow. Unplugging ourselves from these devices, and thus social media, can help us regain perspective and joy in our own lives.
Another aspect of devices hampering our feelings of content, is in the lower productivity levels. As we spend more and more time on social media, we tend to work for longer hours to meet our work goals. This eventually leads to lower productivity levels and lower time efficiency. This too can make us feel dissatisfied with ourselves.
4. Live beyond your work
We are now connected 24*7 to our work and colleagues due to our devices. And with the emergence of working from home, it can be very difficult to form hard boundaries between our work and personal life. This in turn keeps us thinking about work all day as we are “in touch” with our work even after hours. This leads us to lose connection with our loved ones and our lives beyond our work. A digital detox is hence very necessary for our mental health.
Disconnecting entirely during our work hours can be difficult. A deep work method tip is to drown out the noise of our devices to focus singularly on a task at hand. Putting our notifications off for a period of time can help in this case. Using apps like Mailman to receive your emails after your digital detox can be of great help.
5. Rest better with a digital detox
Sleep is essential for the body and brain to replenish its energy supplies for the challenges of the day. A hormone called melatonin is responsible for the sleep cycle of the body. A lack of this hormone would disturb the body and its sleep patterns. High amounts of screen time has been found to disturb the melatonin levels in the body.
The effect of devices on our sleep is seen especially when we use the devices right before we go to sleep. The blue light emitted by the screens interferes with melatonin secretion and thus with the possibility of peaceful sleep. With digital detoxes, you will immediately notice the quality of your sleep improving as you refrain from using digital devices.
A digital detox is what you need
Digital detox is a necessity in our daily lives. With the above physical and mental health benefits insight, a detox might come as a much-needed blessing. These benefits not only help us live healthily but also help us live a more happy and content life.
A digital detox is a period of time where you cut off from all digital devices and platforms, including the internet, to reduce stress and focus on your wellbeing.
Digital detox is a good idea as it has many benefits like:
1. Better productivity
2. Better physical and mental health
3. Feel more content
4. Live beyond your screens
5. Rest better
Digital detoxes can be as long as one wants. A period as short as half day might destress some people while some might desire a few days.
September 5 is observed as the Digital Detox Day to encourage people to plug off from the digital world.
