How to Unplug

In a digital age where each and every one of us is expected to engage online, sometimes it can get to be too much. We see things, we hear things, and we are exposed to opinions, news, and false information. This can be for the good, as we can be anyone we want to be. On the other hand, we are human beings and not the screens we are behind, so these online activities affect us all differently. 

I am a huge advocate for mental health and taking care of yourself, so this week I would like to promote the option of unplugging. Although this can be easier said than done, let’s list a few steps that can help us get there!

1.  Literally Log Off

• This goes back to what I said about unplugging being easier said than done, but I decided to include it to help anyone who feels like they can’t. For starters, you can announce it. This week, someone I follow on Instagram announced that they were not going to be online due to the news of the tragic passing of the 9 individuals who died in the helicopter crash, including basketball legend Kobe Bryant and his daughter Gianna Bryant. You can do that too! You can sign off the same way you signed up for the application even if other people are not. 

1. Forget about F.O.M.O.

• The acronym that stands for “Fear of Missing Out” is a very real thing. In order to unplug, you need to forget about that acronym and realize that although you may not be catching certain posts in “real time” on your timeline, you are catching more of your own “real time,” and that is just as important—if not more. 

1. Do the Self Care thing

• “It’s called self care…” Whatever it is that makes you happy, provides positive distraction and productiveness, or overall just makes you feel good, is what you should do to fill the time you spent plugged in. This could be as simple as reading a good book while wearing a face mask, binging your favorite show while wearing a face mask, or eating your favorite meal while wearing a face mask— I think what I’m really getting at here is that everything is better with a face mask. 

But in all seriousness, whatever it is that helps you is what you should do. So go ahead, label it self care, forget about your fear of not being involved online, and just log off and take care of yourself.