72 Hours Experience Of Digital Detox Challenge

Finally, I decided to take up the challenge. Just 72 hours, what’s the big deal, or so I thought.

Before starting the digital detox challenge, the setup process took up a long time. I had to plan out everything to make sure I won’t have to use any gadgets for the following few days. 

I scheduled my posts, texted my closed ones not to contact me for three days (most of them thought I was going crazy), replied to all emails, and so on.

So let’s begin my 72 hours personal experience in digital detox, shall we?

Topics we’ll be covering:

• Day 1
• Day 2
• Day 3
• How did I feel after this digital detox?
• Lessons I learned
• Recommendation

Day 1

Wake up time – 9:00 (usually at 8:00)

Can you really blame me for waking up late? No phone, no alarm!

I spent most of the time reading How To Stop Worrying And Start Living. I got tired after reading for hours. Then I started observing my surroundings (I had just realized that the color of my wall is white…hmm interesting). 

After feeling extremely bored doing non-habitual activities, I checked on my journal book. Nothing much was going through my mind, I decided not to write anything. Instead, I went through my old ones. Bringing back my memories gave me a feeling of nostalgia, which I had not had for a long time.  

Finally, at night time, I went to one of my friend’s rooms. We talked for a while before playing some games. I tried to teach him chess, but he got bored within a few minutes (can you really blame him though?). So we moved onto childish games such as hangman and tic tac toe. I had even forgotten their rules that my friend had to teach me!

The first day was the hardest day of all. The addiction to social media had provoked me to use them. But all thanks to my willpower for fighting it.

Sleep time – 11:00 PM (usually at 1:00) – I learned that having nothing to do can make us fall asleep in no time. 

“You can take all the pictures you want, but you can never relive the moment the same way.” 

Audrey Regan, editor of Business Statistics

Day 2

Wake up time – 7:30 AM – Much better, felt fresh after sleeping for a long time.

Right after waking up, I felt the urge to remain silent. So I decided to meditate as long as I could go. I wanted to challenge myself to calm my mind. With a lot of hustling and bustling, I managed to squeeze in a forty-minute meditation. I can’t remember the last time I meditated for such a long time.

Skipping breakfast, I moved onto our garden. I took off my slippers and felt the grass with my bare feet. Indeed, it was a pleasant experience. I lied down to observe the sky, more importantly, the clouds moving. I then took a smell of all the plants available there. It felt so refreshing so connecting that I got goosebumps. 

Later, as I could not think of doing anything else, I reorganized all my stuff. This was boring, but at least, I was occupied. I cleaned my room and managed my cupboard items. I even found the clock that was gifted by my friends on my birthday, which I still had not used (I’m sorry if you are reading this).

The second day went well. I got so busy that I did not get a chance to think about using my gadgets.

Sleep time – 11:30 PM – Acceptable, I guess

“More connections to more devices means more vulnerabilities.”

Marc Goodman, Global Security Advisor and Chair for Policy and Law at Singularity University 

Day 3

Wake up time – 7:45 AM – Woke up from the bird’s chirping. The perfect start to the day.

Even though I wanted to meditate early in the morning, I did not want to repeat my activities for this digital detox experience. So I decided to do yoga!

I had no clue how yoga was to be done. I remember watching a few videos earlier where they used to put their body in weird positions. So I tried the same. I attempted to put my legs on the top of my neck. Despite many attempts, I failed miserably (I even got a bit of hamstring in the process, ouch!) I then moved on to the basic stuff. Stretching my body, doing the butterfly position, bridge pose, and a few more. I was proud of myself for not failing the basic yoga, at least. Yay! I celebrated my small victory by having some chocolates.

Moving on, I thought about writing an article for our blog. I could not use my laptop, so where should I write? And what if I have to research my topic? Without the internet, was it even possible? 

I brought my exercise book and pen. I decided to write about our new article – MAJOR UPDATE: Going To Stop Writing About Investments. That topic had been on my mind for a while, so this was the perfect opportunity to express my feelings. I got sad many times while writing it. To avoid possible emotional breakdown, I distracted myself with a short walk. Anyways, it did not take me long to finish the article. 

P.S. Later, typing the article on the laptop was so hectic. I made so many mistakes while typing because I was unable to understand my own handwriting!

Having nothing to do, I decided to play chess by myself. It was the only option to keep myself busy. I played moves for white as well as black. Yeah, I know it’s funny, isn’t it? I mean, who plays chess by himself!

So how did I feel after this digital detox?

I felt so good for controlling myself on not using the technology for 72 hours. If you noticed, I haven’t included my sleeping time for the 3rd day. That’s because I slept only on the 4th day. I waited for the clock to be 12 so that I could use my phone. I mean, I deserve this reward, don’t I? 

All in all, I felt much better after accomplishing this feat. I learned about myself a lot during this time.

Lessons I learned

1. Use of willpower – By forcing myself not to use gadgets for 3 days, I built up my willpower strength. 
2. New experiences – I tried new activities during this time, such as yoga and observing my surroundings. Sometimes, having new experiences is all that it takes to make you happy.
3. Stress management – With my laptop and phone in my hands, I used to check my email and social media constantly throughout the day. All of my stress disappeared during the digital detox as I wasn’t virtually connected. Rather, I was physically connected, which is what really matters. Not only my stress, but this detox helped me deal with my negative emotions as well.

“We live today not in the digital, not in the physical, but in the kind of minestrone that our mind makes of the two.”

Paola Antonelli, senior curator in the Department of Architecture and Design at The Museum of Modern Art

Recommendation 

This was a tough one, I got to admit. But a well-worth one. I would love to take another digital detox in the next month as well. In fact, I might even make it a once a month habit. 

I had wished that I had known about the digital detox challenge when I was starting out my personal development journey.

If you feel you are addicted to your gadgets, then this is certainly a to-do for you. It will not only give you a break from the digital world but also it will make you rethink about your life. As you will give time to yourself, you will be able to reflect on your past and plan for your future similarly.