On the Bright Side: Look away from the screen

I have a pretty scary statistic for you. According to CNN the average American spends almost 10 hours on a screen a day. Whether that be a computer, phone, or tablet that is a lot of time looking a screen. I assume many people are constantly checking social media and watching Netflix. But does it not bother you that half of that time is spent on social media and movies? That is roughly 5 hours a day that you are mindlessly scrolling through Instagram or looking at memes on Twitter.

Now you may be saying to yourself, “Well, I am not the average American”. That’s a nice thought but if you have a smartphone, the likelihood of being on social media without even registering it is high. If you think that you are benefiting from all this social media, I’d like you to take a step back and truly recognize what you do on social media. Are you judging someone’s latest Facebook post? Are you watching a Vine compilation? Are you reading the comments section to see people argue?

Let’s say that every single person reads or listens to an information podcast for one hour a day. You screen time goes down a little bit and you benefit from it. If you mindlessly switch between apps when you are bored, I strongly recommend you do something else that will benefit your mental health. Maybe buy a crossword puzzle. Check out a book from the library. The library has some of the newest books in all genres and it is free. You have limitless literature at your fingertips. Or maybe reading isn’t your style. Find a podcast you can download and listen to. Yes, you need your phone to do this. But if you download it and set your phone away from you it will make easier to not pick it up. I realize that we live in a digital age. I know that we have to spend a certain amount of time on the computer for school and for work. But what is your excuse those 5 hours just moving your thumb across a screen? 

Take a moment and be honest with yourself. I know all of us would like to think we don’t spend a lot of time on our phones but we all do. Take a look at how much time you spend just scrolling. No real reason, just looking. Now think about what you could do instead of “just looking”. You could read that book series you’ve had on your shelf for two years. You could go for a run or do yoga. Really think, is one more episode is worth your long term mental health? I hope you don’t say yes. Take some time and evaluate how you could helping yourself wwby cutting back the time you spend watching Netflix and scrolling though social media.