Tips to detox your whole life
Hi all. OK, I thought I’d move away a little from the toxic stuff we find in the products we use and take a look at some of the other stuff that might need a clear-out!
Fist thing that springs to mind right now is what’s happening in our virtual / online world. For starters, there’s all the Coronavirus news that requires some filtering depending on your state of mind. It might be that you prefer to be informed, or if you’re the opposite and would rather not hear about it all of the time, it’s best to scroll past the constant updates.
Even in ‘normal’ life, I am one of those people that get overwhelmed if I can’t see the last email in my inbox, which means every time I check my emails, I sort out all the stuff I don’t have time to read that day. So, my inbox becomes my immediate to-do list and I file stuff away into “read later” or another folder if I need to keep it for my records, or if I think it’ll be an age before I get to it, I simply delete it!
Now I know not everyone operates in this way. Case in point, my husband. My darling beloved currently has 51,409 emails sitting in his inbox. And I assume those are only the un-read ones? I try not to ponder that for too long as it gives me conniptions. And I have suggested he create some folders so that when I ask him to find something I’ve sent him, he doesn’t have to search through a gazillion messages. But he assures me that this works just fine for him. And whom I am I to argue really?
The thing is, my husband is a remarkably calm individual and I don’t think he’s ever once stressed about unread emails…ever. He also has an uncanny ability to sweep any problem under the rug until it diminishes, goes away or eventually trips him up. I am not sure which pile these emails will end up in, but thank goodness, that’s not my problem!
But, I do think, that while we some of us have a little more time on hands, now is the perfect time to do a little clear out! If you haven’t already, start by creating folders, e.g. finances, kids school notifications, work folder, Amazon book folder (just me?), Medium articles, etc etc. Go on, it’s so satisfying. Then while you’re popping each message into the folder have a ponder about whether or not it’s still relevant or if in fact it’s something you ought to consider unsubscribing from? And while you’re at it, take a quick look at your ‘sent’ items and do the same there!
Then, once you’ve found yourself on a roll, take a look at your other folders on your computer and see what you can get rid of from there. Old work notes from the job you had 10 years ago? Scrap them. The seventy-billionty photographs of your dog or cat or first born? Now’s a great time to do a cull. Of the photos only obviously.
Doesn’t that feel great? Now you’ll have freed up a tonne of digital / cloud thingmy space and be able to find what you’re looking for far more easily next time you try.
Now, back to social media. Do you have Facebook? If you’re reading this of course you do! How about Instagram? Joke. There is no-one in the world NOT on Insta right now. I’m not even going to start on Tik Tok, because I’m closer to 50 than 40. Sort that stuff out yourself ok? Then there’s Snapchat (why?), Twitter (way too few words), LinkedIn (sigh), and so on and so on and so on…
If you’re anything like me, you’ll start scrolling Insta in the morning and be really, really, really quite reluctant to put the phone down till you’ve caught up to the place you were at last night? AmIright? Please say that’s not just me? I am following people on Insta that never post anything and I am following people on Insta that should never post anything, but sadly do. And I am following people on Insta who might actually not even be real people. Who knew that ‘bots’ could be so convincing? So, I for one, am going to declutter and start unfollowing, right as soon as I’ve caught up to where I left off last time!
As for the others, let’s take a cold hard look at what’s serving us right now eh? Every morning I wake up, I see messages on Whatsapp from my family and given we’re in 3 separate continents all experiencing coronavirus as different stages, I am so grateful for the reassurance that they’re still well enough to send me ridiculous memes and sarky comments. If Whatsapp was a person, I’d give it a hug. (As soon as social distancing rules allowed me too of course). But there are so many others that really serve little purpose in my life. I have an app that tracks my workouts, but I really don’t need that kind of motivation. I go to the gym so I can stay healthy and live longer, who cares if I’m lifting lighter than 4 years ago? I never use it, but I somehow feel like I’m quitting if I get rid of it? Weird!
There are apps that can track your usage on your phone so you can take a cold hard look at yourself, but who needs that kind of negativity? Not me thanks! I say, take a gentle approach and delete any app that you haven’t used in 6 weeks. On a physical level, if your hand/ eyes/ neck/ brain or soul is hurting take that as a cue to put your phone down and take a break.
And let’s talk about why spending less time online is a good thing. We have plenty of research that shows how addictive social media apps are, and yet there’s also plenty of evidence stating it’s making us all more depressed. Whether that’s down to our hormones being affected by the blue light stimulation, or simply the competitiveness of these platforms, or both, we can’t tell, but either way, it’s not healthy.
The interesting thing is how much it’s changed us as a species in such a short time. We’ve suddenly become so bloody VISIBLE! My 13 year old daughter considers if something will photograph well before she buys it/ wears it/ bakes it! She feels more excluded because of her purported “connection” to the outside world. What I mean is, she now knows if she hasn’t been invited to a friend’s party or catch up, because she’ll see the photos online and then she’ll wonder why she wasn’t invited. And don’t get me started on the risks associated with children’s presence on social media and the predators who lurk within those wall-less places. These are not the things I was worrying about when I was 13. Sometimes it breaks my heart.
For all the good this technology gives us, it also taketh away in equal measures. I tell my hubby that Instagram is “definitely not the boss of me.” And yet I am aware that I am slightly addicted to the stories feature! So, here’s our chance to cut back and let’s hope we all show this tech just who’s the boss.
