Today, like most days, I looked outside my window and for the first time in a long time, I could see the buildings sitting afar off clearly. One building stood out with its blue and pink roofing, a perfect contrast to the yellow coloured walls – whoever was behind the marriage of colours must lead a colourful life. Contrary to what you may be thinking; my eyesight is and has (for the most part) always been perfect. However, something was different; I didn’t have a thousand thoughts and mental images obstructing my view.
Two weeks ago, I made the much-needed decision to temporarily peel myself away from social media. A tough decision, considering much of what I do is hinged on my perpetual presence online. But I did it, anyway. Removing myself from that space was the first step, the next was replacing years of subconscious online consumption with real-life experiences.
I started to pay attention to my immediate environment – the birds (I noticed a different breed of birds had migrated and replaced the birds I saw growing up), the trees (there are fewer trees now, which means there are lesser shades and lesser means of absorbing carbon dioxide and harmful gasses- bummer), the bad roads that are shaping up to be gullys in a few months if something isn’t done (where is the governor of Lagos state?). Some things have remained the same though: the sounds of carefree kids, the blaring horns from angry drivers, the screams from women – ‘just because’, the neighbourhood squabbles, et cetera.
I keep wondering: have I missed much? Perhaps I haven’t. But, I feel a lot lighter without the burden of being choked with unhealthy doses of negative information/news that often floods social media streets. It’s poignant.
In schools, students take breaks in between classes to help them focus by reducing stress; I believe this should be applied to social media and life in general. To promote positive mental health, short breaks are needed to decongest our minds while we detoxify our thoughts from negativity.
So, do you take breaks from social media, and how often?