Stephanie Rapp shares how disengaging from social media allowed her to be more present.
These are fraught times. There’s so much information coming at us, most of it awful. We look at each other and shrug, as if to say “What can I do?” One easy place to start is to de-app yourself.
A couple of months ago, I took Facebook off my phone. I was getting overwhelmed by posts, mostly political and angry but with no solutions or calls to action. I was seeing people argue over minutia – the proverbial rearranging deck chairs on the Titanic. I was watching videos that were entertaining but mind numbing – brain candy rotting my synapses.
But I found it hard to not log on and scroll because it was in my pocket. It was a habit. When I removed Facebook, I felt freer. I don’t need social media to tell me what my closest friends are doing. I do sort-of miss knowing what my sort-of friends are up to but not really. As a bonus, I freed up a lot of storage on my phone. I’m getting less ads, less anger, less noise. Instead, I find myself calling friends more.
I’m listening to podcasts and reading books. I’m putting time into being involved with neighbors on issues that matter to us. Attending community meetings and joining a civic effort are crucial to a strong democracy.