I went offline for an hour

Recently while browsing the web, I came across articles that emphasised on the importance of disconnecting from electronic devices for some time everyday and how it could be useful in reducing stress and improving well being as a whole.

Since I am mostly using internet on my phone, I decided to go offline for an hour. I returned home from work, freshened up and sat on the couch. On any other day, I would be scrolling through Reddit posts, Twitter and Medium. In between, replying to WhatsApp texts and pings on Hangouts. But, not today — I was ready for a digital detox.

I picked up my OnePlus 3 and swiped down to bring the quick settings panel. Then, turned off Wi-Fi and mobile data.

There it was — finally — an offline device. No scrolling of web pages, no notifications, no pings, nothing. It lay as if in coma (face turned down and in DND mode). It was 7 PM and I had to survive an hour.

0–5 minutes:

• I suddenly felt empty and bored. There was anxiety and a bit of restlessness too, probably because of a sudden change in routine.

5–25 minutes:

• The most difficult phase. FOMO. The fear of missing out on time critical emails, chats and pings. I was overthinking a bit during this period.

25–50 minutes:

• I was more calm now. I felt that things could wait. Emails and pings can be replied to with a delay, my friends can wait for my response on a funny video they sent, web pages would not get extinct and would remain for me to read even after an hour. It felt good to disconnect.

50–60 minutes:

• A phase difficult to explain. I wanted to relax more but the excitement to get back online was suppressing it. I would say this phase to be exactly like waiting for the climax of a thriller movie.

I saw the clock; it was 8 PM. I picked up my phone and switched on the Wi-Fi. It connected instantly as if longing for my return. My notification bar was filled up with app notifications with new emails, Hangouts messages & WhatsApp chats in majority. It was time to sort them out.

Even though it was short, this digital detox felt great and I’ll be doing it again. It’s nice to disconnect the internet and reconnect with our inner selves. Have you ever done it? If yes, how did it go? Let me know in the comments below!