My Horrific Nightmare: 4 Days without a Phone
On May 9th, 2018, my relatively new I phone 7 crashed as I was driving home from school. It was a tragedy, tears were shed, Armageddon was upon us. I burst into tears-- how would I connect with and talk to other people? How would I be able to function? All was lost! Now, this wasn't my actual reaction, but I will admit all of these thoughts did run through my head. I have become incredibly reliant on my technology, most of all, my phone. I use it to communicate with other people, coordinate my calendars, check and send emails, write my homework on google docs, check google classroom, listen to music 24/7, go on Snapchat and Instagram, and so many other things. My phone has become an extension of me, and I wasn't able to fully recognize it until it was gone.
Often, even when I know I run the risk of becoming distracted, I keep my phone with me as I do work. Usually, I convince myself that it is necessary-- I need to contact other people if I have a question, I have notes, I wrote down details of the assignment on my phone, Siri is easier than looking things up, and so on. Undeniably, much of these things are positive, but the risk of becoming distracted is substantial. At least once a week, I get fed up with the urge to check Instagram and snapchat and so I delete them off my phone, but they are always redownloaded for the cycle to repeat the next week. It is a vicious cycle, but without realizing the true impact that it has on my habits, no matter what my parents and others tell me, I will keep taking the risk because I deem it a good one.
Throughout the past few days, I have noticed myself wanting to go on my two social media apps almost as much as I want to use and have access to all the other productivity features and apps on my phone. Two apps without a productive definite purpose in comparison to over 20 productive functions and apps that help me to stay on task and get work done. There is an imbalance, and it took a lot for me to realize it.
Overall, I didn't miss my phone that much. Sure, it wasn't the end of the world, and things were more frustrating, but I lived and don't have any lasting side effects. However, I have learned that if I maintain the level at which and ways that I use technology, there will be negative lasting effects that will and can hinder achievement. Social media is fun, but when it constantly trumps other more important tasks, it is not good, and I really took this message to heart during my four days without a phone.
I completely relate to this. My phones have broken many times in the past, so I know what it is like to be without a phone. I, too, had tendencies to go on my social media and to check my messages- and I couldn't. I had time to sleep, do my homework, but I found that life became a lot harder without my phone. I couldn't set reminders, alarms, or organize rides with my parents and friends. It was an eye-opening experience. I realized how much I depend on my phone, and how much others do as well.
ReplyDeleteYeah when I broke my iPhone 5 and was separated from her for almost two weeks, it felt like the end of the world. It made me realize how reliant I am on my phone, and how normal everyday tasks were effected without it. For example, I had to pull out my old alarm clock and wrote more in my planner and felt empty when I was at school and unable to listen to music. It's really insane how connected and reliant we are to our devices and how much they've been integrated into our daily lives.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree too. I let someone borrow my phone in German once and after about five minutes I forgot and thought I lost it. I was so scared and almost had an anxiety attack thinking of living without my phone until I remembered the person next to me had it. It made me realize how dependent I am on my phone and how protective I am over it.
ReplyDeleteI can relate to this because I feel like I can be too reliant on my phone. I wish that it were that way, but unfortunately, it is. I have cracked phones, and the way that I feel afterwards is indescribable. It's like I have lost a part of me. I feel disconnected and also when I think that my phone has gone lost I feel empty, and it is a terrible feeling .
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