Skip to main content

Unplug Time!

 






I have always loved social media and my relationship with digital devices and platforms. However, it has been an adjustment throughout this course. EME 6414 has required me to be far more engaged on social media, which is okay, but I should have thought about how tired I could be from constantly trying to keep up and engage with multiple aspects of the online world. We are surrounded by and consumed by digital media in our everyday lives. The digital detox challenge could not have come at a better time; this challenge helped me take a break from everything I have felt overwhelmed by. The biggest challenge for this particular #EME6414 challenge was that I experienced moments where I felt like I missed out on information that could be beneficial to me in the real and digital world. I began with silencing notifications of the various social media apps I use daily, and after completing that, I decided to put my phone on do not disturb (DND). The DND feature on iPhones has been life-changing for me as I have been able to silence all notifications and not get distracted by many. We are living in a world that constantly has social and digital media guiding our daily routine; there are many times when the first task that I do daily is open a social media app and check my newsfeeds. I constantly feel as if I am missing something when I am not on social media. Even if it is just scrolling the accounts to see the latest picture or accomplishment, any time I want to take a step away from social media, I instantly have moments of fear of missing out, better known as FOMO, because I depend on digital and social media for the majority of my information from local and global news to updates from family and friends and school! 

Thank you, Gabrielle, for the amazing social media detox tips! I plan to continue to practice moments where I go "dark" from the world and truly take a pause and break from the digital world. The time I took to do that now could be repeated in months or weeks/days. Everyone deserves to power off from the world and begin to live in moments that bring them endless joy and peace. Digital media can be toxic and lead to additional challenges and barriers, leading to a critical moment of unplugging and recentering one's routine. I chose to do this challenge while back home in Indiana, and I could spend time with my friends and family and genuinely get the love I came to Indiana for. I did not check my email, but I did if it was not urgent. Urgent emails received immediate responses, whereas emails that were not urgent did not. I have discussed throughout the course how I also am teaching some undergraduate courses. I was able to power off from that work, as it can be exhausting in the Summer term with everything moving at a quick pace. My detox consisted of enjoying great food, laughs, some happy tears, and even moments when I took a day trip to Cincinnati, Ohio, for one of my fraternity brothers' birthday! 

How often should someone have a digital detox? What do you feel makes the most sense? How would you spend a digital detox day? 

Dr. Vanessa Dennen eme6414.blogspot



Comments

  1. Ravi BJune 25, 2023 at 9:53 PM

    Thank you for reflecting on your detox! I also participated in the challenge and took a lot away from it! Seflishly, I am especially happy you chose to detox this past week as I knew you were going home and were able to take in that experience fully! I know how excited you were and am so elated to hear that the detox was a good experience for you, especially while being home. I think digital detoxing is similar to any other mental health care routine, take time to participate in it in healthy ways and with moderation in mind!

    ReplyDelete
  2. DaeunJune 26, 2023 at 9:00 PM

    I can resonate with you regarding FOMO. When I am off digital media for quite a long time, I get nervous about missing something important because these days a lot of information is shared through digital media. On the other hand, sometimes digital media itself triggers FOMO. When I couldn't attend the last AERA, looking at all the AERA posts on Twitter made me feel like I was missing really important experiences.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. J.AllenJr.July 2, 2023 at 7:06 PM

      Yes! I agree, I had very similar feelings regarding AERA. I have never been but this year I noticed more than ever (maybe because my Twitter is filled with tons of higher ed folks) information about the conference. I think it is so telling in our daily experiences how prevalent digital and social media is in our experiences.

      Delete
  3. ALHJune 28, 2023 at 12:27 PM

    Congrats on your detox journey! Proud of you!!

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Competitive in a Digital World

 Joining Friday's Zoom session about the various challenges and badges we will have the opportunity to engage with throughout the summer initially brought out the competitor in me. However, digital challenges provide a unique spin for me when considering my competitive identity and how it shows up in this digital world. Many of the challenges and badges for the course will only enhance my competence, knowledge, and expertise when it comes to using the various social media platforms and sites. Instead of thinking solely of "winning" when it comes to engaging in the challenges and badges, I am reframing my thinking to embrace the challenges and badges as developmental opportunities to continue expanding my technology knowledge and skills. Dr. Dennen mentioned how students in the past have printed out the badges for them to display or have physically worn some of the badges that they have earned.  I decided to explore the concept of digital badges; one type of digital badge ...
3 comments
Read more

Reddit Communities! Joining Like-Minded Individuals

  Joining the world of Reddit this week has been a major highlight for me! I had heard of Reddit before but only partially paid close attention to what individuals could do on Reddit. I assumed it was another place to offer reviews and commentary on topics of interest. As I began to work on the Community Norms assignment, I knew I wanted to participate in the full version; the full version offered a unique perspective to continue enhancing my knowledge and skills with the various digital and social media sites for class. Although I was excited to participate and engage in Reddit communities, there are a TON to choose from. Leaving me to feel overwhelmed by the many options. Continuing to explore Reddit, I joined communities of interest as it relates to Sports (NBA, WNBA), Reality Tv (Real Housewives Franchise, College Hill Celebrity Edition, Married to Medicine, etc.), Black memes, and Twitter communities, NBA 2K. These communities all felt normal and comfortable to me because thes...
3 comments
Read more

Personal Vs. Professional Social Media Identities—Do I need to live "separate lives"?

  Personal Vs. Professional Social Media Identity Do you have to keep separate your personal and professional lives on social media? Why or why not? For a long time, when thinking about social media, I believed that my personal and professional lives could not co-exist on the same social media site/platform. I thought this to be true because I followed what others told me to do rather than what I felt worked for me. Often times I heard professionals share that their personal and professional identities are not the same. I agree that there are some differences between how I am in my personal life compared to professional work settings. However, I pride myself on being authentic and genuine as I hope to reflect those qualities in my personal and professional lives—including in digital and social media spaces. I joined social media sites like Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram to stay updated with current trends that many of my peers and friends were experiencing, build community an...
1 comment
Read more