I originally posted this to r/nosurf, but I think it is relevant here as well and can help others.
(Video I made discussing my journey if you would rather watch versus read).
I was addicted to the Internet.
It was a problem - I was losing friends, missing out on social opportunities, failing classes. My screen-time was out of control.
I wasn't getting enough sleep which was caused my mental health to slide. My overall health and social skills suffered hugely because of my addiction to the Internet. I was hugely invested in a few online games as well as reddit and Instagram.
Continuing like this was not sustainable for my well-being and I only realized this as I was halfway through university.
So over the past couple of years, I decided I need to change something.
- I began putting a heavy focus on monitoring the hours I was spending on a screen. Reducing my ability to get in front of a screen truly helped quit the addiction. Putting it all in perspective helps with this, for example, 6 hours online is 4 hours out of your day.
- I replaced my screen-time with hobbies and new, fulfilling activities. I took up cooking and reading to replace my screen-time. Both are life-enhancing skills that make you happy and completely rewarding.
- I eventually deleted and got rid of all the apps and stop visiting the websites that had me addicted. These apps/websites are purposefully designed to be addicting as possible which is why I recommend just deleting them altogether since they are so hard to quit. I stopped checking the reddit front page. Deleted Instagram. Turned off notifications, etc. (I have a whole list of hidden tips that I used to make this transition easy).
You will really start to enjoy life more if you remove yourself the constant stream of information that exists on the Internet. Don't get me wrong, the Internet is still great for many things, but overuse will give you the sense that you are leading a rushed, overcomplicated life.
Life is simple when you minimize your Internet usage.
Submitted May 30, 2019 at 11:28AM by PretendDinner http://bit.ly/2JOnzLq
