Spending time offline is very important to our mental health and wellbeing. Sometimes it seems rather difficult, however, to disconnect from our devices and social media channels. We became used to the idea that reaching to our mobile phones to use the internet or check our emails every two minutes are acceptable modern habits, behaviors we can’t live without. These behaviors can be, nonetheless, signs of phone addiction and inability, for instance, to practice non-doing.
A 2015 study by Silentnight concluded that people nowadays spend more time on their mobile phones and laptops than sleeping. This means people are not only more exposed to several electromagnetic frequencies, which can negatively impact our health and wellbeing in the long run, but they are also depriving themselves of important healthy habits such as sleeping enough, having quality time with others or keeping an active lifestyle.
To counteract this mindless tendency, in this post I’m suggesting 5 different activities that will not only contribute to your well-being but also help you stay offline more often.
1. Journaling
Get yourself a little notebook and take some time off to sit down somewhere nice and quiet to write down your thoughts and feelings. Writing is an incredible way to practice self-reflection and develop self-awareness. When we write, we may even explore aspects of our existence that we were not aware of, but which can bring us new insights and helpful information to improve our daily decision-making processes.
2. Walking
Going for a walk is one of my favorite ways of connecting with myself. It is also a great relaxation method. Whenever my mind is busy with some sort of problem, I go out for a walk and I always come back with a clearer perspective of what was bothering me in the first place. You don’t need to do long distances through – a ten to fifteen-minute power walk can bring you a lot of health and wellbeing benefits.
3. Meal Sharing
In Southern European countries (and most Latin countries), meals are often a social moment. It’s an opportunity to gather people around a table and enjoy each other’s company. You don’t need to be sharing a meal with a big group though. You can invite your best friend or partner for a cute picnic or a homemade meal. You can even order your food if you want to. Just make sure you won’t be spending time on Instagram uploading pictures of what you are eating!
4. Reading
Ok, I know you may not be a book lover – or maybe you are -, but one of my favorite ways to disconnect is to spend some time studying a book. I’m a non-fiction kind of booklover, so I love devouring a book and then taking several notes on what I find interesting. Some of those notes become blog posts later on, so this is definitely a great option to spend more time offline and yet still be a productive blogger!
5. Forest Bathing
I told you about walking already, right? Forests are one of my favorite places to walk in because it’s free from all those weird vibrations and electromagnetic frequencies that harm our energy. I always feel replenished after spending some time in a forest or some other place where nature conquers everything!
Concluding Thoughts
It’s good for our health and well-being to spend some time away from the digital world. There are a lot of different activities you can engage with when you are offline. Sometimes we don’t recall how restoring these activities can be so I hope this list can remind and inspire you to go offline and look after yourself. If you enjoyed reading this article, you may find other ideas to improve your quality of life here.
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There are so great tips here thank you so much for sharing! I love going for a long walk I wish there was a forest near me. I need to get back into reading, I love having a relaxed evening reading with some classical music on in the background.
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Thank you for reading and sharing even more interesting ideas. When I can’t go to a forest, I search for forest videos and sounds on youtube and do a mental visualization to relax. I know it’s not the same thing, but…! 😅😁😁🌈
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I love reading your blogs, they bring me back into the real world.
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Thank you, Cloe, that’s the best feedback I could ever have 😊 I hope you are doing well!
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Love this post! I love walking with my fur-baby and I find it’s the grandest thing to do! Thanks for sharing 😊
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That’s even better, walking with a good company! 😍🐕 🐕
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I need to make spending time outdoors more of a habit. I did it for a few hours a couple of days ago and came back feeling so refreshed. In that case, it was just sitting outside watching the kids play in the park, but it felt good all the same. I used to take walks with the intent of thinking through things, but every time, my mind just empties. I walk without thought. It’s like my mind hits mute. It’s strange. I come back having felt better physically, but with no answers to whatever I thought I would work out. I am one of those weird people that doesn’t have my social media on my phone at all, so in that respect, it’s easy to get away from being plugged in all the time. Great post and excellent reminders to care for ourselves and find new ways to “connect.”
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I’m glad I’m not the only one not on social media. But I’m still addicted to my phone and this post helped me to consciously choose better activities than checking my email and steps lol. Thanks Vanessa for more wise words:)
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It’s very tempting to be always online. I try to block time for different online activities and make a more strategic use of online platforms but it’s not always easy to manage ❤️
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That’s a good call: not having the apps on the phone. I was using that new option they now come with for ‘down time’ and digital well-being. It’s useful but we have to be really consistent and disciplined, otherwise it doesn’t work 😆 About the mind: sometimes that happens because the mind really needs to have a break and let the body relax. It’s frustrating though, it has happened to me. It’s like the law of paradoxical intent – the more we want something, the more we push it away 💚
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Absolutely we must spend more time offline. 🙂 I have to admit that I used to love being offline and spent frequent time away from the online world, but recently been using it more and more when blogging and after I got an upgraded smart phone. I even feel a difference in energy using a computer that’s offline verses one that is connected or has bluetooth/wifi. But after moving home I got into blogging and started being more online and it does disrupt the energy and makes me feel very tired especially. I would love to do forest bathing, my relaxing visualisation place is a forest, I love the sound of the wind in the trees and how fresh the forest feels. I also love the sea. Thankfully I spend a good amount of time offline reading books, though I’ll say reading a kindle just isnt the same as a good physical book. 🙂 Thank you, this is a great post. 🙂 I’ll try some of these other ideas, eating with others is something we’re doing less of each day. Two years ago I met my cousins and aunt I hadn’t met in a long time (they were all teenagers at the time) and I couldn’t get them to talk as they just spent the whole dinner looking at their phones🙄
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That’s so spot on. It happens to me too. We’re sensitive to EMFs. I had a time I could only focus if I turned my laptop’s wifi off. Otherwise I would get extra tired just from being connected and receiving the beams. It’s tough to balance it because we need the internet to blog and post content. To more time spent offline 🎉
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These are such important tips! I can’t believe how much time I spend on my phone. It would be embarrassing to write it down. Yikes! I really do enjoy walks and forest bathing. It’s amazing how wonderful I feel after spending time outside. I need to do it more often. Thank you for reminding me
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Thanks, Heidi! I spend a lot of time too and I’m now using those app time trackers to get a better notion. I try to make my use of the internet and apps more intentional but I still fall on the mayonese sometimes. Thanks for sharing your experience, forest bathing is just amazing ❤️
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Love this post Vanessa. I agree with all of these points. Love going out for walks in the forest/by the river with my dog Rosie – it’s the perfect way to disconnect.
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Thank you 🤩 And she’s such a nice company. It’s a lovely way to disconnect ❤️
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Some great ideas here! I’m awful for spending too much time on my phone or at a screen. My favourite ways to switch off are to go on a walk or to read a book! But being outside definitely removes the temptation for me!
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Hi Emily, thanks! Those are great strategies. I use walking too 🚶♀️and now without a connected mobile phone because it was still tempting 😂
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Lovely post as always, Vanessa, I love it! Personally, I started noticing that being online all the time is not helping my mental health at all, so I’m now looking for more offline activities that I can do. I do mindful walking and eating, and I’m planning to read more this year! xx Penny / http://www.whatdidshetype.com
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Those are great offline practices, Penny x Human beings weren’t meant to be this available all the time and exposed to such a variety of information… Rest is much needed and that sometimes includes a bigger break from social media to recharge and focus on other important things ❤️
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This is a great post! I’m glad to see I already do 3 of these, Journalling helps me clear my mind so much. I’ve never tried forest bathing, but there’s always tomorrow!
sejal | thelazygal.com
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Thank you, Sejal ❤️ I’m happy this resonated with you. I hope you had a chance to go more into nature, it can really help us reduce anxiety and make us more creative 😉
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Walking really is an underrated activity to soothe the mind, and I’m grateful I have my dog to remind me that I should take daily walks. And journalling is a great way to learn to listen to yourself. Solid list here, I must say. Thanks for this post!
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Thanks, Stuart! It’s so nice you have a companion to walk around. They surely take the experience to another level 😊 Thanks for coming by and sharing your experience!
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Great suggestions! I love to unplug with a book at the end of the day.
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I subscribe to that 😉
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These are really great suggestions. I swear technology has been ingrained in everything. Now we can journal on our phones or laptops, take exercises online or read from any device. That’s nice and convenient, but there is something special and refreshing about using more traditional means of pen and paper to journal, reading a physical book or going outside to walk in nature. I know I need a bit more of this in my life. All this screen time is draining and straining.
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Reading is our main form of self-care. We also enjoy walking and sharing mealtime together.
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I love journaling, walking, meal sharing, and reading. Would like to try the forest bathing. It sounds fun. Thank you for sharing.
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Forest bathing is very energizing, I hope you have a chance to do it some time soon! Thank you for stopping by.
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I love all of these option and walking in the forrest is oddly purifying for the soul. But since outdoors often are too cold (here, for me) – I use cooking or baking to unplug. And knitting 🙂 the last one helps me to fight boredom snacking too
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I completely agree it is beneficial to take a break from screens, and these are fantastic suggestions for activities to do! I especially love reading and going for walks is nice too!
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I love going for walks and I’m always reading. Wish I lived near forests though, I’d spend a lot of time there!
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Forests are really magical and sacred places to be! They really brings all the good eco-therapy benefits to light.
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