I’ll be the first to admit that I am addicted to technology. Addicted to the point where it actually causes me anxiety at times and I can’t comprehend why other people are not similarly attached at the hip to their mobiles. My issue stems from a few things; I work in marketing and social media (so it’s my job to stay well connected at all times), I lived interstate for 18 months which solidified the bad habit of perpetual connectivity and I am type A personality so it’s in my nature to be on the ball, super prompt and slightly neurotic (*ahem very*).

So my self-awareness lead me to realise that I needed a break from certain social media platforms and to actively practice leaving my phone idle, so I can learn to relax – it’s actually gotten to the point where I can’t even sit back and watch a movie without checking my phone every 2-5mins…that is not okay. Initially I deactivated Facebook, but I’ve gone a step further to get rid of Snapchat as well. At first, I will admit, I felt like I had ostracised myself from humanity, or at least my circle of friends. But now that I am into about week 3 of my anti-Facebook/Snapchat lifestyle I have found that I don’t even go to check my newsfeed in the morning. Facebook rarely crosses my mind. It’s refreshing; something self-preserving about not knowing where every single friend is, who they’re with or what they are doing.

Deactivating Facebook and deleting Snapchat has also removed the following from my life:

• No Tinder (can’t say this is a bad thing, I am definitely an advocate for old fashion face-to-face courting and Tinder is just…urgh) because Tinder connects only through Facebook
• No Time Hop. Which is kind of a bummer because I thoroughly enjoyed cringing and laughing out loud to the status updates I would write as an uncultured 19 year old
• No Facebook messaging
• No Facebook event invitations. Now this is an interesting one, because in the short 2 weeks I have been off the Facebook planet, I have in fact missed out on particular invites – whatever I can deal with this, and my friends are slowly realises they need to formally extend their invitations now to their Facebookless friend
• No waking up to 50 Snapchat ‘My Story’ photos of pointless, drunken, crap. I’m coping just fine without this
• No triple chin selfies from my best mates and sister OR photos throughout the day of my sister doing weird poses with my dog – this, I miss

All in all, I am enjoying leading a slightly more allusive lifestyle. I’m sure given time, I’ll be back on Facebook at some stage, but for now, it’s staying deactivated.