Social Network Slave

I use Facebook, a lot. I use my iPhone, a lot. My phone is quite literally permanently attached to me. Every two hours I check my Facebook news feed, my notifications, my closest friends status updates, my twitter timeline, my twitter mentions, the Instagram feed and my e-mail. Oh... and send texts and reply to texts. Every two hours might be a little modest actually, it is closer to every hour!

Lately, with exhaustion still lingering in the corners and the attempt of a new routine, keeping up with these hourly checks are becoming more and more draining. It has become a daily chore. I have become a slave to these social networks! King Facebook and Queen Twitter stand over me with a sceptor..."You shalt check thou news feed. Now!" Perhaps thats exaggerated, but are you getting the idea?

Last night I decided I would admit myself to SNAA (Social Networking Addictions Annonymous). I pressed that little black button on the top of my phone, I held it down and turned it OFF! So far it has been 24 hours and I feel clearer already. I'm not going to give it up forever; that would require payed therapy. But i'm hoping a 3 day breather will break the reliance and addiction. It's been great already. Stella has spent the day staring at me with confusion "Something is not right here, my mum doesn't have that black rectangle in front of her face". With a head not clogged up with newsfeeds I actually noticed things I sometimes miss...funny little faces Stella makes, new skills she has learnt. I realised today that if I don't scale down bigtime I will remember nothing of her childhood but gossip and mutual friends of friends.

As sad as it is, I did have to update my status this morning explaining my switch off. I cringed at the thought of "She hasn't updated her status in 2 days, she must be DEAD!", "She hasn't replied to any of my text messages, she must HATE me!". That is how far social networking is effecting our relationships. Of course, it does have its benefits- all my grandparents are on facebook and that is how we catch up, people use facebook to organise fundraisers, events, birthdays. But as with all things in life, enjoy in moderation.

I'm really looking forward to seeing how the next few days pan out without my misleadingly necessary accessory. I am going to 'bunker down' so to speak, and really soak up those minutes with Stella on my own. One on one. Minutes I will never get back once they have passed by.

I wonder if anyone else has tried to break up with their social networks? How did they take it? Did you move on? Please share your stories!