100 day challenge: no social media
Okay, it's nothing special to say that I'm addicted to Instagram, Twitter (X) and YouTube. And BearBlog is helping me connect to a community that might be suffering from a similar affliction based on the view count of my posts about social media.
I tried to use the Freedom app on my devices a few weeks ago, where I managed to block the SM (Social Media) sites on my iPhone, iPad, MacBook, and Android phone. To block on my Windows laptop, I built a Chrome extension called FocusGuard using Claude code to set up a button that restricts access to these sites. (FocusGuard is under review in the Google Web Store)
The challenges I faced with blocking the sites for a week were that much of my emotional coping was being delegated to these sites. (1) hunger: whenever I stop for a meal, it's common to run up YouTube and watch videos. (2) Loneliness: whenever I feel alone or wish for some social interaction, Instagram fills that void. (3) Ragebait: Twitter (X) is basically rage bait, especially for political topics. I fall for this quite often.
So, this 100-day challenge is not just a digital detox but also a kind of emotional management system. Can I, for 100 days, deal with my emotions by myself without the help of social media?
Well, a decade ago, I used to have such dependancy with tv shows and series that we could just download and have at hand on portable hard drives. That habit played an important emotional management role, especially when I would be sailing on ships for months on end. But I broke that habit. One day I realised that I was too dependent on the TV shows, and I stopped watching them, and even if someone claimed a new TV show was the greatest thing ever, I was able to remind myself that I would just get hooked for emotional management. Slowly over the years, I have forgotten about shows, and I rarely watch them. And more importantly, even if I have Netflix, Amazon Prime or something open nearby, I'm not tempted to watch them.
So, the question is, if I try this 100-day challenge, will I be able to recreate the success I have had with beating the addiction to TV shows? Will I be able to manage my emotions without the help of SM? Well, let's find out.
Feel free to post if you would like to also join the challenge. Day 1: 22nd Aug 26: Start