When you tell yourself you are going to unplug on your summer vacation, do you really mean it? Or is your laptop still squeezed in beside your toiletries in your travel bag?
Vacations serve different purposes for different people, says Michelle Shiota, a psychology professor at Arizona State University. But most of them have one thing in common.
“It is primarily about creating time for the things that are important to us that we don’t have enough time for in our typical day-to-day life,” she says. “Vacations are about changing gears so that we can do that.”
But technology often keeps people tethered to the very routines and responsibilities they are trying to escape.
“Tech generally keeps us where we are,” Shiota says. “It is a conduit through which we can avoid being in the new place and stay psychologically in the old place — whether it's social media or emails or any other form of digital media.”
Shiota, director of the Substance Use and Addiction Translational Research Network at ASU, along with Tamera Schneider, a professor in ASU’s Department of Psychology, share five tips to help you truly unwind and recharge yourself — not your electronics — this summer.
- Limit internet connections. Choose remote destinations with limited connectivity, like retreats or national parks. The idea is to make accessing technology difficult if not impossible. Deleting email and social media apps in advance helps reduce the temptation to log on.
- Create an away message. Let people at work know you may have limited internet access. Provide an emergency contact that can reach you if necessary. “We have this sense that people really need to get a hold of us,” Schneider says. “And they really don’t.”
- Set boundaries for yourself. Leave your phone in the hotel room at times; for example, don’t bring it to dinner. Setting your phone to airplane mode is also an option. Even short breaks from your device can help you feel more present.
- Cut down on photos. Don’t spend so much time documenting the moment that you don’t experience it. “Be in the moment, whether you are by a stream or with someone you care about,” Schneider says. “Look into their eyes. Look at their smiles. Just soak it all in.”
- Opt to leave the tech completely behind. “I know that's a completely revolutionary thought,” Shiota says, “but there was a time — and it wasn't that long ago — when we didn't have laptops to take with us on vacation.”
“The point of vacation, hopefully, is to de-stress, unwind and recharge and have fun,” Schneider says.
Her final advice?
“Unplug and just have a good time,” she says. “That’s all. You don’t have to create stress around unplugging. Just practice unplugging.”
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