A Realistic Guide to Self-Care in the Scroll Era (How to Switch Off)
International Self-Care Day it’s July 24th. 24/7, is that a coincidence?
"24/7" is usually the exact expression we use to describe how plugged-in we are. We’re answering slacks, checking notifications, and letting the infinite scroll turn our brains to mush 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. We live in a world where everything is optimized and our attention spans are hanging on by a thread.
If the internet is going to try to grab our attention 24/7, then looking after our mental health has to be a 24/7 priority too! Here are a few low-pressure, realistic ways to rescue your brain from the rot.
4 Ways to Escape the Infinite Scroll
1. Give your hands something else to do
The biggest trap of modern downtime is "couch scrolling." You finish a long day of staring at a screen for work, so you sit on the couch and stare at a smaller screen to relax. Your body is resting, but your brain is still running a marathon trying to process a million short-form videos...
If you want to actually unplug, you have to give your hands a job. This is exactly why we love needlepoint.
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You physically can't hold your phone if your hands are busy stitching;
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Nowadays everything happens instantly, so it's incredible grounding to watch something come to life stitch by stitch. The slow way.
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Digital art can now be made in two seconds, but it can’t make a real needlepoint canvas. Making something real with your own two hands is an actual rewarding way to create art.
2. Choose things that actually have an ending
You don’t have to throw your phone into the ocean (although most days that's what we feel like doing).
Try hanging out with "finishable" media instead: things that actually have a beginning, a middle, and an end. Read a chapter of a physical book, listen to a full album from start to finish without skipping songs... Watch a movie without checking your phone during the slower parts. This will help your brain to enjoy a normal pace of life again :)
3. Stop trying to "optimize" your downtime
We are constantly told to turn our hobbies into side hustles (guilty, we know...), but we still have hobbies that are not needlepoint, and that's super important! See some examples at the end.
You should give yourself permission to do things just because they're fun to you. You don’t need to be the best at a new craft! You don’t need to post your attempts on Instagram! It’s entirely okay to do something slowly, badly, or just for your own private enjoyment!!
4. Bring back the art of doing absolutely nothing
Remember when people used to just stand in line at the grocery store or sit on the bus and look out the window? Now, the second there’s a quiet moment, we pull out our phones to fill the silence.
Try to claim just five minutes a day to be completely bored. Let your mind wander... You might be surprised by how much lighter your brain feels when you stop stuffing it with information every single second of the day.
Inside the Unwind Team: How We Unplug
If you’re looking for some real-life inspiration that has absolutely nothing to do with scrolling, here is exactly how our own team is currently trying to protect their peace:
This International Self-Care Day, remember that you don’t owe the internet your energy 24/7. You only owe it to yourself!! So take your time, you're allowed.
Happy Unwinding!
