I didn’t think I could do it. I secretly didn’t want to. But that’s the point right? It’s supposed to be a sacrifice? If I gave up anything else it wouldn’t mean anything.
This year for Lent (what is Lent?) I decided to give up social media. Starting Ash Wednesday (March 5, 2025) I gave up the use of Instagram, Lemon8, BlueSky and Fable. These are all the social media apps I have on my phone, but my biggest concern was Instagram. I am constantly looking at my phone to go on Instagram. Without cause or reason my brain just always said, hey you should go on Instagram, from when I woke up until I went to bed.
So how is that journey going so far?
The past Sundays I’ve been meaning to write down reflections, but I never sat down and did it. I plan to start today (March 30th) and continue writing and reflecting moving forward.
4th Sunday of Lent reflection:
At the beginning of this journey I was unsure how I would manage my life without social media. Yes, as sad as it is to say I could not see my life without Instagram. I don’t know when this started, but I’m glad I took the leap to give it up for Lent.
I am not going to lie, I was tempted to break multiple times. I found myself just staring at my phone in my hand thinking, what do I do with this? And I actually did use it once to respond to a friend, but then I quickly ended the conversation and paused my app the rest of the day to avoid further temptation.
During my first week my instinct when opening my phone was to go to that app. It was awful and almost uncontrollable.
I found myself seeking other outlets. I started frequenting Webtoon more, which was a lot of fun! I discovered a lot of great stories there. Some of my favorites are the Mafia Nanny, Avatar: The Last Airbender, Love 4 a Walk and so many others. Maybe Ill write a post about them rating them all…we’ll see!
I read a lot of series and fell in love with so many stories that helped me sleep at night. Literally I would fall asleep reading these series just like when I would fall asleep doom scrolling.
But once you’ve binge read a series you gotta find another and then another and then you just get bored. So what else could I do?
That’s when I started to realize it’s not so bad to not have your phone in your hand.
I found myself paying better attention to those around me and I don’t know if my ability to actually actively play with my daughter is a direct result from this hiatus but it definitely helped. I’m very busy with school and work, so sometimes I would feel too drained to play. As all parents know it’s hard to get the energy you need to be present with your child. Every. Day.
Some days are better than most, but sometimes you just wanna sit there and look at your phone while your little one watches Gabby’s Doll House or Pokemon. But I’ve been trying to do better for both of us.
Recently, Ive cut down on the screen time and with the added push from giving up social media I have been more motivated to be active. We’re actually going outside and just doing simple things like playing catch or climbing a tree.It’s been a lot of fun, although temptation does find me. At times I mentally would think “Oh she’s so cute. I should take a picture and share it to my Story.” But with Lent I couldn’t do that. So instead I laughed and enjoyed the moment for what it was. And I love it.
I’m really happy to say that I have moved on from that instinct to excessively share. And what’s interesting is that I have found that the app might need me more than I need it.
I’ll get notices about “trending” posts. Like the app knows I’m not using it and is trying to get me back, but I refuse. And honestly I don’t know if I will go back?
Today is March 30th. The fourth Sunday of Lent.
I went to church early in the morning with my dad. We got donuts. Me and my mom watched a few episodes of FRIENDS together. Then I went to my room to read. Surprise, surprise, I actually read! I can’t be the only one who started with the intention of reading, but instead the book sat next to them while they scrolled on their phone? (Please tell me I am not the only one?) Well not this time!
Today I finished my fourth book this week. I haven’t read this fervently since I was a child. Granted it’s a manga series (one of the best I think, it’s called Witch Hat Atelier), but still my attention is fully immersed in the story. Why would I want to change this?
I am at a loss though as I know that if it wasn’t for Bookstagram I would not have been able to discover some of the best books and make connections with some of the best people…
At this time I am thinking that I will definitely take a step back from social media and just create what makes me happy. I think that by focusing on writing, blogging, and reviewing. I can have a creative outlet without messing with my mental health.
Let’s see what I think next Sunday…
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