Ten Important Things I Learned During a Week Without Instagram

«Social Media Use Has Similarities to Drug Addiction» The headline of the article flashed on my computer screen as I scrolled through my morning news. Alarmed, I immediately opened Instagram to check how many people liked a photo of me eating pasta. Truth be told, I had originally suggested that I quit Instagram and write about my experience two months ago, but I kept pushing it back, because I couldn’t seem Instagram to stop.

It was a weekly commitment that I considered giving up, but I kept coming up with excuses that were both plausible and grandly unbelievable. How will I know if [insert celebrity] posts something that we need to cover?» (Answer : Depend on your team members as you do.) What if that Italian waiter decides to DM you and declare his love? (Answer to: Please reply later, and maybe take a moment for you to review your romantic relationships.) What if my friends become concerned about my absence of posting and file missing persons reports, leading to a state-wide manhunt? (Answer: They have already been told about the story and you literally texted them every minute of every day.)

Here are the top 10 things I learned during my Instagram detox.

Instagram Interactions Aren’t Real Interactions

We marvel at how Instagram’s interactions with our friends—likes and story views, followers, unfollows, DMs, etc.—aren’t real in the sense they don’t exist. Yet, they can often change our moods throughout the day. Instagram is involved in half of our conversations about dating. «I posted a selfie, and he didn’t like it. He’s dead to me.» «How can she view my latest story and not the one before?» «Will your friend watch it from your account?» Yes, people do this. Or maybe only my friends. Every day, relationships are formed, strengthened and broken through Instagram. Half the time, the other person isn’t aware.

Instagram’s Reality is Not Always What You See

This is the right time to refer back to the article I mentioned at the beginning. Recent studies have made some alarming claims about the dangers of social media addiction. One study that looked at university students in 2017 found that students with low levels of social media use had moderate life satisfaction. However, there was a significant negative correlation between high levels of addiction to social media and lower life satisfaction. Another study showed that social media addiction was strongly associated with being young, single, and female.

Friends in Real-Life are better than friends on Instagram

My iPhone was dropped at the bottom of a lazy stream by a friend of mine in a fortunate (or unlucky) twist. The moment I returned to New York, I ran to the Apple store. As I held my brand-new iPhone in my arms, I thought back to the promise I made two days earlier. I had to be strong.

It wasn’t as painful as I thought it would be, and I can see that the weekend without my phone was not as difficult as I expected. It was actually quite liberating. I didn’t have scroll through all my photos looking for the right caption to post to Insta Stories. I didn’t have the task of deciding whether Huji or VSCO to filter the photo that I wanted to post on my feed. I didn’t need to look at my story views to see whether my ex or a bunch of random people had seen it. I was 100% present and had one of my most memorable weekends in a while.

A Clearer View of Life

My Instagram cleanse, like any detox, helped me reset and see things in a new light. It has many positive aspects, such as allowing me to keep up with friends and for aesthetic inspiration. I also try to avoid comparing myself or allowing digital interactions to take over my day. It was the best thing I could do for myself and I know that if I feel like I’m being sucked in again, it will be the last time I do it. Let’s hope it doesn’t take me dropping my phone to the bottom to begin the next one.

My Day-Today Conversations have Shifted

As I became more aware of my addiction to Instagram, I began to notice the influence it had on the people around I. While on a trip to Long Beach I realized how much of my conversations with friends revolved around Instagram. One friend commented, «That’s a post for sure,» after seeing a particularly beautiful photo. «What should my caption look like?» «He watched me stories.» «Will he AirDrop those?» Instagram talk had infiltrated our language, and I was guilty of it too.

Eye contact is important

One time, while waiting for the Q train on the subway platform I saw a sea people with their noses in their phones. Not a single person looked up. It felt a little eerie, almost like something from The Circle, a 2013 dystopian novel. I was originally going to write Wall-E but The Circle seemed more dramatic and ominous. It was a ride on Uber that I took last year. My driver said she had met her husband 10+ years ago when they were riding together on the train. He started talking to her and I instantly thought back. This is a story that could have been written by Nicholas Sparks. Would they still be together if Instagram existed back then? What if she hadn’t been so busy sending memes about Hailey Baldwin and Justin Bieber to her friends that she didn’t see her future husband standing there in front of her?

Real-life is happening right in front of me

At the end of the week I realized that I had stopped tapping into Instagram involuntarily. Or at least not as often as I used to in the beginning. I was able to observe my dependence on Instagram and the influence it had on me. The bubble burst and I was faced with the horrible reality that I had allowed a social media app and the false, warped world it created to affect my mood, emotions and well-being far too long. It had been a distraction from my life that gave me clarity.

Although I admit to using Instagram quite often, I didn’t realize how much it had become an automatic routine. After a lunch meeting, I was walking down the street when suddenly my thumb hovered over the app as if it had drawn it there. I stopped checking my email at work and looked up to see the square in sunset hues. It was both disturbing and depressing. What happened to me walking down the street and enjoying the surroundings? Why can’t I just look out my window and enjoy the New York sunset, instead of being distracted by yet another video of a puppy cuddling up to a baby? These videos are adorable, however.

«Depending on what is being watched or read, the brain goes into autopilot mode. It can be difficult to switch from one activity to the next if you are deeply involved. However, if reward centers and dopamine stimuli are activated, it becomes more difficult to disconnect. This is why Instagram can be so easily absorbed by the brain,» says Dr. Sanam Hafeez from NYC, a neuropsychologist.