In many ways social media has become the end all and be all of one’s life.

Whether we’re mindlessly scrolling through Instagram, staying up-to-date with the latest trending topics on Twitter or watching a funny YouTube video from our recommended watch list, social media has become a very vital part of our everyday life.

Despite offering many benefits, such as networking, socialising with friends and family and providing an avenue for business opportunities, social media, if not used in moderation, can wreak serious havoc on our overall productivity and mental wellness.

If you find yourself caught in a downward spiral of constantly checking your phone for social media updates or reaching for your phone first thing in the morning, it may be time to perform a social media detox.

Our Today’s 4 Steps To Performing A Social Media Detox

STEP 1: Deactivate/Delete all your social media apps

If you really want to rid yourself of your current social media overindulgence, then you have to commit.

As daunting as deleting or deactivating your social media accounts may seem, it’s a necessary evil to achieve the results you’re looking for.

Completely removing or deactivating your social media accounts will: 1) remove the temptation to constantly check your phone or 2) provide an unwelcome challenge to checking for feed updates, helping to curb the habit over time.

STEP 2: Give your smart devices a bedtime

As strange as it may sound your phone needs a bedtime too!

Late-night activity on your phone or computer can negatively impact your sleeping patterns due to blue light, keeping you wide awake.

Set a time that you can commit to putting your phone or other devices away, at least one hour before going to bed.

You can also choose to automate this process with your phone by setting a time where it limits the apps you can use or completely shuts down.

STEP 3: Create a new morning routine

The best way to break a bad habit is to replace it with a better one.

If your morning routine previously included checking for social media updates, try replacing this with something more productive such as journaling or reading a book.

STEP 4: Find a replacement for social media time

If you’re accustomed to checking your news feed 100 times a day, then removing or deactivating your social media account will most definitely leave you with a ton of unaccounted for time.

Instead of allowing this additional time to go to waste, try putting it to good use by pursuing a new hobby or activity you’ve always been interested in but never quite found the time for.