In this article, I discuss how journaling can help build self awareness in relation to starting or continuing a digital detox.

The idea of building self awareness into screen time came to me when I was considering how integrated technology has become to our daily lives, and in my case as a twenty-two year old, how fast it came to define social interaction during my formative years. Many of us will use technology for work and home lives, and often find it is a space that enmeshes everything together – a hard to avoid dimension of reality that we have accepted across our lives.

It is not that I think this should not be the case – and that we should never have made these technological tools. So many of them are useful and some are even lifesaving. I just think that technology has permeated life so quickly and comprehensively that it has become normalised and often missed when thinking about our lives.

I primarily journal to record my life as I move through university – having periods where I’m always writing and completely forgetting my diary exists at other times. I also use it to explore feelings I have and help work through moments of stress. One thing that I have missed when journaling is reflecting on my relationship with tech and how it impacts me. You might relate to this as someone who journals too. Or you might have never picked up a journal but feel that you want to reflect more on your relationship with your phone.

A good place to begin this task is by reviewing your screen time. Look at your phone just now to find out what your screen time is, and then come back and write it down. What apps do you use the most? At what time of day do you use technology the most?

You could explore this usage through the following journaling prompts:

• When do I use my phone the most, and why?
• If I didn’t use my phone during these times, what alternative tools or activities would I choose to achieve the same goals?
• On days when my screen time is especially high, how do I feel emotionally and physically? What activities or feelings dominate those days?

If you would like to look further into these areas, it can be good to consider what actions you have done that have been inspired by your online activity, or how you have used technology to connect with others – and whether it was positive or negative.

• What have I done offline that was inspired by something I saw or read online?
• How have I used technology to connect with others—and was the experience positive or negative?
• What purpose do my online communication tools serve in my relationships?
• How would I maintain these relationships without social media?

Social media is a big one, and the following journaling prompts will be useful for those trying to manage a healthy relationship while maintaining a social media presence:

• What content do I typically view when scrolling?
• How do I feel after a session of scrolling? Relaxed, drained, entertained?
• What content do I produce? How do I feel after posting it?
• Have I discovered anything through social media recently that added value to my life? What?

There are no right or wrong answers, no ideal way to use social media – these exercises are all about building your own awareness of your use and how it impacts you. You might find aspects of tech to be really positive or really negative for you, and this will be different for everyone.

I hope that working through this helps you understand the role of technology in your life and maybe even encourage you to change specific habits if you find they are not helping you.

Thank you for reading this – if you’d like to see more on our theme ‘digital detox’ this month, then follow @uoedigiskills on Instagram.

Reflective journaling to detox / Digital Skills, Design and Training by is licensed under a