How to Spend Less Time on Your Phone this Holiday Season

If you occasionally find that you spend more time on your phone than you would like, you are not alone. However, this time of year may not be the best time to fall into that trap because of the abundance of holiday festivities, opportunities to socialize with loved ones, and possibly some time off from work.

Don Grant, PhD, a media psychologist and national advisor of healthy device management for Newport Healthcare, a national network of mental health care centers for teens and young adults, asserts, "Holidays also offer lots of opportunities for real connection, turning your presence into a present for your family and friends." Holidays are also a great time to make real connections with loved ones.

The answers to questions about the effects that using a cell phone and engaging in social media activities have on one's health and well-being are nuanced and not fully understood.

But there is evidence that being too attached to your phone or digital device can hurt your health and well-being as a whole, as well as your social life, and that detaching a little or detoxing completely can have some positive effects.

One study, for example, found that when you have a mobile device, you are less likely to have good conversations with people who care about you. Higher levels of technology use have also been linked to increased symptoms of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), diminished emotional and social intelligence, technology addiction, social isolation, impaired brain development, and disturbed sleep.

Yes, stepping away from your technology, even for a short period of time, may be a way to change some of these things. Digital detoxes, even those lasting only a few days, were found to be associated with reports of feeling less anxious and having better mood, productivity, and sleep in a small study of college students.

However, it might be easier to say than to do.

So, this holiday season, how can you disconnect from the digital world and connect with the world around you?

1. Set for yourself boundaries

To be fully present, for instance, you might decide not to use your phone after dinner or during family meals. Alternately, you might decide that rather than bringing your phone with you to family gatherings, you will keep it in a specific location.

Also, plan ahead, advises licensed professional counselor Dean Aslinia, PhD, who works at New Path Treatment and Recovery Center in McKinney, Texas, a facility that treats addiction and mental health issues.

He adds that if you're fully engaged in the activity rather than being distracted by your phone or the devices of others, you might find yourself enjoying seasonal activities like skiing, preparing a holiday meal, or playing charades with holiday guests.

Do you find that you don't follow your own rules? Try an app or the screen time and downtime management features on your phone. Putting additional measures in place can be more effective because willpower alone often is not enough to make real changes in your relationship with technology.

2. Assign Gathering Wide, No-Telephone Time

Seeing family or other friends and family this Christmas season? As a group, decide when and if you want to set a "phone-free" time. Establish specific times and places for your family to agree to be completely present without being distracted by devices, Grant advises.

It could be during mealtimes, game night, or another group activity.

Grant explains that establishing this boundary with others can assist in holding everyone accountable for it. Everyone is less likely to disappear from their respective devices as a result.

3. Disable Push Notifications

 If you're attending a holiday party, don't let a quick glance at your phone keep you from enjoying the festivities. Try turning off push notifications for apps you don't use and checking those apps when you want to (rather than when the app tells you to) instead of when the app tells you to. According to research, these auto-alerts do in fact encourage us to spend more time using our devices.

4. Delete or hide tempted apps 

If you're drawn to a particular app, you might want to hide it or delete it entirely. Attempt it even only briefly for the Christmas season, Award recommends.

Dr. Aslinia concurs: Apps that aren't necessary for your day-to-day life or that just want to pass the time should be deleted or hidden.

However, he advises that you keep and make use of the apps, such as banking, the weather, and calendar, that will ultimately assist you in becoming more productive and involved in your day. It might be harder to disconnect and you might spend less time on your phone with apps that are more social or just for fun.

Consider it this way: There aren't extra hours in the day because of the holidays. Do you prefer to spend your social time using an app or going to actual celebrations (or personal time)?

5. Adopt a Delayed Posting Habit 

Time spent with friends and family, traveling, or participating in other holiday celebrations creates wonderful memories and tempting photos. Grant advises, "But don't let that posting stop you from enjoying the moment."

He suggests that you refrain from jumping on your phone to share photos and highlights in real time to remain more present in what you are doing. Posting after-holidays is always possible.

6. Choose monotasking over multitasking 

Your holiday to-do list probably includes everything from wrapping presents to putting up the Christmas tree. Our brain can't really focus completely on two things at once, according to studies.

In the event that you're looking on your telephone and attempting to carry on a discussion with your grandparents, you're not completely present in the convo. Take a break from multitasking and put your phone away so you can fully enjoy the special moments of the holiday season.

7. Reduce the Number of Photos 

You don't have to take a picture of every moment of your holiday party. If you feel the need to take a lot of pictures, you will probably hold your phone a lot of the time. Furthermore, research indicates that recording experiences rather than simply living in the moment may actually hinder the formation of new memories.

Can't stand the thought of not having some vacation photos? Set aside a specific amount of time during which you will take some pictures and then refrain from using your device.