I’m jumping ship, and this is why.

I’ve deactivated my Facebook account on more than one occasion.  Every time I do, I anticipate that I’ll be longing for the connection I get off of FB, seeing as I seem to be kind-of…well…addicted to it.

There.  I said it.

Hi, my name is Hannah.  And, I’m addicted to FaceBook.

What an embarrassing thing to admit.  I mean, really?  FACEBOOK?  REALLY???  I mean, for crying out loud, it’s not like I’m 25.  I’m pushing pushing-40 people!  I’m in the generation above the tech addicts.  I should not be prone to this.

But, I am.

Yet, every time I deactivate my account, the very opposite of what I anticipate happens.  I actually find myself reveling in the things I can accomplish during my days.  I feed my spirit, soul, and body with the things of substance.  The things that matter.  Alone time with the Lord. Great books. Gym time. Tickle time with my babies, without distraction.  Great conversation with my husband — where we actually look at each other while we visit in the evenings, rather than gazing mindlessly at our cell phones, failing to actually connect because I’m too busy “connecting” with the rest of the world and he’s too busy “connecting” with Candy Crush Saga.  I have time to write.  And paint.  And, my chores get done in about a tenth of the time it takes to do them on an ordinary day when I stop to open FB in the middle of a task.
Which leads to checking notifications.
And responding.
And seeing a status update that I have burning input on.
And responding.
Which leads to new notifications…. [rinse and repeat]
Then noticing an enticing article that I want to read.
Meanwhile, telling my kids, “Okay, just a second, let mommy finish reading this.  It’ll just take a second.” … which leads to another second….which leads to 20 minutes.  And before I know it, an hour has passed and my kids wonder, “Why is Mommy always on her phone?”

And, the most brilliant irony in all of it is that I find myself more deeply connected to those around me when I actually disconnect from the rest of the [social media] world.  I call my friends.  I meet people for lunch.  I become intentional about staying truly connected because otherwise I’m not.  I send out personally directed encouraging words for specific people, rather than posting a mass encouragement in a status update, hoping someone will grab ahold of it and “be blessed.”  I have something to talk about with people when I run into them because I genuinely don’t know what they’ve been up to because I haven’t been following them in my news feed.  And, they genuinely don’t know what’s been going on with me, either.

So, after awhile of social media disconnection, I think “Okay, I’ve had my break, I know how great this feels.  I can reactivate my account, and just check it once in awhile.  This will be easy.  And, I should reactivate it, now that I’ve broken my habits.  After all, I have so many pictures on there that I don’t want to lose. And cute memories I’ve catalogued in status updates. And what if there’s an event invite that I don’t find out about because I’m not on FB?  And, besides, so many people tell me how much they enjoy my posts.  I want to continue to bless people!! And how will people remember my birthday? OH, and the articles.  They really are great.  How else could I find such fantastic articles, all in one place?  To be honest, I’m really just on there for the articles.”

So, I reactivate.

And within days, I’m sucked right back in.  Habitually picking up my phone to check for notifications.  Zoning out into mindless matters, I slip right back into the social media cesspool as quickly as I stepped out.

So, I simply have to avoid it altogether.  The same way an alcoholic must stay out of a bar.

I’ll post an article about the spiritual root of my addiction later, but as for now, I have to unplug.

My only use for Facebook will be to manage my Creative Expressions Page because I can actually do that without the draw of all of the other enticements on Facebook. And let’s just be honest — in today’s day and age it is next to impossible to get your stuff out there without some type of social media outlet.

But, for now (and quite possibly forever)….that’s it for me and Facebook.  We’re breaking up.

If you have a healthier relationship with FB than I do and you are interested in continuing to follow my blog and/or any of the spiritual revelations I like to share, songs I’ve written, or art pieces I’ve completed please do LIKE my Creative Expressions Page or better yet, subscribe to my blog in the right hand column of this page and you will receive blog updates right to your email inbox.

Stay tuned for Part 2 of this series, where I will go into the root of my personal Facebook addiction.**

**Please note that the ideas expressed in this article are based strictly on my own personal thoughts/experiences.  I am, by no means, trying to project my thoughts onto anyone else.  If you find these thoughts compelling and think others may benefit from reading them, please share by clicking any of the social media share links below.  If not, feel free to kindly disregard.**