Are We Digi-tose or Device Co-dependent?

    SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA, February 21, 2021 /24-7PressRelease/ -- Life after Lockdown - are we even more device or online hooked than before? Do our families and especially our children comprehend why our devices are seemingly more important than spending time with them, after all we are at home...

We have all heard, seen and read enough about C-19 and its multitude of impacts it has/had on our lives, and no one really wants to be told more shoulds or ought to's about it either… However, we have all felt in our own experience, we have grown even more technology bound.

If we were to look at statistics, we were, as a society, already largely addicted to our devices, be it at work, on the commute, and around friends and home, in most cases habitually reaching for our phone as the first thing in the morning and the last thing at night.

Then Covid 19 rendered us house-bound in many cases and reliant on connecting with loved ones through zoom or the like, placing us in front of our screens even the more. A screen surfing population is what we became, apart from our usually long hours on devices and computers, now we had to add hours of binge watching Netflix to stay sane.

And, while balancing out the time we spend on our smartphones with our non-digital off-line real-time face-to-face interactive time was always important, now, after our children and loved ones have seen us right in front of them day in, day out and still being glued to our screen, we have to address it even the more.

Tapas Senapati, founder of MoodOff Day, an initiative started a decade ago, says, "It is confusing for family members and especially children who don't understand our constant engagement with phones, tablets and computers, seemingly as a preference over them."

"While we have validity to be so preoccupied with our devices, to them it is incomprehensible why we rather be online, on computers and phones when we are home and we still don't give them the same attention and presence. Not surprising, we are seeing repercussions emerging now," Tapas says.

Two things are being noticed more so now, one, children tend to be even more technology and device prone, literally stepping into our footsteps. Monkey sees, monkey do. The other is more subtle and troublesome, where loved ones doubt themselves and feel inferior to technology and the devices that get more attention than them.

MoodOff Day, the smartphone addiction awareness campaign has long been advocating a more conscious use of technology and smart devices, yet on the tail of a year of lockdowns, social distancing and a swing toward technology and away from face-to-face interaction - this has become of even more importance.

"We are calling on all to think, connect first and then jump onto our devices," says Tapas.
"We want to encourage people-connection before technology. And, a great way to initiate this is our annual MoodOff Day on February 28th," he says.

On MoodOff Day, we are asked to do without our beloved devices for 5 hours as a way to help us realise just how integrated, if not addictive, our relationship with smart devices and technology really is. Visit www.moodoffday.org to learn more about technology habits, ways to balance people vs devices and to support the outreach the MoodOff Day charity undertakes throughout the year.

You can pledge your participation, dare your family, friends or colleagues to partake and see if you can go for hours without your phone, tablet, computer or gadget - or not.

"We are not asking people to go without their phones or computers in every day, it is just a way for us all to realise just how much we are influenced in our daily lives by technology - often disregarding those closest to us, such as children, partners, family members and friends," explains Senapati.

Could you go without your phone? Even just for a few hours? Are you digi-tose or device co-dependent?

Would your children, partner or family members appreciate being paid more attention (for a change) than your devices? According to Tapas who has undertaken the 5-hour tech hiatus for 10 years running this year; it is hard to go without for a few hours, but also rewarding to reflect and realise just how ruled or even addicted we are to our technology.

Sunday 28 February is the day - pledge you 5-hour detox from technology and see for yourself… Can you do it? The Australian-born initiative has grown across 26 countries and thousands upon thousands of tech-users since its inception in 2011 - log onto www.moodoffday.org to pledge and challenge others to partake as well. Happy MoodOff Day 2021!

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