You're trying to quit porn : Try to quit the Internet as well ?

Hi ADC.

I think you do have a point there. My view is that the Internet has allowed for unprecedented access to all kinds of things, compared to what was available 10-20 years ago, especially with high speed connections.

It is about accessibility and instant gratification. If you add in pornography, you get a potent mix for addiction.

Even without porn, the Internet allows us to feed our minds with other things (both useless and useful) so rapidly, we grow accustom to it and I think we just want more of it (that chemical reaction happening in our brains rewarding us with pleasure).

This includes the idea of connecting socially with other people over the net. I'm not sure I can fault them, the system has allow so much conveniences, but I think some of us have difficulties in learning balance and moderation.

I didn't have Internet access on my phone until beginning of the year sometime. I don't say that as a way to boast myself, I really didn't have any use of it on my phone. Now, I start to see that it's becoming compelling, so I turn it off when I don't need it for something like maps/GPS or quick look ups. What also helps me limit my mobile net access is also a 500MB per month limit.

In general, I don't have any specific social networking interest (as in Facebook use), so I don't update or check up on others. I do use this forum extensively and talk to a friend online. At home, my Internet browsing time does need to be trim down. So, I agree with you, there is some kind of addiction there for me. I'm trying to learn a way to do more with my life, but I'm not sure what alternative is there for me.

And good on you for taking on the journey too. All the best.

 

I have been off Facebook for almost 2 months now, if you've never done it before, I totally recommend it. (you can deactivate your account so you can come back to it later)

I was on FB a lot, my girlfriend is on there, friends, etc. My habit was I scrolled the the bottom until I was up-to-date with my last session. Wasted so much time. I mean I watched lots of cool and interesting videos, I never really used it to check out of peoples lives, more as a news hub...but after a long time I decided to give it a break, as well as YouTube where I watch lots of News videos mainly.

It's so nice not being on it, you have heaps more time to do things. It's like going back to life before social media. Having a break teaches you something and opens you up to a different path. Obviously it's an easy habit to break, unlike PMO.

I will be activating it again soon. But this time I'm changing some things. Will delete/unsubscribe a lot of friends and pages I follow, use it less, and change the way I use it.

 

Hey ADC

I've been aware of the reality of Internet addiction, ironically, long before I let myself become aware of porn addiction.
My partner has been constantly calling my attention to everyone in the world's immersion in technology, all connected by the appropriately named "Web".

Let's all unplug.
Wake up.
Go outside.
Get real.

Can we?

Great challenge!

 

Thanks for the link to the post, ADC. It certainly rings true to me and aligns with my thoughts about the matter, even though there are some things I don't agree with. I might write an entry about it on my journal (even if the post seems to suggest that we should try to move away from journals).

Regarding discussion about computer and Internet addictions - I agree too that it's nearly impossible to avoid those technologies. It's become integral to our society and how we function. Sure, there are people that may be able to minimise the uses. They might have active lifestyles that only use these things when they have to.

There are some apps out there that just stops net use when one hits a certain quota and/or time. That may help in limiting excessive use and addiction.

As for triggers, they don't even have to come from online. I mean, the non porn ones (EDIT: Whoops, forgot that there are offline porns as well). I guess the triggers depends on the person to.

 

Let me know how you go with this strategy - I think if you unsubscribe to all the useless crap on FB, you improve the quality and relevance of everything in your newsfeed. If everything is interesting, it might suck you in further.

 

It's like, I have so many portals on the Net, maybe it's nice not to be sucked in further. I have an overload of all data, things to read and watch, projects to do.

I'm kinda living in Life After Facebook, it's so nice...when I return I might just dull it down instead of making it too specific. I'll come back to this thread a while after I've reactivated and let you all know.

Worst thing about Facebook for me is the PMO triggers. I actually got off it 1 month before starting this challenge, was nice building blocks.