As millennials, we never hear the end of avocados, Starbucks lattes, and most of all how much we use our cell phones. We use them as alarms to wake up, it barely leaves our hand all day, and then we fall asleep in the middle of text messages, while playing games, or watching YouTube videos on our phones. I’ll admit it can become a little excessive, but everything is so much easier with a phone. Our entire lives revolve around our screens.

This is no longer true for me. Recently, my phone malfunctioned, and is completely useless for the time being. Therefore, I began a social media cleanse. While the first couple of days were extremely difficult, I have felt less and less desire to jump back into the frenzy of likes, reposts, views, etc. While I’ll admit I haven’t become more productive, I’ve had a lot more time on my hands. I’ve gotten to see my friends and really experience being with them, without a constant stream of Snapchats taking my focus to someone and somewhere else. As I was writing this article, I was distracted by someone saying “24 likes!” and it’s surprisingly relieving not to have to focus on online personas for a little while.

That is not to say, however, that I don’t miss many of the benefits that come with having a phone. I couldn’t count the number of times I’ve had to borrow a phone to call my dad or even the amount of times my dad has called my friends to talk to me. I’ve lost all of my Snapchat streaks and I’ve gotten a little behind on some of the news within my social circle. However, I also have not been involved in any drama, had to deal with any unwanted messages, or been so caught up in the mess of who watches my story, who likes my photos, or who opens what messages. While I would not choose to remain removed from social media on a long term-basis, this has been a healthy break, and I don’t mind continuing it for a while longer until my phone is repaired. I would even suggest that some of you try taking a break as well. I won’t say you need to unplug completely (because I can speak for how difficult it is to quit “cold turkey”) but it may be rewarding to take a step back. Maybe try just logging out of your social media accounts for a few days, and experience it for yourself. You may be surprised at how easy and worthwhile it really is.