Diary of a Gen Z Student: I went tech-free for two whole weeks, here's what happened

Jane Cowan: Did I wake up with nightmares about all of the Instagram reels I was missing? I’d rather not say. Picture: Moya Nolan

I recently declared that I was undertaking the challenge of going technology free for two weeks. A throw my phone in a drawer and relearn how to read an analogue clock kind of challenge. Well, the two weeks are up. And the results are in. 

Did I survive two weeks without knowing what my friends were eating for breakfast, lunch and dinner? Just about. Did I wake up with nightmares about all of the Instagram reels I was missing? I’d rather not say. 

Look, every generation has its obstacles. Fighting for time on the landline (whatever that is) was my parents’. Social media is mine. Sue me!

I started the challenge at the beginning of my assessment season for college. So, it was pretty well timed. I was a powerhouse of productivity for those two weeks, replacing Instagram with my college reading. It’s surprising how much study you can do in a day when you don’t spend four hours of it doomscrolling. Who knew? 

With my newfound gift for academia, it’s probably fair to say that I became pretty insufferable, pretty quickly. I was like someone doing Dry January and waving a finger of disapproval at anyone going to the pub. 

Like I had started a diet and I was judging a stranger for eating a Mars bar I would have inhaled 48 hours previously. 

Any time I found myself wandering through the train station, wondering how to get home without the Irish Rail app, I would scoff at the social media scrollers on the platform. So disconnected from the real world, no one taking in the beauty of the pigeons or the faint scent of urine. ‘Young people these days’, I’d whisper as I got on the wrong train.

The revelations were more than just academic. Did you know that if you don’t text your friends or update your Instagram Story about every detail of your life, you’ll find you have a lot more to talk about when you see your friends in the wild (off social media)? 

You can genuinely ask them what they’ve been up to that day, because you haven’t been taking note of their location on Snapchat Maps. You’ll actually be surprised if you run into someone in the library or walking around town. Because you didn’t already know where they were!

"‘Young people these days’, I’d whisper as I got on the wrong train." Picture:  Moya Nolan

At the start of the challenge, I wondered if I’d miss any important news stories without the news apps on my phone. Imagine my confusion as my friend started discussing what a conclave consists of over lunch. Strange topic for a Thursday, I thought. Then I found out the Pope had died four days earlier and no one had informed me. 

I had been wondering what was up with the Catholics in my life, but assumed it was some emotional prep work for Easter. Well, I got that very wrong. 

Katy Perry also decided to ditch stardom to become an astronaut and find out what love truly is. Her speech about not just taking up space, but making space, felt like it could have been lifted from Kirsten Wiig’s speech in ‘Bridesmaids’. A classic film. And to think, I missed the live re-enactment. 

I like to say I live with no regrets, but at times like this, that can be difficult.

There were other drawbacks to my tech-free living, like not being able to check a restaurant’s website to finalise my order in advance. And not being able to check the weather app before getting dressed in the morning. I even had to go into my hairdresser IRL to book an appointment. Like putting clothes on a dog or sleeping with socks on; it just felt wrong. 

But there was the added bonus of going about my day without having it disrupted against my will. 

Two weeks without unexpected phone calls was utter bliss. And if I could make that a permanent fixture in my life, I would.

However, the positives of the challenge are probably not enough to keep me off my phone forever. I’m just a girl, I like knowing when it’s going to rain! 

Plus, if you’ve ever basked in the comments on an Instagram post or the likes on your Story, you’ll know that it’s an excellent source of validation. Not something I’ll give up any time soon. My Instagram followers probably missed me dearly. 

I sort of understand Katy Perry’s space trip: spending some time in a rocket is fun and all, but I’ll still kiss the ground as soon as I land. I’ve seen tech-free living now. And those 11 minutes probably were plenty.