On Fasting

At General Conference a few weeks ago, President Nelson challenged all the women (since the talk was delivered during the women's session) to fast from social media for ten days. I started that night and deleted Facebook from my phone. I don't have other social media accounts (with the exception of Pinterest, which I don't use as social media), so Facebook was the only one I had to worry about. My fast ended up lasting eleven days instead of ten and I finally logged back on late Wednesday night.

I fast from social media about once a month on a regular basis, but only for a day at a time. I know that there's a feeling of peace that comes with it. And I felt that this time as well. I'm more focused, more present, a better listener, and more patient when I'm not thinking about what I read on Facebook. That held true for this extended fast.

Another thing that I realized: I'm pretty isolated as a stay-at-home-mom. Add to that the facts that I'm an extrovert and that my husband was out of town for half the fast. I was lonely. I didn't have time (when my hands were free) to write emails or the quiet needed to call people, so I was even more aware of it.

I was pleased to discover that I use my time pretty well on a regular basis. I thought I'd discover more time since I wasn't staring at Facebook, but I didn't. It turns out I only look at Facebook when I'm feeding Topher or holding him while he's asleep or while doing other waiting types of activities. I had setup social media rules for myself long ago that I still follow. The rules include staying off my phone or computer while my kids are awake and making sure my scripture study is done before scrolling through updates.

At the end of the fast I wasn't sure that I wanted to log back on to Facebook. In reality, I needed to check it because all three of our schools use it to communicate with parents, but I was concerned that I'd get sucked in. Because of the fast I think it's easier to check what I need to check and put the phone down again without feeling the need to read every update.

I'll continue to fast Facebook on the first Sunday of each month. It's a good mental reset.