We are a week into my social media fast so I thought a little check-in would be good. This is a judgment free zone so if you are a judgy person, this is your sign to exit now.

As a recap, our church is doing a social media fast for the month of January. We were challenged to remove any distractions from our phones and only leave apps that are utilities/tools. I removed Facebook, Instagram and TikTok. The first two were pretty easy. TikTok is my distraction. I can spend countless minutes and hours going down rabbit holes on TikTok. And listen. I am not watching garbage. My feed is filled with quilting and needlepoint tutorials. But it is still a gigantic amount of time in my day.

Since we last talked, I have downloaded the Libby app (thanks, Kacie) and “read” two books (thanks, Betsy and Lori for the suggestions). That in itself feels like a better use of my time than TikTok. I did hop on for certain things that I needed (like to find a recipe etc). I just made sure I was using it as a tool and not for entertainment.

They said the average adult spends 5-7 hours a day on screens. They even showed this super interesting video. Do yourself a favor and take 30 seconds to watch it. It shows how people spent their time starting in the 1950s. The bulk of time is spent with family and friends. And it’s a time lapse over the years. Watch when the internet comes into existence. Now look at the family and friends number. Staggering.

Today during the message, I checked my screen time on my phone. Here’s how you do it. Just go to your search bar on your phone and type in “screen time” and it will take you where you need to go. Before you keep reading I am going to need you to grab your phone and do just that. If I’m going to reveal my stats, you are going to check yours. We can both feel terrible together. Okay, you ready??? Do you have your numbers?

Here goes mine. The week before I deleted the apps: 6 hours and 26 minutes on average a day. This past week since I deleted distractions: 1:57 minutes. Wow! What an improvement and what an embarrassment, It even breaks it down further. That first week I spent 20 hours and 30 minutes on social media. Last week only 34 minutes. The bulk of which came from a video messaging app I use with friends called Marco Polo.

So, tell me…how was your screen time? Better than you thought or worse than you thought? What changes will you try to make in 2026 regarding your phone? Please share so we can all help each other!!