I would love to rid of my smartphone

palmtree

Thu, Dec 17 2020, 10:58 pm

Not because of frumkeit just because of distraction. Distraction from myself, distraction from my children etc... I've been so close to doing so many times; however the social media keeps pulling me back; especially what's app most of my siblings are on it and I thats the way I keep up with them and share my life ongoins. Any tips? Anyone going through the same thing!

lovingmommy3417

Thu, Dec 17 2020, 11:09 pm

I was literally looking up flip phones yesterday. I would looooove to but I'm worried it would be too hard.
Same reasoning. Just distracting. I did start like putting my phone in my room when my kids are home to help.

amother

Goldenrod

Thu, Dec 17 2020, 11:15 pm

Before the days of smartphones, my mother used to talk on the phone with her sister a lot. We kids did not like it because she was "always" on the phone as we were leaving for school since it was cheaper to call long distance before 8am. (Anyone remember that? Calling long distance used to be a big deal.) Looking back, now I understand how important it was for my mother to keep up with her sister. Sometimes, mothers need to do things for themselves and that's ok.
Is it really bad to keep up with your siblings on your phone? Are you neglecting your children, or are you sometimes making them wait so that you can have some adult chatter with your siblings? Maybe you need to implement certain hours that your phone is off limits when your children need you.
Getting rid of a phone so that you don't keep up with your siblings does not sound like a good idea. I can think of other reasons to get rid of a phone though.

crust

Thu, Dec 17 2020, 11:15 pm

I leave my phone in my office sometimes. If I would have a car that would be the place.

I sometimes delete apps or restrict them so I can't access it.

There's a great app called Cold Turkey that shuts down your phone for an hour. You can only make calls.
It does not work on the Galaxy S9 though.

And finally, I also want to go back to my dumb phone but that would mean that every time I have a quick Zoom meeting I have to go to my office.

I would also love to hear ideas of how people leave devices out of their home but then have access to it when they need it.

Maybe having a laptop with internet in the home is still a better option than a phone because you can't just carry it around like that.

yiddishmom

Thu, Dec 17 2020, 11:20 pm

I try to put my phone on focus mode for the hours that I am supposed to be focusing on my son, supper, cleaning... focus mode shuts the all apps besides for the few that you exclude.

Also, if it's only whatsapp with your siblings that's holding you back: you can create a business qhatsapp account and download it on a tablet.

amother

Teal

Thu, Dec 17 2020, 11:23 pm

Wish I could help I have the same with my family. Yomim Tovim time, Simcha time , Birthday Time. What I started doing is muting the app and telling my family I'm not reading any messages for a few weeks. I also block last seen and already read. If anything is very important. I get a call from the relative beforehand and message get sent through text. I really probably end up my social media motzai shabbos.

thanks

Thu, Dec 17 2020, 11:35 pm

yiddishmom wrote:

You can have whatsapp on any device that has a browser. No need for a business account. Simply go to web.whatsapp.com.

crust

Thu, Dec 17 2020, 11:36 pm

thanks wrote:

You can have whatsapp on any device that has a browser. No need for a business account. Simply go to web.whatsapp.com.

With which number?

ExtraCredit

Fri, Dec 18 2020, 1:49 am

I’m ok with the phone I have I’d just love to spend less time on here. I tried limiting to one hour. It worked for a week or two. I’m afraid this place is all or nothing. I’m not ready for nothing so I end up being here whenever I don’t actually need to do anything else. FOMO at its best!

wif

Fri, Dec 18 2020, 1:51 am

This is what works for me:

I have a "dumb" phone to make phone calls with. I also have a tablet, with WhatsApp. Its cumbersome, and I leave it in my small home office. So I have access to it only when I leave the main part of the house and go to the office, which cuts back on the distraction considerably, since I dont see or hear any notifications, etc. You can probably do the same by leaving it in a closet or something.

Good luck!

amother

Black

Fri, Dec 18 2020, 1:59 am

thanks wrote:

You can have whatsapp on any device that has a browser. No need for a business account. Simply go to web.whatsapp.com.

I think your phone needs to be connected for that to work.
If I turn off the internet on my phone, the whatsapp web is no longer accessible.

amother

Periwinkle

Fri, Dec 18 2020, 2:39 am

Right now I have a smartphone with no Sim that I use for work and at home it needs wifi to do anything. I have a dumb phone with my Sim card.

WitchKitty

Fri, Dec 18 2020, 2:45 am

I only have a "dumb" phone. No whatsapp. No texting.

crust wrote:

And finally, I also want to go back to my dumb phone but that would mean that every time I have a quick Zoom meeting I have to go to my office.

Use a tablet for that.

amother

Periwinkle

Fri, Dec 18 2020, 5:35 am

WitchKitty wrote:

I only have a "dumb" phone. No whatsapp. No texting.
Use a tablet for that.

I like texting. In Israel most people use whatsapp so I don't spend much time texting, and texts are important to receive packages, information for healthcare, codes to get back into your account on different websites, etc. People text me a number or something, etc.

The only person I text is DH a bit, just short things like I love you or remember to pick up xyz. And my best friend isn't a phone or people person and hard to reach sometimes. So it's easy to text her to call me back when she can, or text a bit when she isn't up to talking on the phone.

yiddishmom

Fri, Dec 18 2020, 9:55 am

amother [ Black ] wrote:

I think your phone needs to be connected for that to work.
If I turn off the internet on my phone, the whatsapp web is no longer accessible.

Correct.

amother

White

Fri, Dec 18 2020, 10:03 am

palmtree wrote:

Not because of frumkeit just because of distraction. Distraction from myself, distraction from my children etc... !

People confuse some thing that frum people do to be something so unrelatable but this is exactly one of the reasons many frum people don't have a smart phone. Simply because it distracts from the important things in life.
I am in the same position as you and I would love to spend less time on my phone.
What I have been doing is trying to read more when I am able to around my kids. I feel like if I gave spare time (not much) while feeding the baby etc. They prefer for me to be reading than on my phone and tummies also easier to put down

amother

Scarlet

Fri, Dec 18 2020, 10:06 am

I got rid of WhatsApp like 3 years ago. Best thing I ever did. I don’t have any social media.
I have a dumb phone that has the same # as my smart phone so I can leave my smart Phone in the car or at work and still get my calls and texts. For keeping up with family I use WhatsApp which I can get thru reg texts. Disclaimer I’m in my 20s and my friends and family r all on social media. They make fun of me but I know they are jealous of the discipline it takes...

estherj

Fri, Dec 18 2020, 10:58 am

amother [ Scarlet ] wrote:

How do you set it up so that both phones are on the same number?