Can Digital Detox Offer Relief from Constant Connectivity?

IT + Social Media

Information overload is a growing phenomenon in many parts of the world. It results from users of laptops, smartphones, and tablets spending too much time on their digital devices. Can digital detox offer relief?

The Spa at the Mandarin Oriental, Tokyo, offers sweeping views of the Japanese capital.

Constant on line connectivity can, in fact, induce stress, reduce productivity, and become addictive.

Constant on line connectivity can have a negative impact on concentration, cause frustration or anxiety if power is running low, or disrupt sleep patterns as addicts check their emails when they should be sleeping.

On line connectivity can also have a negative effect on interpersonal relationships as addicts spend more time interacting with people on their digital devices than they do chatting with their dining companions or drinking buddies.

In extreme cases, digital addiction can lead to Internet Addiction Disorder or Problematic Internet Use (PIU), which can result in job loss, academic failure, financial debt, or the breakdown of marriages.

Screen Free Week

Here I am (left) going without digital devices during a three night familiarization trip to Northern Sweden.

TV-Turnoff Week was launched in 1994 to encourage people to turn their televisions off for seven days and spend more time engaging in community work or physical activities.

The name was changed to Screen Free Week in 2010, and the goal is similar: to encourage participants to switch their digital devices off for seven days and reconnect with the physical world.

Future Screen Free Weeks will be held from 2 to 8 May in 2017, 30 April to 6 May in 2018, and 9 April to 5 May in 2019.

Wellness Holidays

Dinner under the stars – with smartphones checked at the front of the Lalibella Game Reserve in Soouth Africa.

Some hotels, resorts, holiday camps, and wellness retreats are launching digital detox programmes, which give participants a chance to “take a vacation” from their digital devices.

Health and Fitness Travel recommends what it calls one week “wellness holidays”, which are offered by the following five retreats:

Ti Sana Detox Retreat and Spa – a wellness retreat io Lecco, Italy.
Kamalaya – a health resort in Koh Samui, Thailand.
SHA Wellness Clinic – a wellness clinic in Altea, Spain.
Vana – a wellness retreat in Vana, India.
Chiva Som – a wellness resort in Hua Hin, Thailand.

Digital Wellness Retreat in Japan

The Mandarin Oriental, Tokyo, in Japan has launched a Digital Wellness Retreat that is designed to give participants a break from their digital devices.

The package includes accommodation, dining, energy clearing exercises, and spa treatments. Inner and outer wellness issues are addressed.

A Himalayan salt lamp which absorbs electromagnetic waves will be placed in their hotel room.

An ancient healing “shungite” stone and Himalayan salt will be placed in the heir bathroom.

The Digital Wellness Retreat runs through 31 March 2017.

Hotel Overview

Located within Nihonbashi Mitsui Tower, the hotel has 179 rooms and suites, restaurants and bars, and a spa.

Where

Mandarin Oriental, Tokyo, 2-1-1 Nihonbashi Muromachi, Chuo-ku, Tokyo, Japan. Telephone: +81 (3) 3270 880. Click here for hotel information, guest reviews, and current room rates: TripAdvisor Tokyo

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