Kaua‘i professional surfer Bethany Hamilton’s recent challenge to herself to abstain from social media was more than pushing her latest venture of motivational speaking promoting “The Unstoppable Life” courses she telecasts virtually.
The Soul Surfin’ Kauaian legend turns 31 today, and what she did had more to do with promoting a lifestyle that isn’t as dependent on our phones.
We live in a society where having a phone is a necessary evil, and sometimes you have dual phones: one for business and the other for personal use.
Make no mistake, these phones are now unavoidable in our life. But the power of convenience doesn’t necessarily always create more joy.
It would be interesting to see more in-depth university and scientific analysis on just how overstimulated we are because of this necessary technology.
Does having the power of instant access to information, games, online shopping, DoorDash and transportation, you name it, make us happier?
Sure, in the short-term. But as the old saying goes, “the more you get, the more you want.” So instant gratification is the latest roller-coaster-ride that is burnt onto our overstimulated brains.
Kudos to Hamilton for utilizing her celebrity status to bring awareness to another aspect of mental health that seems to get overlooked.
Though her study was hardly conducted in a scientific way, Hamilton did claim there were some benefits from her abstaining in her video she published on Twitter after her hiatus from social media was over.
“I removed my social media off my phone,” Hamilton tweeted. “It’s been amazing!!! I wish I did it sooner!!! So I had to share this idea with y’all so you too may experience the freedom and goodness of just owning your time and life with lots of love and peace.”
Peace, love, joy and enjoying the things about life that really matter is not something that is generally found with the eclectic bombardment of subliminal messages we witness every day on social media.
It’s inevitable that we must use social media to some degree, but hopefully Hamilton’s message about moderation will resonate with others, or else we will keep funding and feeding our own demise.
•••
Jason Blasco, reporter, can be reached at 245-0437 or jblasco@thegardenisland.com.
