Ever feel like you can’t pray because you don’t feel ‘good enough’? Spoiler alert: God knows we don’t have it all together and welcomes our messy imperfection. 

I was doing my bible reading recently. The summary of the day’s reading said: “God invites us into conversation even when our prayers are unpolished, and our thoughts are in disarray.” This thought resonated with me deeply. It was in relation to Psalm 120, which is a Psalm of lament.

‘I call on the LORD in my distress, and he answers me. Save me, LORD, from lying lips and from deceitful tongues. What will he do to you, and what more besides, you deceitful tongue. He will punish you with a warrior’s sharp arrows, with burning coals of the broom bush. Woe to me that I dwell in Meshek, that I live among the tents of Kedar! Too long have I lived among those who hate peace. I am for peace; but when I speak, they are for war.’ Psalm 120

David, who wrote the Psalm, is on the run in the wilderness, the King is trying to kill him, and he is scared for his life. The Psalm is really short, and it reads as though David just blurted out his anguish at his situation. Many of the Psalms are laments, but they end with praise. However, this one doesn’t; it’s just David’s thoughts, fears and frustrations.

I was reflecting on times in my life when I have felt the need to censor myself before God. For me, this comes from two things: a need for control and wanting to have it all together. Sometimes, it feels like if I admit in prayer how much I am struggling, then I am also confirming that nagging feeling deep inside that I am not as in control as I would like to think I am. God actually knows I don’t have it all together – He made me. He invites us, in Matthew 11:28-30, to walk with him and learn from him, and to share our burdens with him, because he gives us rest.

Sometimes I almost feel like I don’t want to bother God with my problems. I say a polite prayer and go on my way, closing the door on deep pain that He invites me to share with Him in a real relationship. The Psalms are an example of what it looks like to share your heart with God: the fear, the pain, and the joy. In fact, when you don’t have the words to know what to pray for, praying through the Psalms is a great place to start.

We don’t need to wait for the perfect time or for our lives to be perfect. We don’t need to wait until we are good enough, either. The death and resurrection of Jesus on the cross gave us a direct path to a relationship with God. We can come to Him and share it all, unfiltered, messy, and just as we are. 

Article supplied with thanks to Lorrene McClymont.

About the Author: Lorrene McClymont is a writer and photographer from Hope Images. On her blog ‘Moments to Rest’, she shares about rest, faith, and family.

Feature image: Canva

I was listening to a podcast recently, and the speaker shared about a near-death experience they had been through. One of the things she mentioned was that we live life in the small moments, the ups and downs, the mundane.

Read more: Finding Contentment in Life’s Mundane Moments

Live in The Present

That line really stayed with me. As someone who has struggled to find contentment over the years, always coming up with the next big plan, it rings true. I think her perspective may be the key to fully embracing rest. I have at times led our family down paths we can’t afford, both financially and mentally, due to my desire to chase the next exciting dream. Living in the present, slowing down to find joy in the everyday moments, could be a key to feeling rested even when life is busy. Continually chasing the high moments in search of meaning can’t lead to lasting peace. It leads to hustle culture and an inability to slow down.

We Don’t Just Live Life On The Mountaintops

If we live for the highs, we never see the beauty in the tiny steps along the way. Life isn’t lived just on the mountaintops. We don’t just live it in the big occasions and grand celebrations. We live life in the laughter of a toddler and the smile of a stranger as you pass them by in the street. It’s in having a great cup of coffee in the morning and waking up thankful for all you have. Life is lived in the day-to-day, when you catch up with a friend or complete a project at work. It’s lived in the fight with your spouse, but then remembering why you still choose them every day. Every single day is made up of a thousand small moments, some good and some bad.

Contentment can be found in the day-to-day, the mundane. There can be joy in the good and the bad, not just the highs of life. It’s in learning to slow down and truly live in the small moments that we can embrace rest.

Article supplied with thanks to Lorrene McClymont.

About the Author: Lorrene McClymont is a writer and photographer from Hope Images. On her blog ‘Moments to Rest’, she shares about rest, faith, and family.

Feature image: Supplied (Lorrene McClymont)

Rest and how to implement it in our lives consistently is a journey. The last few years have been simultaneously some of the most challenging and restful years of my life.

A life of intentional rest builds resilience. It doesn’t mean that life is easy. It doesn’t mean that the challenges aren’t there, but it means that we are better equipped to handle them. There are three distinct areas of my journey to rest that are deeply rooted in my faith.

Follow His Leading 

Part of my journey to rest has been learning how to follow God’s leading. In my work life, I have often held leadership or management roles. If I didn’t start with them, I worked my way up to them. I am a driven person who likes to be in control. This can mean I come up with an idea. Next, I make a plan. Finally, I head off in a direction to achieve it. I sometimes forget to consult God in the process. Then I wonder why something feels off.

I have learned to stop. To breathe. To read the Bible. To spend time with God. To consult wise leadership whom I trust. I have learned to follow his leading, because if it isn’t God’s leading, it isn’t for me.

Learn From Him 

One of my favourite verses in the bible is Matthew 11:29, which reads 

Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 

This verse creates an incredible picture for me of what it is to learn from Jesus. To walk with him, in step, to share our burdens, our load, our work, and our life. This is what it means to truly learn from him. He is gentle and humble. He is the only way we can genuinely approach our lives from a place of rest. From that place of rest, everything else flows.

Lean on Him – Trust his Guidance

Fully leaning on God and trusting his guidance along the way has been the most difficult one for me. There are many things in life I don’t understand, and many questions that I have. I have experienced divorce, infertility, health problems, and redundancy, both myself and my husband. One thing I know is that his character is not dependent on my circumstances, and he is always faithful.

A few years ago, my husband and I felt that God had told us our next season was in the country. When I dreamed of this next season, I envisioned rural. No neighbours, paddocks for miles, total solitude. We didn’t renew our lease and started looking for a place. Little did we know it was the middle of a rental crisis. We starting loking and applying for houses. Months went by; the move-out date was looming, the old house was leased, and we had nowhere to go. I didn’t understand. If this was God’s plan, why didn’t we have a house?

We ended up living at my parents’ house, three cats, one dog, and one almost-married daughter. I was so angry with God. I just didn’t get it. It felt as though we had been obedient, and God didn’t do his bit. Someone prayed over us and told us that the house we would get would be more than we could even dream or imagine. I was so jaded, I just couldn’t see it. I was beyond frustrated, and I couldn’t even find a way to imagine what that might look like. We looked at a house; it was tiny, with all the bedrooms coming off the lounge room. It had no shed, carport, or storage of any kind. It was not rural; it was in a town with a mildly country feel. We applied, and the land agent said we had the house.

I was so incredibly desperate that I typed out an email to accept the house. Before I pressed send, I discussed it with my family. My daughter in particular challenged me about the words that had been spoken over us and if I was truly trusting God. So I deleted the email, turned down the house, and surrended control of the jounrey back to God. A week later, we received a call to meet with the owners of our current home, a beautiful three-bedroom house situated on 20 acres in the middle of nowhere. Heading into our fourth year, it is the most beautiful haven for us. Every single time I pull up to the gate, I feel a sense of peace.

Due to my inability to trust God when the plan wasn’t unfolding the way I thought it should, we almost missed out on a house that is truly more than we could have asked, dreamed of, or imagined. I nearly said yes to something that was not for us because I thought I knew better.

True rest means being able to follow His leading, learn from Him, and lean on him. Even when it doesn’t look as though the outcome is good. Even when things are hard. Rest is a journey; it is daily walking in step with Jesus. True rest means knowing we don’t have to control every single moment, we can safely rest in him.

Article supplied with thanks to Lorrene McClymont.

About the Author: Lorrene McClymont is a writer and photographer from Hope Images. On her blog ‘Moments to Rest’, she shares about rest, faith, and family.

Feature image: Canva

I saw a social media post that got me thinking about how we frame rest. When we have downtime, we often talk about doing nothing or doing very little.

Is it really that we are doing nothing? Or is it that we don’t assign value to what we are doing through a misplaced sense of guilt for wasting time?

I have rarely done nothing, even if that’s my standard answer. Sometimes I napped, sometimes I watched TV, sometimes I gardened, and sometimes I spent time in solitude, just watching the birds in my bird bath. Sometimes, I went for a walk. All of these things are part of what is a very intentional habit of rest in my life.

I spend a great deal of time writing and speaking about the importance of rest. Yet I still fall into the trap of feeling like I am wasting time. Living a life of intentional rest has totally changed my life, and I still feel a strange kind of guilt attached to “doing nothing.”

Rest Revives The Depleted Areas of Our Lives

We need to reframe rest. One of my favourite quotes is by Dr Saundra Dalton-Smith

“The most effective rest occurs when we puposefully revive the parts of our life we regularly deplete.”

Rest is reviving us. It replenishes and refreshes the parts of our lives that we regularly deplete. Depletion occurs in various ways, including parenting, creating, working, leading, teaching, and maintaining relationships with others. We constantly draw on these areas and never refill them. This leaves us heading for burnout at worst, and at best, never functioning at our full capacity in the areas of our lives that serve, love and pour into others. The most critical areas.

Rest is a Guilt Free Gift

Resting is not doing nothing. Rest is replenishing me. It is restoring me. Rest allows me to prepare for the week ahead and function at my best. My time spent reading a book or gardening is rest. It is restorative, and it is a gift from God. My time spent “doing nothing” allows me to refresh. It enables me to love others effectively and walk in everything God has called me to. There is no guilt associated with that. It is an absolute blessing in my life.

Do you struggle with feeling guilty about resting? Share your story in the comments.

Article supplied with thanks to Life FM in Adelaide.

About the author: Lorrene McClymont is a writer and photographer who lives in the beautiful Barossa Valley in South Australia. You can connect with her on Instagram.

Feature image: Canva

I saw a social media post that got me thinking about how we frame rest. When we have downtime, we often talk about doing nothing or not doing much. Is it really that we are doing nothing?

Or is it that we don’t assign value to what we are doing through a misplaced sense of guilt for wasting time?

I have rarely done nothing, even if that’s my standard answer. Sometimes I napped, sometimes I watched TV, sometimes I gardened, sometimes I spent some time in solitude just watching the birds in my bird bath. Sometimes, I went for a walk. All of these things are part of what is a very intentional habit of rest in my life.

I spend so much time writing and speaking about rest and its importance. Yet I still fall into the trap of feeling like I am wasting time. Living a life of intentional rest has totally changed my life, and I still feel a strange kind of guilt attached to “doing nothing.”

Rest Revives The Depleted Areas of Our Lives 

We need to reframe rest. One of my favourite quotes is by Dr Saundra Dalton-Smith

The most effective rest occurs when we purposefully revive the parts of our life we regularly deplete

Rest is reviving us. It replenishes and refreshes the parts of our lives that we regularly deplete. The depletion happens in many ways: parenting, creating, working, leading, teaching, and relationships with others. We are constantly drawing on these areas and never refilling them. This leaves us heading for burnout at worst, and at best, never functioning at our capacity in the areas of our lives that serve, love and pour into others. The most critical areas.

Rest is a Guilt Free Gift

Resting is not doing nothing. It is replenishing me. It is restoring me. It allows me to prepare for the week ahead and function at my best. My time spent reading a book or gardening is rest. It is restorative, and it is a gift from God. My time spent “doing nothing” allows me to refresh. It allows me to effectively love others and walk in everything God has called me to. There is no guilt associated with that. It is an absolute blessing in my life.

Article supplied with thanks to Lorrene McClymont.

About the Author: Lorrene McClymont is a writer and photographer from Hope Images. On her blog ‘Moments to Rest’, she shares about rest, faith, and family.

Feature image: Canva

Sometimes life is crazy. It just is. No matter how much I implement rest into my schedule, no matter how carefully I plan, my job has intense seasons, and sometimes, it’s not always possible to get as much rest as I would like. The world won’t always stop, but sometimes I need to. 

Sometimes it’s not about the quantity of the rest, it’s about the quality. Finding small moments to rest every day can make a world of difference. 

Touch Grass

Telling someone to touch grass, has taken off from social media. It’s a way of telling someone to get out from behind their screen and reconnect with the real world. It’s not necessarily meant in a kind way when used on socials, but it’s still an excellent idea. I start every morning outside, to touch grass, breathe fresh air, find something beautiful to photograph, and then get on with my day. It makes a huge difference to my mindset. If I am feeling overwhelmed at work, there is something incredibly powerful about stepping away from the computer, stepping outside, and taking a few deep breaths of fresh air.

Turn Off The Phone Notifications

Feel like your brain is completely overwhelmed? Put your phone down. Turn off the notifications for half an hour and just walk away from it. You would be surprised how much clearer your mind feels just from that small amount of time. Notifications on phones release dopamine, which is a neurotransmitter that triggers a feeling of anticipation and addiction. Give yourself a small break from it. If the thought makes you panic, it might be time for a digital detox 

Connect With A Friend 

When was the last time you really connected with a friend? Not via text and not over messenger. Actually connect face-to-face or in a phone call with someone whose company genuinely refreshes you. Book time for a coffee or a catch-up with someone who expects nothing from you. Someone you can just hang out with with no demands.

Read a Book at a Cafe

Take yourself to a local cafe, order your favourite coffee and read a book for half an hour. Take a time out from your busy schedule and just take a break. If reading is not for you, grab a coffee and listen to a podcast. I promise you there is absolutely nothing that can’t wait half an hour. In fact, there are probably many things on your list that will benefit from you taking a time out. 

Just Breathe 

Feeling overwhelmed? To-do list longer than your arm and not enough hours in the day. Stop, take a deep breath. Keep taking them. Write a list out, work through it one thing at a time, taking regular breaks. You will be surprised how much you get done by just slowing yourself down. 

I have a tendency to panic and multitask when I have too much on my mind. I start a thing, then another thing, and then I see an email, and then I go back to the first thing. You get the picture. Everything becomes urgent when you are reacting rather than responding. Stopping, breathing, and really assessing what I need to achieve has been the thing that has changed everything about the way I work.

Pause

So often, we get caught up in the hustle mentality. Just because the world doesn’t want to stop, doesn’t mean that we have to live our lives that way. I have been working on pausing. It’s so easy when someone asks something of you to quickly commit without really thinking about the answer. We do this for a variety of reasons: we want to get the issue off our list, or people pleasing means we say yes to things we know we have no time for. We can feel obligated, particularly in church circles. 

When you really pause before you answer, then you can actually consider everything before committing. Sometimes, it’s not the right time, season, or task to be doing, and it’s ok to pause, think about it, pray about it, and say no. 

What Are Your Red Flags?

Even in busy seasons, it is possible to take small moments to rest. We can implement small habits to ensure that we are in control of our schedules. Sometimes the only person who knows you aren’t coping very well is you, and you might need to be aware of your own red flags. 

When I am not resting enough, I get short-tempered, a little anxious, and bothered by things I can normally shrug off. These are the first signs for me that I need to look at how I am resting daily throughout intense seasons of work or life.

Article supplied with thanks to Life FM in Adelaide.

About the author: Lorrene McClymont is a writer and photographer who lives in the beautiful Barossa Valley in South Australia. You can connect with her on Instagram.

Feature image: Canva

Have you ever noticed that social media can be a bit of a double-edged sword? We can find connection, encouragement, and even some laughs when we need it. If we aren’t careful, though, it can distract us, steal our focus, and negatively affect our mental health. 

I have opened socials to quickly check something, then forty minutes later I am deep in the scroll hole, and I can’t quite remember what I was looking for in the first place. I have also found myself watching TV and scrolling and then I have no clue what I just watched.

So, how do we keep social media in its rightful place, where we control it and it doesn’t control us? 

Unfollow Without Guilt

It’s not mean, it’s wise. If someone’s posts consistently leave you feeling less than, anxious, or annoyed, it’s okay to unfollow. Your social media feed is just that – your feed. You don’t owe constant access to everyone. It doesn’t necessarily mean there is something wrong with their posts. It could be that you have something you need to work through, and that’s okay. The Bible says to guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life (Proverbs 4:23). Sometimes, guarding your heart looks like curating your feed.

Get an Analogue Alarm Clock 

Charge your phone outside of your room at night and start your morning well. When your phone is your alarm, you immediately start your day off by being tempted to jump straight into the digital world. Start the morning off slowly, walk outside for a couple of minutes, read the bible or write a gratitude list before you even pick up your phone. 

Bonus tip: try no social media before 9 am or after 9 pm. Give your mind space to wake up and wind down in peace.

Make your Feed Meaningful

Social media reflects what’s happening in the world, but you don’t have to match its mood. You get to set the tone. Be someone who brings light, hope, and rest — even online. Create a social media account that brings life to other people and shares joy. Set personal values for your account and use them to check yourself before you post.

Take Breaks from Socials

Sometimes the best way to reset is to step away. Pick a day of the week and use the do-not-disturb function on your phone. You’d be amazed at how much peace can return when the noise dies down. It’s not just about detoxing from content — it’s about reconnecting with God, the people in your life and yourself. Sometimes our socials distract us from what is really important in life.

Remember, It’s a Highlight Reel 

Although there is a trend for people to show a little more of a real-life view on their socials, it’s still curated. You don’t see the behind-the-scenes, kids screaming, family fighting, house a complete disaster, and everything upside down. Someone else’s curated square doesn’t compare to our big, beautiful lives, lived on purpose in all of their messy moments. God sees it all, and he’s not expecting perfection; he’d rather the honesty of the mess.

Social media is not bad, but like most things, we do need boundaries around our social media use. And those little decisions — unfollowing, starting your day with intention, posting with clear guidelines — they’re not just about boundaries. They’re about rest.

We are not meant to carry the weight of every news story, every injustice, jump into every fight, or compare ourselves to every person who is seemingly doing it better than we are. We are called to walk with Jesus and learn from him, finding rest as we do, not scroll ourselves into stress and anxiety. 

If you have been feeling the weight of social media and all it represents, Today is the day to make one small shift. Start with one, and see what a difference it will make.

Article supplied with thanks to Life FM in Adelaide.

Feature image: Canva

About the author: Lorrene McClymont is a writer and photographer who lives in the beautiful Barossa Valley in South Australia. You can connect with her on Instagram.

Something I have discovered as I have studied rest over the last few years is that it is counter cultural. We live in a society where the standard answer to ‘how are you?’ is ‘busy’, and exhaustion seems to be a badge of honour.

At some point we need need to be willing to break the cycle and embrace rest.

To advocate for rest, to suggest that there is actually a better way, seems to be unusual. I hear people say a lot, “I don’t have time to rest”, “I’m to busy to take a sabbath” or there’s no time in my work day to have a lunch break. I used to be that person. 

When You Don’t Make Time For Rest – It Catches Up With You 

I learned the hard way, that if you don’t make time for rest, at some point it will catch up with you. I hurt my back around 18 months ago. I felt the start of it, but I told myself I was too busy to rest. I told myself that my workplace couldn’t possibly do without me, (pretty arrogant of me when you really think about it). I convinced myself that it would be fine, I could just walk it off. 

I ended up herniating the disc at the L5 vertebrae of my spine. Because of how it herniated and where the inside of the disc is sitting, I have permanent numbness down one leg, continual sleep issues and problems with my back that can only be fixed with a spinal fusion or a healing. 

I tell this story to say that there are about 1000 different ways that I could have handled this at the time, and although hindsight is 20/20 many of them would have ended differently for me. I could have trusted my team, instead of thinking I needed to do it all myself and I could have listened to my body and rested. 

Rest Leads to Productivity

The thing is there is no reward out there for living in a way that is culturally acceptable but not in our own best interests. Since this injury, I have changed pretty much everything about the way I live, work, and rest, and I found that I am actually far more productive than I was before. Even with the health issues, I am far more effective now, because I make time to rest, I work in a way that is productive and I make sure that I am following biblical wisdom on rest, not societal norms.

If you are feeling like you have no time to rest, that is a sign that you may need to have a serious look at your schedule. We all need rest to function at our best for the people that matter the most in life. We need rest to be the best version of ourselves in all the areas we are called to be in.

Article supplied with thanks to Lorrene McClymont.

About the Author: Lorrene McClymont is a writer and photographer from Hope Images. On her blog ‘Moments to Rest’, she shares about rest, faith, and family.

Feature image: Canva

This past year, I have made significant changes due to being depleted in almost every area of my life.

I was permanently exhausted, constantly in pain, lacking motivation, and focus, and unable to be the person I wanted to be in the areas that matter most in life. It’s a story I hear time and time again when I talk to people about rest. Why are so many of us living like this, totally burnt out, with almost nothing left to give, convinced it’s for Jesus, while we aren’t actually living the way he did? We aren’t modelling our lives after him.

I don’t necessarily have the answers, but I truly believe that living and working for Jesus means we need to model our lives on his. Jesus did not live a life devoid of rest. Jesus didn’t live his life rushing from one thing to the next, never taking time to rest and recover. Jesus modelled a life that included rest, solitude, time with God, and time spent in prayer. He modelled a life taking time away from distractions to truly listen to what God needed to say to him. He showed his disciples compassion and directed them to rest in a quiet place. (Mark 6:31)

Sometimes, it is easier for me to run around doing all the things, to achieve and work, than to rest, stop, and take a breath. Intentionally resting and making time in my schedule requires discipline. Still, more than that, it means I need to stop trying to control everything. There is an arrogance to the thought that if I dare to take time out, the world will fall apart. Taking time out for rest forces me to confront the question, do I really trust that God is in control of all things?, or do I deep down believe that the I need to tightly hold control?.

Can we really be living for him if we aren’t living like him? We find one of the most famous passages in the bible on rest in Matthew 11:28-30. Probably the most quoted verse is verse 28

Come to me all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.

My favourite verse is verse 29, which gets to the heart of this question.

Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 

A yoke is a wooden bar used to join two draft animals, such as oxen, to work together to pull a load. When I read this verse, it speaks of partnership with Jesus, learning from him, walking, and working with him. It’s when we live our lives in that context that rest comes.

The more I study rest, and study the bible, the more convinced I am that we can’t live for him if we are not living like him. Jesus repeatedly modelled the way to live, including intentional rest, and solitude. He shows us the way; it’s up to us to decide if we are brave enough to follow it wholeheartedly.

Article supplied with thanks to Lorrene McClymont.

About the Author: Lorrene McClymont is a writer and photographer from Hope Images. On her blog ‘Moments to Rest’, she shares about rest, faith, and family.

Feature image: Canva

I recently had some time off work. One of the best things about it was not being chained to my phone for a week. I finished work, went on leave, and turned all my notifications off.

I used my phone only to pay for things and take photos. It was glorious. By the end of the week, I didn’t even know where my phone was in the house. I was completely detoxed!

Constantly Connected but Still Lonely 

We live in a constantly connected world. Sometimes, our phones, particularly social media, can be tempting as a means to escape from life. I am sure many of us can relate to that feeling of scrolling reels, just for a few minutes, and before you know it, you are lost in the scroll hole. Mindless scrolling indicates that I need some time away from my phone. Other signs are picking up the phone while I am watching TV, and continually reaching for my phone as soon as my hands are empty. Some of the other indicators are hearing my phone buzz and feeling anxious or driven to get to it, or finding that social media generally is taking me down a negative path.

So much of our daily lives are stored in our phones now; we have to get a code for two-step verification, follow up on an email, check a notification, and even do our banking. The problem is that between our socials and all the other functions on our phones, we can be almost constantly tethered to our devices. So then, how do we detox?

Set Goals

Think about the issues that bother you with your phone, and start by setting some goals. Do you want to stop multitasking? Perhaps you want to go 48 hours without devices. Is it cutting down your social media time that appeals to you? Do you want to go a whole day without the phone/TV? Whatever it is, use the SMART framework for goal setting and write it down. Make some small, realistic, achievable goals and work towards them.

Turn Off Notifications 

One day a week, I set the do-not-disturb function on my phone. I have it set up so that family can come through, but other than that, I don’t get any notifications. It is incredibly freeing not to be constantly distracted. It helps with concentration, stops me from multitasking, and enables me to focus on my day. Dr Mark Williams, a professor of cognitive neuroscience, has found that phone notifications increase our stress levels. When we hear the sound or feel the phone vibrate, our brain interprets it as something demanding immediate attention. Notifications also trigger a release of dopamine, a neurotransmitter that can create a sense of anticipation and addiction, which can lead to compulsive phone checking. This is problematic in many ways, but if your constant phone checking is getting in the way of work, study, or everyday family life, try a day without notifications.

Declutter Your Social Media

You are in control of your social media. We end up following accounts for different reasons. Sometimes, those accounts aren’t life-giving. If you are finding that social media leaves you with a sense of anxiety and disquiet, look at who you follow. Do you need to do some unfollowing? I try to curate my social media accounts to be a place of rest. I follow accounts that post meaningful and beneficial content. If I come across accounts I have followed that don’t fit that criteria, I unfollow them. I post things that edify and encourage. I try to create a restful space on my account for others to follow.

You might also find that you follow accounts that lead you to make unfavourable comparisons between your life and what you wish you had. The account content may be good, but it may not be healthy for you. Making healthy choices about your social media spaces is a good start to reducing time spent on social media.

Leave your Phone in Another Room 

Working? Studying? Socialising? Try leaving your phone in another room or, at the very least, turning it upside down. When I need to study, I use it to access the Uni site, and then it sits upside down, away from me. Even though we tell ourselves that we can multitask without effect, research has shown that it can reduce our comprehension and attention. If you are socialising, try leaving your phone in your bag or another room. In a world full of digital distraction, the person right in front of you is the real connection. And let’s be honest—no matter how hard we try to multitask, people can tell when our attention isn’t fully with them.

Our phones and digital devices can be helpful for a range of things, from connecting with other people to organising our lives. They can also become an issue that leads to a variety of problems, including lack of concentration, problems with completing things, anxiety, and an inability to properly connect with the people that we are with. If you find that your phone is an issue, try a few of the tips suggested in this article and let us know you go!

Article supplied with thanks to Life FM in Adelaide.

Feature image: Canva

About the author: Lorrene McClymont is a writer and photographer who lives in the beautiful Barossa Valley in South Australia. You can connect with her on Instagram.