Tomorrow: National Day of Unplugging

Time to turn off the smartphones—and everything else
By Matt Cantor,  Newser Staff
Posted Mar 1, 2013 4:59 AM CST
Tomorrow: National Day of Unplugging
Tomorrow is the National Day of Unplugging.   (Shutterstock)

Feeling the stress of being plugged in and available 24 hours a day, every day? Tomorrow is an opportunity to take a break from all that. Starting at sundown today—in accordance with the Jewish Sabbath—thousands of Americans are set to shut down their gadgets (yes, all of them) for the National Day of Unplugging, the Detroit Free Press reports. The tradition began in 2010.

"Unplugging for the day is a way to remember how I interacted with the world before I had my smartphone stapled to my jawbone," says one participant. After all, "I don't have the nuclear codes. ... We don't need to be constantly available to everyone in our lives," he adds. It can be tough to do, though, notes a psychology expert. After all, the pleasure of getting texts and Facebook messages is like an addiction: "It's all about the chemical rush" of dopamine, he says. (More National Day of Unplugging stories.)

Get the news faster.
Tap to install our app.
X
Install the Newser News app
in two easy steps:
1. Tap in your navigation bar.
2. Tap to Add to Home Screen.

X