It is no secret that technology dominates a large portion of our lives as students. Research shows that most students who attempt to go a full twenty-four hours without technology fail to resist technology the entire time.

To test this theory, I went on my own technology fast. The fast started on a Saturday at noon and ended on a Sunday at noon. After spending most of the morning using my iPod or watching television, I turned off all of my personal electronics. This meant no television, no cell phone, no iPod, and no laptop.

The first hour without technology I felt a little restless, almost as if I didn’t know what to do with myself. My family just watched and laughed saying I wasn’t used to “old school”. Finally, it dawned on me to finish a book I had started earlier that month. Six chapters later, I got out of the house for lunch with my mom and sister.

Throughout the day I had to resist the urge to check or use my cell phone and watch television with others doing the same. After a few hours into the technology fast, resisting got easier. I found myself glued to the book I continued and had more time to actually talk and interact with others around me.

The hardest item to ignore was my cell phone. I made a rule that I could keep my phone on silent as long as I didn’t use it at all. Another thing that did not exactly help my fast is people telling me when another individual would have called or texted me. Thankfully, my family and a friend of mine helped me steer clear of technology.

Before the fast, I only let a few people know that I was going to be doing it. Bad idea. People tried to contact me but I could only use the few phone numbers I had written down and memorized to respond. This really emphasized the dependence we in society today have on personal technology for communication.

The craziest part of the technology fast was that it felt almost like breaking an addiction. Although there were a few instances in which I nearly broke my resistance and used technology, I managed to go the entire twenty four hours without any use. The technology fasting was difficult, but in all it was extremely refreshing. The day seemed calm and less occupied by non-essential activities and overall, I did more meaningful things than texting, watching videos on Youtube, or posting on Facebook.