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Professional mails, text messages, social networks ... For some, the summer holidays are the ideal moment to try to disconnect and relax. A weaning that is proving increasingly difficult in a hyperconnected society.
Before leaving on vacation, Alexander, in his thirties, had promised to let go. No longer consult his professional e-mails, no longer throw himself on his phone at the slightest notification, stop updating his Twitter feed. After two days, the report is implacable: it is a failure.
" My phone is eating my life. I have it constantly in my hand, from the moment I wake up to when I go to bed. Impossible to do without it, "blows, tired, this part of a big company. The addiction is too strong, the fault of his work according to him. " My colleagues are resting on me. Some people use and abuse that. I have to answer to the tac tac if the work will be put aside for me. "
Health risks
Like Alexandre, there are many who try to regain control over their digital devices, aware of having become addicted to them. Three quarters of the French say they are dependent on their connected tools, according to a study published last June by the polling institute BVA.
Two years ago, Clémence, an NGO project manager, was diagnosed with TAG (Generalized Anxiety Disorder). In response to his worries of anxiety and anxiety, his therapist suggested spending less time on the screens . " I uninstalled my work email from my laptop so I would not watch it outside of work hours. On weekends and holidays, I also delete Instagram and Facebook apps , "she says.
" The fact of being constantly connected, solicited, in the order of sharing, of staging his activities also for Instagram, did not allow me to find a bubble of moment to better manage my stress of everyday life ", explains the 24-year-old who, since her digital diet, has returned to music and drawing.
What exactly is the term "digital detox"? Virginie Boutin, professional coach and co-author of the book "2h chrono to disconnect", prefers to speak of " consciousness or digital regulation ". The importance, according to her, is not so much to achieve total abstinence 2.0 but a fair balance: " We must sort out what is beneficial to us in our digital uses and what tires us and irritates us, which is time-consuming and energy-consuming. And then, clean up to keep only beneficial uses, like keeping in touch with your family, and remove or minimize the rest . "
The "digital detox" can also find a capacity for concentration, creativity, innovation.
Virginie Boutin
Professional coach, co-author of the book "2h chrono to disconnect"
02/08/2019 - by David Pauget ListenSocial pressure at the connection
" I am very reactive when I have a notification, and even if it is not, I tend to go from application to application looking for new content : Facebook or Instagram thread, stories, emails ... ", explains Myriam, a student at Sciences Po. For her, unthinkable not to check at least once a day his emails and messages, " for fear of missing information ", the famous FOMO ("Fear of missing out").
" There is social pressure to perpetual connection. Even on vacation, you have to justify yourself to your family, to your colleges not to have been connected. We are in a society where communicative immediacy has become the norm of our time management , "says Francis Jauréguiberry, sociologist of the uses of communication technologies at the University of Pau.
In this context, the disconnection appears as a test. Certainly painful, but beneficial in the long run. " To want to reintroduce time, temporal locks where there is silence, why not boredom ... It is the fruit of our will. If you get around it, it often results in immense satisfaction, "explains Francis Jauréguiberry. Three quarters of French people also recognize that limiting the time spent on screens would be beneficial for their health.
A booming business
One thing is certain: with so many people addicted to their screens, the business of the disconnect has a bright future ahead of him. Hotels, accustomed to welcoming vacationers in search of disconnection, offer more and more cures. " Overworked, stressed, overwhelmed? Temporarily disconnect from the Internet for your health, "says the Vichy Célestins Spa Hôtel's " digital detox "brochure. The customer, upon arrival, is invited to deposit his digital tools in a safe. Sports and relaxation activities are planned. Total cost: 1,035 euros for 3 nights.
Offers that are also found in guest rooms. This is the case of the Château La Gravière, which offers personalized assistance throughout the stay in the south-west of France, and offers, among other things, bicycles, books and board games. The rate is 210 euros per day, but does not include accommodation and meals.
Start-ups have also positioned themselves in this niche, such as Into the Tribe , a digital detox agency created in 2015. It offers disconnection seminars for companies as well as training courses and conferences. " The participants are mostly city dwellers, quite young, between 25 and 45 years old. They are on connected trades, spend a lot of time in front of screens, including in their personal lives , "explains Vincent Dupin, founder of the start-up. Rates are negotiated according to the budget of the companies and their requests.
Before getting to pay for digital abstinence, some test their own tips for the summer. Baptiste, a 25-year-old teacher, decided to leave his smartphone at home. Instead, he went on vacation with an old Nokia phone without internet. " To be able to call in an emergency, but especially to avoid any temptation . "
►To read too: Why is it so complicated to disconnect?