Does technology mess with your Yoga and Meditation practice?

By Polly Wilson

At the start of this year I moved into a beautiful place north of Sydney on an estuary of the Hawkesbury river. Surrounded by nature with only about 60 houses, and a half an hour drive from the closest shops the solitude and space really spoke to us.

Being so close to Sydney we weren’t expecting how difficult it would be to get the usual mod cons installed we now take for granted -  no mobile signal, no TV signal, and recently no internet at all.

Just a good old fashioned landline. Hello 1990’s!

What was even more surprising was my unconscious addiction to my phone and internet..

According to the business insider, the average person touches their phone 2,617 times a day. MIND BLOWING!

As a society we’ve become addicted to instant gratification and answers.

I’m not sure I’ve ever been quite at that statistic but what I observed was the desire to google the most ridiculous things.. ‘What to do with the bottom arm whilst being big spoon’,  ‘Do slave monkeys pick coconuts’,  ‘How old is The Fonze’ (just a selection from the last couple of days!) It’s not like the world will stop turning if I don’t find those out stat..

But the four most important things I’ve learned not having any internet?

#1. I think I don’t have much time - but I do. We are obsessed with being busy, but is also this instantaneous communication and feedback really just distracting? Without the internet at home, my internet time has been limited to 2- 3 hours at the library during the day for work and personal time after teaching Yoga. So, I’ve found at home myself and my husband have played board games, walked in nature, read books and practiced guided meditations together.

#2. My meditations were deeper. In a half an hour meditation it would normally take me 15 minutes for  my mind to settle. I found I dropped into stillness much quicker both morning and evening.

#3. My Yoga practice was more spacious. Similar to the above, I got into the flow of my practice easier. With no messages coming up on my phone in the morning, no distractions and a longer more spacious practice.

#4. I slept better (and consequently felt more energetic during the day)  It usually takes me half an hour or so to drift off. That ‘blue screen’ is definitely a thing. Less monkey mind and more sleepy baby!

Will I give it up? Nah…it’s so much more convenient with the internet and to have that flexibility to work or study at home, book flights and events and Skype-ing international friends. We will be back on the internet next week - will try to find the willpower to turn the wifi off by dinner time though.

I’ll try it and let you know how I go….

One final thing…

​The Fonze is 71 years old ;)

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