Around 10 years ago, the book of Esther had a profound impact on me and became my favorite Old Testament scroll. It piqued my interest in the practice of fasting, among other things; and I soon began looking up all the episodes of fasting in the Holy Writ as well as the general history of the practice in Christianity and Judaism.

I had been looking for a way to reinvigorate my prayer life and for something that would give me a more tangible exper­ience of devotion. Fasting seemed just the ticket. I set aside three days and felt such a breakthrough when it was over!

I began wondering if there were other things besides food one could abstain from, since in the 21st Century there are many things besides food and drink that gobble up an obscene amount of our time. I spoke with other Christians who confirmed they were trying to apply fasting-style abstinence to other things besides, or in addition to, food. The time they spent on these various activities was devoted to praying instead.

Once I was convinced it was something I wanted to try, I thought about what would be best for me to abstain from. It didn’t take long for me to realize that social media and internet use would be the most appropriate, if most difficult, choice.

I got through high school with manageable social media usage but, by the time I was in college, symptoms of a compulsion had started to appear. If my goal was to increase my prayer and Bible reading time, then the obvious solution was to slay the Goliath-sized golden calf that had me glued to the screen for more hours than I’d like to admit.

I have probably done at least half a dozen social media fasts during the past decade. They have not been identical experiences, and I have learned via trial and error what works best for me.

Normally, I will be frank with myself about which app or platforms have been taking up too much of my time. I then decide on a time frame for the fast based on how bad I judge the situation to be. My fasts usually last between a week and four months.

Personally, I have never needed an accountability partner in these exercises, but if you think you may need one, don’t hesitate to ask for help. Fully logging out of a site is enough of a deterrent for me, as I normally remain logged in to my social media accounts. However, different people have different needs. I went to school with a girl who wanted to fast from her cell phone. She needed her parents to lock it in a safe that she did not know the combination to. That is not a joke—it is my generation in a nutshell.

The first time I decided to apply fasting to media consumption was with Facebook. I was constantly on it, and I knew I needed to try to break my compulsion. I was nervous because I had never done it before. I was worried people would think I was ignoring them because, at that time, I was the type of user who would like and respond to almost every post, photo, message, and birthday reminder. I didn’t know what people might think if I suddenly stopped paying attention to them altogether.

I made a status update to inform folks of what I was doing. I still do that half the time, but now I am also comfortable with just walking away without an announcement. Most social media users have been using at least one site for 10–15 years at this point, and we understand that infrequent interaction online is nothing to take personally because people have real lives to lead offline.

The most obvious challenge when fasting from food is the hunger pains. I have had hunger pains of a different sort while abstaining from social media. Just as cravings for sugar, protein, and starch tempt me into the kitchen while fasting, so do other internal cravings tempt me to log back in to the platforms I leave during my social media breaks.

To combat these cravings, I try to occupy my hands and brain. Instead of mindlessly scrolling or reaching for chips, I will give my fingers a psalter to flip through as I sing selections. I have also benefited greatly from grabbing a pen and writing a prayer journal.

Sometimes, I need to flee my home environment altogether. I will go to parks for my Bible reading and devotions and take long walks with no destination in mind. During my walks, I reflect, pray, and mull over spiritual issues while listening to music, brown noise, or silence and the sounds of nature.

I like doing something that gets me away from screens and requires movement but allows me the mental space I need to contemplate the things of God. Strolls and hiking do that for me, but for you it may be gardening, woodworking, crocheting, jogging, or something else.

Think of all the times you would go to social media at home, on a lunch break at work, or during a commute, and replace that action with praying out loud, praying silently, praying in writing, psalm singing, or Scripture reading and meditation. It may not sound exciting or revolutionary, but I have found that the end results can be beneficial when I stick to it. When we do these things, we are interacting with the Holy One, and we will not come out of it unchanged!

Nothing compares to a traditional food fast, but I’ve noticed benefits from giving up social media. It frees up one’s mind and time. Then, one can fill up on more productive and edifying activities or just relearn the simple joy of life without social media. I always feel happier and less anxious after taking a break.

What I’ve liked the most is that, after a social media fast, I can log on and feel completely different toward the platforms. There’s less of a compulsive need to check things, and the hold they had over me is weakened. It has helped me experience a take-it-or-leave-it feeling toward social media rather than feeling as if it is something I can’t live without. A cleared mind sees it as a purely optional tool to use and knows that, if it is used, it should not be used impulsively. It should be used carefully and selectively.

Over time, I have come to approach my penchant for being a social media glutton the same way I approach my penchant for traditional gluttony. Overconsumption is more a symptom than a cause. So, I ask myself why I am behaving the way I am. I meditate on what it is I am searching for in the endless social media shuffle. The answers are connection, validation, community, self-expression, truth, wisdom, and acceptance.

Social media can never provide me with any of that, but my Father in heaven can. Christ my Savior can as well. My friend and advocate the Holy Ghost can, too. God has also given me the gifts of prayer, the Holy Bible, and the church to experience all these things. Sometimes, it takes a little fasting to remind me of all that.