What happens when you consciously turn off both Wi-Fi and data? I tried it for 24 hours, not as a punishment, but as an experiment. My phone stayed on, just without a connection. The result? A day that showed me how often I reach for my phone for no reason.
Life without the internet is quite unimaginable for our generation, and yet people often talk about detoxing from it or cutting themselves off from screens altogether. Scientists have been trying to point out the problematic use of digital technologies in children and adults for years. The negative effects of increasing screen time include poor mental health, poor sleep, obesity, and problems with socialization.
The data shows that mobile phones have flooded almost the entire world. At the beginning of 2024, the number of unique mobile phone users reached 5.61 billion, which represents almost 70 percent of the world’s population. In the last year alone, 138 million new users have been added, which is an increase of 2.5 percent. Even more striking is how many people are constantly connected to the world via the Internet. Currently, more than 5.35 billion people have access to the Internet, or approximately 66 percent of all inhabitants of the planet. In just one year, another 97 million have joined them.
My screen time did not deviate from the world average.
And social networks? They are now an almost inseparable part of digital life. The number of active users has exceeded five billion, which means that over 62 percent of the world’s population is already active on social platforms. Hundreds of millions are added every year, and in the last 12 months alone, there were 266 million new accounts, which represents a year-on-year increase of 5.6 percent.
Problems right from the start
I started my day without the internet by turning off Wi-Fi and mobile data. I could use the alarm clock, camera, and notes, but apps that use the internet didn’t work. I planned my offline day for the weekend for practical reasons, when I wouldn’t have work emails and wouldn’t have to use my laptop. I went back to my handwritten notes, where I jotted down observations throughout the day that served as a treasure trove for my article. I started by looking at my average screen time, which was 4 hours and 44 minutes over the past week, which is roughly the average for the population in 2025.
I started the day with an alarm clock and a quick breakfast before training with the dog. I noticed the first change right there, when my morning routine took about 15 minutes shorter, since I didn’t watch the morning news in bed or scroll through Instagram during breakfast. Right after training, I had my first problem in the form of payment in a cafe. I got used to paying via QR code, but without an internet connection it didn’t work and I had to return to the cafe with cash.
My morning visit to the cafe was not without problems, and apart from paying in cash, I enjoyed my matcha in complete silence.
Moreover, since I forgot my book, I had no choice but to observe the surroundings. I noticed that there was an advertising billboard with bathroom accessories above the café, but I also noticed a small insect that I initially thought was a hummingbird (they don’t live in Slovakia). Of course, I wanted to find out what it was, but I couldn’t look for it until the next day. Did you know that we have a Slovak hummingbird? It’s called the Marin’s Lišaj and it’s a butterfly with an atypical appearance.
I also wanted to read the latest news, but the printed version contained information from the previous day that I had already read online the day before. So at home, I resorted to books that I had been putting aside for some time. And I almost forgot to mention how I subconsciously reached for my mobile phone several times to check “what’s new” and it was staring blankly at me. When I wanted to contact someone, I only contacted the person whose phone number I had. How I missed the green icon that said the person was online, or the information that the message had been read.
Navigation, recipes and quick search
I couldn’t believe how much I relied on the internet even in the most trivial situations. I used to check the navigation in the car before a trip to see if there were any traffic jams or accidents on the road, and if I didn’t know the way, I had it on the whole time. Luckily, I didn’t have to go to a new place that day, because I wouldn’t have known how to get there, but I couldn’t help myself with the navigation to find the fastest route to a familiar place.
The walk with the dogs was carried out in silence and peace, without the distraction of music from the mobile phone or scrolling.
My lunch cooking was also interesting. I save meal inspirations to a bookmark on the internet, which of course didn’t work, so I cooked by eye. The result wasn’t bad, but if I continued like this, the kitchen would have to be full of paper cookbooks and improvisation. And I won’t even talk about those quick searches that I found out I do more often than I thought. Even my walk with the dogs had to do without music and watching a screen, but I appreciated the silence and peace just a short distance behind my house all the more.
Boredom and time to think
Without the constant stream of notifications and scrolling, I felt strangely empty during the day, but not unpleasantly so. Later, I felt like I started to focus more, my thoughts were not interrupted and nothing distracted me from what I was doing. I think I started to notice more details and think more deeply. Part of it was very liberating, by the evening I was completely used to it and didn’t need to check my phone. In the evening, I fell asleep much faster after a few pages of a book and without the usual scrolling before bed.
At the beginning, when I came up with this experiment, I didn’t expect any big changes or problems. However, even one day showed me how much I’ve gotten used to life with the internet and use it for completely banal activities. However, it showed me that I can survive without it without any problems (at least sometimes). Maybe it wouldn’t hurt if the offline day became a regular activity. It doesn’t have to be every week, but sometimes taking a break from constant notifications and relying only on yourself can be a nice change.