Today I was forced to face my FOMO (fear of missing out) phobia.

Last night my battery adapter for my computer blew a gasket, thus resulting in no computer. My first response was immediate panic and despair. What am I going to do without my computer for 12 hours? Holy crickey.

I am addicted to my computer and the Internet. It has become my best friend and has replaced real live people with virtual social interactions.

We don’t even need to leave our couch to connect to anybody, anywhere around the world. All we need is an Internet connection and that’s it; we are up and running.

Not having a computer for 12 hours has made me seriously ponder my addiction to the Internet. I really did not know what I was going to do.

Read a book? Oh yea, I used to do that back in the old days. Now everything I read is online over my computer. All my writing is even done electronically; I’ve forgotten how to write by hand. Now, that is pathetic. I realized just how lazy I’ve become; writing this post by hand feels so “old school” to me.

This all came to me this morning while I was doing my yoga practice (in silence) I don’t even do that anymore because either I am listening to a podcast on how to do something or to music.

Today, I pulled The Hermit card from my tarot deck and he is all about going within, soul searching and meditation. The card is about the need for solitude and introspection. Being attuned to the spiritual dimensions of the Universe and taking time to reunite with the source.

For about three months now I have put myself on a Facebook fast.

There are a few reasons; reason number one is what I like to call, ‘social media procrastination’. These days I am working on my time management and doing my best to utilize that time by being as productive as possible in manifesting my dreams.

I already have a serious issue with procrastination (the destroyer of creativity) and I’m afraid to add Facebook to the mix. I’m sure it won’t help me out. I’ve found that when I do indulge daily on Facebook I get sucked into the vortex and an hour of my life is gone.

On top of that, I feel pretty bad afterwards because I start comparing my life to others. This does not empower me. Not to mention, Facebook can be addicting and there is a lot of ‘Facebragging‘ going on which seems to get my chakras in a ruffle so I try to avoid spending too much time there.

Is the root of FOMO really just loneliness?

Loneliness feels like an emptiness, a vacuum inside which cannot be filled. So we reach outside of ourselves to connect with others, whether it’s physically, on the phone or through social media.

Technology has supplied us with many devices to make sure this kind of connection is easily accessible. Now a days we have iPad’s, iPhone’s, TV’s, and  Wi-Fi is everywhere. We are constantly checking emails, status updates, and text messages.

Some of us spend the whole day connecting but somehow this does not reduce the loneliness we feel. When we are empty we use technology to dissipate the feeling of loneliness. It’s the modern day drug addiction.

Even when we travel our flights assure us we’ll have plenty of entertainment to keep us busy; movies, games, music, and access to the Internet, are all readily available. If that is not enough, I’m pretty sure the person next to you will happily tell you their life story.

We are afraid to sit with ourselves, to sit with all our internal ghosts and demons.

All these devices are just distractions so we do not have to communicate with ourselves. In daily life we are disconnected with ourselves so how can we connect with others? Despite all the various modes of communication we continue to feel alone and empty.

So the revelation is to apply The Hermit’s message to go within and live authentically. Then, with our resources of joy, self-love and approval we can reach a state of completion or poortva where there is no sense of lack.

All of this, realized, from a simple fried battery adapter. I just love how even the smallest apparent misfortune can bear such insight.

Everything is an opportunity to look inward. Nothing is missing all is within.

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          Assistant Editor: Brenna Fischer/Editor: Bryonie Wise

          Image:  jaimemorto/Flickr Creative Commons