Habits for Healthier Relationship with Technology
Our smart phones, tablets, and other devices give us access to a wealth of information and entertainment. The internet is an unmatched tool that can help us access services, educate ourselves on endless topics, and connect us to each other.
Technology offers us many amazing tools, but technology has also been connected to higher rates of depression, anxiety, feelings of loneliness, and other impacts that indicate a pattern of addiction in some people. We would like to encourage a more healthy relationship with technology for you and your family.
Here are 7 habits that will help develop a healthier relationship with technology:
1. Turn Off Notifications
The notification feature in the apps on your smart devices are designed to keep you engaged with the screen. It will help you build a healthier relationship with technology to turn off the notifications. This will help you avoid the distraction of the notifications that compete for your time and attention.
2. No Technology in Bed
The light from your phone screen or tablet could prevent you from sleeping soundly. Some sleep studies have been conducted to show the adverse effects of screen time during your nightly routine.
Blue light from a screen can send the wrong signals to your brain, which can prevent you from falling asleep easily. Text messages, notifications, email alerts, and other noises that can come from you phone during the night can disturb your sleep by triggering you to respond instead of getting quality sleep.
We included this tip for a healthier relationship with technology in blog article on, “10 Way to Practice Self Care During the Day.”
3. Avoid Photo Filters and Highly Edited Photos
In 2018 Time Magazine published an article that featured a concern that there are rising rates of people seeking plastic surgery to look like their photos using a snapchat filter.
While it may be fun to see yourself with a photo filter in an app, these images don’t reflect reality. Some people have experienced anxiety and other more serious mental health concerns with the representation of their social media presence.
A more healthy relationship with technology could mean posting un-edited photos with no filters, that represent your real life.
4. Connect in Person
When you are around friends and family, make it a priority to talk, laugh, and play with them, without a screen between you. This is one of the most crucial habits for a healthier relationship with technology. Don’t allow your screen time to create a division in the relationships with your loved ones.
5. Avoid “Click Bait”
Many social apps are coded with algorithms that show you more of the things that you are interested in. If you are clicking or tapping on information about celebrity gossip, then you will see more content on celebrity gossip. If you are interacting with photos that are of your friends and family, then that is what you will see.
Give your time and attention to content that is actually important to you to develop a healthier relationship with technology.
6. Search, Don’t Surf
If you are looking for information on a specific topic, then a search tool will help you find the exact information you are looking for. However, if you find yourself clicking from a list of suggested videos and spending hours exploring ideas that you never intended to search for, you may want to be more aware of how you are spending your time.
The information age has given us virtually unlimited access to information online. It is your choice how you utilize the capabilities of technology.
7. Limit Your Screen Time
Have an awareness of how much time you spend each day looking at a screen. Set a limit for yourself and be conscious of moments when it would be more healthy to put away the technology.
The rate at which technological advances have been made in the last 30 years have been exponentially larger than any other advancement in human history. Using technology can be fun, educational, and positive in many ways. However, we should also be aware of the potential impact it is having on our individual well being and communities.
At TexasLending.com we use our blog to share ideas for connecting with your family at home, taking care of your health, and providing expert mortgage information. Our goal is to help you with your mortgage needs with a quick and online easy process, then let you get back to your life.
