Technology is a powerful tool, and everyone who has been exposed to it knows that. Especially in todays day in age, technology is more powerful than ever and it's only growing as time goes on, change occurs, and people discover new ways to connect our world together. We are now connected in the span on less than a second. Through social media, websites, Face Time, and other streaming sites, we can come in contact with someone half way across the world and it would be so easy. If you time travel back to 1920, and talk about the advancement of technology to what it is in 2020, people may think you are on some kind of drug. They could never imagine the concept of Face Time, or the idea of a "website."
Unfortunately, the relationship everyone has with technology is a roller coaster. Sometimes it's up, but whenever something goes up, it must come down. It's the way the world works. It's how life works, and figuring out how to deal with it all can be stressful, anxious, and bring a lot of different unhealthy and toxic emotions to people. It is known that since social media, telephones, and streaming sites have been the main focus of teenagers and young adults life, their mental health has gone down the toilet. Depression and anxiety has risen and it's continuing to go up, and the suicide rate is tagging along with it. This wasn't very common back in 1920, and it's one of the toxic sides of technology.
The ways of the internet and social media can connect you with your family, friends, your work place, and even people you have never met before. But at the same time, technology can make you feel so alone. It can bring sadness and anxious thoughts about so many aspects in your life. It's scary, and it's so sad. That's how I personally view my relationship with technology. It connects me with my family when I am at college, my friends from high school I don't see on a normal day to day basis anymore, and my professors during this time of quarantine and the COVD-19 pandemic. But at the same time, I feel alone when I go online. I feel like I am left out on a lot of things, or when I post on social media I want people to think I'm cool, got it "going on," and I know what I'm doing, when in reality I don't have a clue. It's a horrible feeling.
Recently, since I have been in quarantine and have been isolated in my home, I have spent countless hours online. Streaming new shows on Netflix or Disney +, scrolling through Tik Tok or Instagram, and watching YouTube of dumb things that bring me short lived joy. With that, I have noticed that my anxiety has been out the wazoo. I wake up everyday and I'm nervous, anxious, and jittery for no apparent reason. I try and distract myself, and I notice what works best is when I put down my phone, computer, or the TV remote, and concentrate on myself and centering myself back into reality. I put a cold towel on my forehead or the back of my neck, I take a cold shower, I go for a walk, run, swim, or cycle on my moms stationary bike. I put on a candle, listen to some music and stretch while I practice focusing on my breathing. Sometimes I color, sometimes I just go downstairs and talk with my mom for a while. I separate myself from the online world, and go back into the real world.
Technology will be a part of all of us moving forward for the rest of our lives, and beyond. Through our children's lives, our grandchildren's, their children's, and so on. There is nothing wrong with that as it has so many benefits in our world, but remembering the opposing side of this tool and how it can make you feel is what is really important. So every once in a while, I separate myself completely from being online. I delete apps from my phone (Snapchat, Instagram, Tik Tok, YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, etc.,) and I disconnect. I don't watch Netflix, Hulu, Disney +, or that much television. I try and focus on other things. Doing a puzzle. Learning a new hobby of drawing, knitting, or coloring. Being with my friends, my family, and the people I love. Focusing on my mental health, and remembering that technology is a tool to help us as people, not the other way around.
https://www.newyorker.com/tech/annals-of-technology/as-technology-gets-better-will-society-get-worse
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