How Do Changes in Tech Affect Our Mindfulness & Mental Health

One of the biggest fallouts of the Covid-19 pandemic was the exponential growth in the use of technology. Mobile phones, laptops, wearable devices and a host of other devices became crucially important to people’s physical and mental health and safety. 

Tech today impacts your wellness, communication, monitoring of symptoms, self-care reminders, work, leisure and finances to cite a few areas. During the pandemic, it kept us safe and connected with loved ones, helped us to learn and study, continue working from home, shop and exercise from the comfort of our homes, and gave us access to information and entertainment. 

However, on the flip side, it’s hard to disconnect from tech. We remain tethered to our devices often at the cost of human interaction and relationships. As a result, instead of making our lives easier or more comfortable, we find ourselves more on edge, anxious and stressed because of the lack of boundaries. As tech advances make their appearance almost on a daily basis, we can feel increasingly powerless. 

In the final analysis, there’s no doubt that tech is here to stay, but in what capacity and role is the real question. As a collective society, it’s important to take these decisions early to avoid mental, physical and social collapse.

Impact of Tech: Possible Mindfulness and Mental Health Issues

Around the world, there’s hardly anyone today who has not used some form or other of technology. Be it smartphones, wearables, digital apps, laptops, tablets and more, each one of these devices has made things more efficient and faster in many ways. 

As with any invention or innovation, there are always feelings of anxiety when they first emerge. When computers first made their debut, people were anxious that they would lose their jobs to a machine. While this played out in a different way as history shows us, the impact of technology may be more subtle and transformative on human society and the environment. 

Young children and infants who are dubbed “digital natives” adapt very easily to tech, and the jury is still out regarding the long-term impact on human physiology and brain chemistry. 

Psychologists have flagged increasing cases of sleep disturbances, anxiety, ADHD, Alzheimer’s, depression and cognitive decline being linked to excessive use of tech. The unceasing flow of information can keep us on edge, with no downtime to process and analyse it. Critical thinking, problem solving and observational skills can decline as we become more dependent on AI and other forms of machine learning, virtual assistants, robotic processes and more. 

Qualities that make us human, compassionate, empathetic, creative and able to constantly adapt and learn new skills could become irrelevant as we become more dependent on tech. 

Mindfulness is something that we have developed over thousands of years, and it keeps us grounded in reality. While many tech apps help you to inculcate mindfulness through meditation, neurofeedback and more, there is the underlying risk of mindfulness itself becoming an empty buzzword without spiritual and emotional depth. You can use apps and alarm-bells to keep you mindful, or kind, or grateful, but these result in superficial and temporary emotions and solutions. 

Tech can seriously impact your mental health when you get addicted to devices or activities such as games or “doom-scrolling.” If you find yourself getting restless, depressed or anxious when you don’t have your phone in your hand, it’s time to step back and reflect. To get some perspective and ideas on how to do a refresh on your mental health and start looking after yourself better, check out these Rest & Digest wellness resources. There are many articles and resources to help you get out of this tech spiral and on the road to better mental and physical health.

Today tech offers easy solutions to keep seniors or kids entertained and “safe” but the flip side is that there are huge hazards out there in cyberspace in the form of financial scammers and sexual predators. Digital safety is a huge concern today and it can affect the way you use technology by becoming suspicious and paranoid. 

Another area of concern is social media. The 24x7 stream of information from around the world, from people whom you may never meet in real life, or whom you don’t have the opportunity to get to know as real people can create islands of isolation. As you scroll through social media, you unconsciously judge and compare yourself, your lifestyle, financial status, possessions and relationships with others. 

What we don’t realize is that social media offers anonymity, where you can say, do or portray an image of yourself that may not tell the whole truth. Keeping up this facade can lead to anxiety and mental disturbances. Your self-esteem and sense of self-worth can take a severe beating. 

These changes can be deep and long-lasting, and they will impact the real relationships in your life, unless you press the pause button. You need time out from tech, cultivate real relationships, take responsibility for self-care and recognize signs of addiction or behavior changes caused by tech.