Great strides in digital technology have enabled us to carry out many tasks with quicker efficiency than ever before. Today, electronic devices such as musical cell phones, beeping pagers, demanding palm pilots and others insist on capturing our time and attention. However, recent research shows that these electronic tools we use can actually affect our health and give the wrong signals about worthiness to others.
If you think back, you can likely remember talking with someone on your cell phone at a time when something else like your child’s baseball game was going on? Or maybe it rang and you answered while having a meal with others?
When other, and sometimes, less important tasks require our attention, it can have a toll on our mental focus and physical and emotional health. Believe it or not, each time something demands our attention, it adds a bit of stress to our lives. Studies are beginning to show that when stresses accumulate and take up our time and energy, it often leads to bad temper, distractibility, irresponsibility and nervousness. Never mind that the act of multi-tasking during social situations sends out a message to others (especially your children) that your time with them is less important than what is on the other end of your phone or other digital device.
Everyone has their priorities, however try these tips to help you get a handle on your digital use. You may be surprised on how a few small changes can have an affect on your health and help you experience more from life…
Schedule specific times to check email and return voice messages and text messages: Avoid instantly addressing them as they arrive. Having times scheduled also lets others know when they can expect to have your full attention.
Prioritize (remember A, B & C drawer training?): Give attention to what is truly important and don’t let your digital technology cause stress and distract you from finishing what you are working on or enjoying your time with family and friends.
Enjoy face to face social interaction daily: Communicating via email or even on the telephone are not substitutes for genuine, personal interaction and we need a certain amount of that daily.
Take digital technology breaks: Designate activities-such as dinner with your family and working out as “off limits” to digital communication. Take time to focus on the task at hand and ignore the rest.
If taken seriously, these suggestions can have a positive effect on your life and health and perhaps even your relationships. Stress management is one of the very essences to living the chiropractic lifestyle and digital technology stresses are no exception. By incorporating these small changes in your life along with regular chiropractic care, your health will not be compromised and your quality of life will undoubtedly be better.
Yours in Wellness,
Drs. Richard Tran and Michelle Hsu