Is Tech Over-Stimulation Becoming the New Normal?
It seems that the more integrated with technology that our lives become, the greater the tendency to submit to over-stimulation. While it is difficult to pinpoint the effect this may have on the general populace, many have speculated that this could be a contributing factor in the overall rise of average anxiety levels.
With the sheer amount of media content being presented to us at all times, our bodies and minds begin to have difficulty processing everything all at once, creating a sub-conscious stressors due to missed information.
Plenty of signs point to the fact that we are adapting to this increased pressure, however, and we are even beginning to crave it. This effect can be compared to driving on a highway at high speed for a long period of time.
You get used to traveling at this speed, and once you exit into a residential neighborhood, you can feel like you are always going too slow. This is because your mind is constantly adjusting its ‘baseline’ for every sensation it experiences.
It is just the very same with gaming and technology. If we get used to playing one game on a computer monitor, with friends voices in our ears, music in the background and glancing occasionally at our smartphone, there is a TON of information that would overwhelm our senses under ordinary circumstances that is now becoming the new ‘baseline’ for our sensory experience. This means that a typical or lightly stimulating experience will seem slow or boring in comparison.
This is a very difficult process to reverse, because as humans we are always looking for the fastest and easiest route from point A to point B. This is easily achieved through the use of technology and the concept of multitasking.
It can also trigger a reward response to feel like you are being extremely productive and at your absolute limit of efficiency. Online games and gambling offer plenty of this excitement, taking a michigan lottery promo code for example. Online gaming and promos want to help create this exhilarating experience, and are quite good at doing so.
There is nothing wrong with this, as it falls under each person’s own prerogative to engage in any of these activities. It is also up to each individual to identify when they have reached the point of over-stimulation and are beginning to feel anxiety as a result.
The solutions can range from as simple as ‘No Tech’ days, which I know a few authors on this site practice with their families, to taking a secluded vacation away from the hustle and bustle of everyday life.
If you are reading this article, it is likely that you are just as engaged with this high level of technological stimulation as most of us are, and I encourage you to take note of any anxious feelings you may have during the day.
Begin to ask yourself if this could be linked, even partially, to an over-stimulation or sensory overload and, if so, try various methods of bringing down your baseline and you may be surprised just how big of a difference it can make.