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You Can Turn That Off and/or Put It Down
The power of disconnecting the tech that equally divides and connects us.
Do you ever feel overwhelmed? Ever feel like there are too many connections, too many demands on your attention, and an endless sense of go-do-go? Do you ever feel like you can’t get away and you seldom find peace?
I do. It’s not an all-the-time, highly regular occurrence. But there are plenty of times when I’ve felt if I didn’t stay connected or made time to check on friends and family online — even when I needed to back away — I was somehow disrespecting them.
It often feels like we are all too connected. Social media is so prevalent in what happens, that groups and organizations, personal and professional, rely on them to pass messages, share info, and more. It might even start to feel like you have little to no choice because if you don’t connect you’ll miss out.
This is where the cutesy notion of FOMO — Fear Of Missing Out — is not so cute. It turns into a destructive, disempowering, distressing sense that can easily make you feel unwanted, undesirable, and unconnected.
However, the truth is it’s utterly healthy for you to disconnect. It’s tremendously positive and good for your mental health to turn that off and/or put it down.