Final Blog Post: Our Relationship with Technology, Technology's Relationship with Us

There's no doubt that technology has become the center of society. As long as I've been around, technology has been a huge part of the modern day world. I've never really known anything other than having technology around and at every turn. Even though smartphones weren't released and weren't popular until I was a little older, I don't remember much of the world before smartphones. Everyone is involved with technology, and everyone comes into contact with it in some form or another. There are constant advancements in technology, and it seems that I'm more and more blown away with technology as time goes on. The way that technology has been implemented into our society has intentionally caused us to form a relationship with technology. 

Technology has re-programmed our brains to be dependent on technology in many ways. I'm in the same boat of people that are constantly glued to their phone. Between Instagram, Snapchat, Tik Tok, and my ongoing mobile game of The Sims, I never run out of things to do on my phone. I've noticed that since being given a phone, I can't remember the last time that I was bored. I remember being a little kid and being totally bored out of my mind if I couldn't go outside to occupy myself. Now, I constantly have a source of entertainment in my back pocket. It's easy to occupy myself with my phone or my TV, and I know that the over abundance of time that I spend with technology isn't great for me. 

My screen time from April 24th-April 28th with a daily 4 day average of 7 hours and 35 minutes

It's safe to say that I spend far too much time on my phone daily. The seconds add up into minutes and the minutes add up into hours -- thus creating a total number that is shockingly large. As a matter of fact, most Americans spend too much time on their phones. Experts recommend anywhere from 1-2 hours of screen time every day. This includes TV, smartphones, laptops, etc. However, the majority of average Americans spend around 5 hours on their phone daily (I'm above average....go me!). 46% of Americans spend 4-5 hours on their phone every day, while only 5% spend less than an hour per day. While we might be used to so much time spent with technology, that is a lot of time spent staring at a screen. That much screen time has major effects relating to health (both physical and mental), relationships with other people, and technology addiction.

Technology is taking its toll on physical and mental health. Technology makes life more convenient, which in turn makes us lazier. Of those 7 hours and 35 minutes that I spent on my phone this week, I can guarantee you that most of those hours and minutes were spent with me sitting down. Technology has created an extremely sedentary lifestyle for us, which makes staying active less of a priority. Physical inactivity is the second leading cause of preventable deaths (the first leading cause is smoking). A lack of physical activity can lead to obesity and heart disease -- which can ultimately lead to death in the long run. Overuse of technology (yes, typically when it comes to smartphones) requires a lot of awkward positioning with our bodies. When you're staring down at your phone, your shoulders and back are hunched over while your head is lowered. This can create neck pain, shoulder pain, and just overall bad posture. For me, it seems like I have to do triple the amount of exercise and reduce the intake of my occasional guilty pleasure snack to basically none to be able to counteract the effects that technology has on my physical health. 

Technology has affected mental health in just as many ways as it has affected physical health. Even though I am an avid social media user, I hate it so much. I despise social media, because if I had to name one thing that makes me unhappy with myself -- it's social media. Social media is a comparison game. I find myself constantly drawing similarities and differences between me and someone that I follow on Instagram. It's so tempting to feel disappointed that your neighbor down the street was able to go on a luxury getaway vacation or to feel jealous because a girl that you went to high school with is showing off her designer handbag that is worth more than my left leg. Social media has driven us to be so envious of what we don't have to the point where we have a hard time appreciating what we do have. I've been on a "weight loss" journey since August of 2021. I'm proud to say that I've shed a considerable amount of weight, but the fact that I just couldn't take the pressure from social media and the effect that it had on me anymore is sad. From a health standpoint, I definitely needed to make an improvement. However, the drive initially came from the fact that social media had made me so insecure and so depressed with how I looked that I couldn't even stand to look at myself. I know that's a bit of oversharing, but the truth is that there are thousands and thousands of people who are the same way! Suicides in teenagers and young adults have rocketed, and social media/technology is a huge part of it. It isn't just social media that's causing this effect in teens and adults. Teenagers and young adults spend less time interacting with their friends and family due to technology, and that lack of social interaction causes feelings of depression and anxiety. 

Technology has created a sense of social isolation for those who overuse it. We all have a natural instinct to connect with other people, and technology distracts us from that. It's practically impossible to be on your phone and carry on a conversation with someone. Most teenagers choose their phone over social interactions, and it causes more damage than they realize. They're losing valuable connection and conversation when they stay on their phone when in the presence of others. The chances of making a new friend or a new professional connection are lower when social interactions are avoided due to the use of technology. That natural instinct of human connection isn't fulfilled when it comes to overuse of technology, and it has massive effects. 

It's probably a bit of an understatement to say that we have a certain kind of dependency when it comes to technology. "Technology addiction can be defined as frequent and obsessive technology-related behavior increasingly practiced despite negative consequences to the user of the technology." Technology creates a certain stimulation in our brains. That stimulation is an efficient way to lessen stress, curb boredom, and escape from the harsh reality of the world. This creates an addiction, and a need to constantly be stimulated by technology. One huge source of technology stimulation is an extremely common one. Video games stimulate the brain in more ways than one. The challenges that the game presents make the player feel like they excel at something, and the choice to play the game according to the player's liking helps them feel in control. While that mental stimulation can be a good thing, too much of it is a bad thing. Video games apply to the same issue of creating a sedentary lifestyle, and there is a huge debate over whether or not video games are to blame for the uptick in teenage violence. The natural need for brain stimulation is normal, but the addiction to technology comes from the fact that technology can give us that stimulation quickly and at any time. Our brains have been wired and trained to constantly need to have some kind of exposure to stimulation from technology. 1 in 8 Americans are addicted to some form of technology  and that number is only continuing to grow.

Despite the negative effect that technology has on health, relationships, and our brains -- technology has so many beneficial qualities as well. Technology is an impressive advancement in human society. While we do take it for granted, technology is simply just cool. How impressive is it that I can take my phone out of my pocket, open Google, and find out the value of Pi in milliseconds? There's something so comforting about being able to open Netflix and watch a few episodes of my favorite show no matter where I am. Technology has advanced our world in so many positive ways. Technology has benefited modern medicine to increase early diagnoses to boost the odds of survival/recovery. Technology has made long distance communication easy and efficient, which broadens the range of people that we can get in touch with. Education has changed due to technology. Technology allows for research to be easier and more legitimate (as long as students are double checking their sources), and educators are using technology to their advantage to teach their lessons. 

An obvious positive to technology is that it offers convenience to us. It's so easy to go on Amazon, purchase practically anything that you could come up with, and have it delivered to your doorstep within a couple of days. You can put in a destination on your GPS, and it will show you all the possible routes and tell you which one is the fastest. In a business sense, technology has increased productivity in practically all industries in the world. Technology has created opportunities for us that make our day-to-day lives overall easier. As time has gone on, we've taken those opportunities for granted and perhaps we overuse those features. Technology is just like anything else. It has its pros and cons, and it's a great thing as long as it's taken in moderation. If our world suddenly didn't have technology, then it would be an absolute circus of chaos. Technology has become the backbone of society, and for the most part, that isn't a bad thing! If we all absorbed technology in a healthier, more moderate dosage -- then we would all be better off.