Antonio Cambronero
Mr. Funk E. DudeConsumption
(There is a video version of this essay available to watch here.)
I think the thing that I consume the most, is the Internet, and food. Obviously.
Fortunately, or not, I spend way more time on the Internet than I do eating food. Since I don’t go out a lot, the majority of my social interaction, is on places like Mastodon, and on PeerTube.
Compared to other social media, especially corporate social media, those places are pretty good to hang out on.
But even then, you can have too much of a good thing. Too much time on the Internet, consuming content constantly can leave you feeling apathetic, dull, and lead you to wrong conclusions.
Food can be a challenge as well. Not choosing healthy foods can lead to various health issues. What’s worse is that sometimes even if the food is healthy, too much can be a bad thing.
Carrots may be healthier than PopTarts, but even then, there’s still such a thing as “too many carrots”.
When it comes to food, we are encouraged to be mindful of what we choose to eat. Nutritionist will tell us to eat more fruit, veggies, and to lower our meat consumption.
But why don’t we take the advice of experts when it comes to the Internet? Why are we more willing to consume more Internet content than food?
Places like Harvard University have shown us that even the blue light that comes off of our phones can stimulate our brain in a way that makes it harder for us to fall to sleep.
Some studies have even shown that too much social media can lead us to compare ourselves to others in unhealthy ways. This is especially a challenge for the young who consume social media at high rates.
Other studies have shown that adults who consume a lot of social media are less likely to seek that same social contact in their everyday lives. Leading to isolation.
And that really isn’t good for your mental health.
Lately, I’ve been trying to find ways to reduce the amount of time I spend on social media and the Internet in general.
I pick up my phone way more often than I probably should. And I realized this when I challenged myself to not look at my phone when I was eating.
The struggle was real! At first I kept forgetting to not look at my phone until half way through my meal!
Then slowly I started to remember to put it down before I ate and now it’s been a week since I’ve looked at it while eating!
And you know what? It’s nice. It gives my mind a chance to slow down a little. To take a break from all of the doom and gloom and nonsense. I can just let it go for that time.
It’s almost as if the experts were right.
Now my next challenge is to not look at my phone whenever I’m watching a movie or a series. That ones going to be a challenge. Wish me luck with that.
In the meantime, why don’t you tell me what your challenges with the internet is down in the comments? What do you do when you find yourself on it way more then you should be? How do you react when once a week your phone tells you how much time you spend on it everyday? Let me know in the comments.
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