Modern life and its effect on our health

 

It is not easy to pinpoint exactly why our agitated, chaotic and uncertain modern life affects our health so profoundly.

Many studies focus on the obvious factors. We sit for long periods, spend countless hours in front of screens, eat highly processed foods, sleep less than we should and live under the constant risk of stress and burnout. These factors certainly matter and their impact on physical and mental health is increasingly well documented.

Yet I am interested in something more subtle.

We are living through one of the greatest transformations in human history. For the first time, billions of people are connected almost continuously. Messages, news, videos, opinions, alerts and demands arrive every minute of every day. Although research is still trying to understand the long-term consequences of this hyperconnected world, it seems obvious that something is changing in the way we perceive reality.

Our attention is fragmented, silence has become rare, waiting is quite uncomfortable and relationships are increasingly mediated by screens. Even our sense of self can become influenced by the endless flow of information.

No doubt that technology has brought extraordinary benefits as it allows us to learn, communicate, work and access knowledge in ways that previous generations could hardly imagine; I am a living proof of the achievements facilitated by IT. It is difficult to imagine society stepping back from these conveniences. After all, you may be reading this article comfortably from your home, a café, a park or while travelling, because of it, instead of being chained to one place.

The challenge, then, is not to reject modern life, but to learn how to live well within it.

For me, this means investing time and energy in four important areas.

1. Lifestyle. This is an area completely intertwined with health. And maybe it is not something about radical changes. It begins with an intention: the desire to take care of ourselves. Healthy eating, regular exercise, meaningful relationships and positive habits, all contribute to physical, emotional and spiritual well-being. Add to that positive reading and trips to learn and we have a wonderful way to change the impact of modern life.

2. Movement. Movement is more than exercise and although many people do workout, they go and then spend the rest of the day sitting… Our bodies were designed to move: walking, visiting friends, attending a spiritual gathering, spending time in a park or simply leaving the house can make a significant difference. Movement reconnects us with life itself.

3. Relaxation. Perhaps one of the greatest needs of our time is genuine relaxation. Modern life constantly stimulates the mind and notifications, deadlines, emails and messages keep the nervous system in a near-permanent state of alertness. We need moments of recovery: a deep sleep, quiet walks, periods of time completely disconnected and moments when nothing is demanded of us. A period of detox will be nice… Relaxation is not a luxury; it is maintenance for the mind and body.

4. Meditation. If there is one practice that can transform our relationship with modern life, it is meditation. Meditation allows us to step back from the noise and reconnect with our inner world: it restores clarity, stability, and perspective. Instead of being carried away by the speed of life, we learn to observe, understand, and respond with greater wisdom. For me, meditation is not an escape from modern life, but a way of making modern life more meaningful.

The world will probably continue to become faster, more connected, more uncertain and more complex and we may not be able to change that. What we can do is to choose how we live within it.

A few IT tips…

I have worked in the IT area for many years and I still flex my tech muscles from time to time. Even though I want to help people to have some tech detox, it hurts that many people really suffers with the present technology.

So, I would like to give you a few tips that may be helpful and I hope are easy to implement:

• Read manuals. Yes, read them… take your time to do it and do it. If your product does not come with a manual, look for it in a searcher like Google, for instance, Samsung Z4 Manual. Another way is to Read articles or watch videos that help you to handle the product; search How to and indicate what you want to do. And what you are going to use will be something permanent or it is key for your productivity, I strongly recommend a course.
• Chose passwords that are easy to remember, but that are difficult for others to guess. For instance, you can choose your pet’s birthday, but the date in a way that only you will be able to understand (12Nov2010 can be turned into BeforeThanksGiving). If you are a foreigner of a different language than the place you live or work, choose something in that language, and if you are visual, mix numbers and letters: M1x#s&L3tt3rs (Mix Numbers And Letters).
• NEVER save your bank or other sensitive information. Yes, every time I check my bank balance or want to do an operation, I type all over again… This is very important, since there is a big crisis in information technological security.
• If a website is not working, just wait a bit… If an app is not responding, just wait a bit. ¿Computer is too slow? Just wait a bit… Many problems get solved if you just wait a bit.
• DON’T CHANGE YOUR EQUIPMENT EVERY YEAR. Even though most people will tell you that if you learn to use a cell phone and you change it, it is very easy to adapt, that is simply not true. There is a learning curve and in many cases, it is increasing. I myself try to stick at least to the same brand of cell phones.

Hope these are useful and if you need more clarification, I may help you with that.

How to work your ITC muscles

I just wanted to buy something quite simple, a presentation remoter. So, I started to research and after almost one hour, I really did not have it clear... Which one is the best for me, really? I had to use lots of my, well, ITC muscles to do that one task...

ITC has grown and expand in a way that created a fractal map of possibilities for any person to use it in a way both, productive and for leisure. In fact, even when you do make a good purchase and you are satisfied with that, something will bother you... perhaps a friend who got a better model or the fact you found out something that is not working.

I personally feel challenged when I am faced with any decision related to technology. I was grown up learning it and that was the first part of my professional life. Even now, I still work on software a little bit, trying to be up-to-dated to whatever is happening out there, trying to have an opinion about what is better and what is worse.

What to do? There are a few things I do myself especially when I have to make a decision on which gizmo to purchase:

• If you are not an expert in technology, use Google abundantly. Don't forget to set the dates filter, otherwise sometimes very old information comes first.
• To look for something, try to put in words very clearly what you really want or need. Check with friends who are in the IT area. Forums are a good source of information too.
• Be suspicious of comments on equipment that are praising it too much - most of the technology is flawed by nature. As someone said, the only certain thing about any piece of technology is that there will be a defect. Good comments highlight the good and bad side.
• If you can find someone who has whatever you want to buy, ask them to let you take a look. Touch. Type in. Listen. It will definitely help you.
• In relation to investment, if it is not something you really need (but want) and if you are really not sure about it go for the cheapest thing. Ok, the second cheapest thing. Reason: you will probably have to change it for something else after one or two years...

Good luck with your own ITC muscles!