Technology is a hot topic for client’s in therapy as of late. When it comes up in session it is normally an adult talking about always being on their phone or a child who plays too many video games/watches too many screens. Technology provides a world of benefits yet this reinforces avoidance behaviors that can lead to an increase in anxiety.
Avoidance behaviors are actions people take to distract themselves from or escape difficult thoughts, feelings, or situations. Whether you feel like you have anxiety or not, anxiety is a core function in our brain that helps us determine safety risks to survive. Distraction and avoidance is not the “wrong” skill to use all the time but without being mindful it can easily reinforce anxiety. It can be easy to condition our brains to avoid uncomfortable thoughts and feelings rather than handle them in a more proactive way. Due to the convenience of technology, it can be hard to not gravitate toward avoidance even though it is hindering the ability to make great change.
Anxiety wants two things: 100 percent certainty and 100 percent comfortability. Although this is not possible, individual’s crave that outcome. The device you are most likely reading this article off of brings us a false sense of security. Answers are found in seconds, reassurance from friends/family, or even phasing out of uncomfortable conversations. Technology can often trick thinking into being “comfortable” all the time. If individuals are put in comfortable situations, sometimes handling the uncomfortable becomes increasingly difficult. If left unchecked the response to events that are not crises as though it is a crisis. In a real crisis this is an amazing skill to have but when presented with something much less dangerous it does not support a position to grow and it can lean on distraction/avoidance. This hinders the ability to build the skill of handling that discomfort.
What are the next steps? It is beneficial to place oneself in more uncomfortable situations to grow this skill. If you are gravitating toward technology because you want to or it is just a form of distraction? If it is a distraction it is a good time to challenge your pattern. Be uncomfortable for 5-10 minutes. Try to not pick up the phone before bed. Challenge yourself and your family to have meals or car rides that technology is not present. Resist grabbing that phone or tablet first when feeling bored.
If this spoke to something that impacts your daily life – you are not alone. There are qualified professionals ready and able to engage you about this topic and others. Let us help you get to that “you” you have always wanted to be.
If you feel like you or somebody you care about is in need of additional support, CFSC is here for you. Please call us at 248-851-5437 to get started with supportive services.