Stress in the Digital Age

BE WELL

Using Tech to Impact the Stress It Can Cause

BY ERIC S. KNUSTROM

It probably won’t shock you that this article was completed at the last minute. I’m guessing stress has led every attorney to push deadlines to the limit or miss them completely. We chose a stressful profession. Each year the American Psychology Association (APA) conducts a survey of Americans about stress. It is no surprise that in 2020 their survey showed unprecedented levels of stress driven by the COVID-19 pandemic and other traditional sources of stress. 1 This article is a brief discussion of how stress is tied to technology and technology to stress, and what we as professionals can do about it using technology.

The term stress was borrowed from the field of physics by one of the fathers of stress research, Hans Selye. In physics, stress describes the force that produces strain on a physical body. 2 In psychological terms, stress is also the tangible impact that forces have on our body, both mentally and physically. While the hormones that stress releases can be initially helpful (think fight or flight) over time they can have negative effects on our overall health. It is ironic then that much of the technology we create to eliminate stress and labor ends up causing the most stress in our lives. According to the APA, the majority of technology-induced stress comes from the omnipresent smart phones we all carry. 3 Paradoxically, the technology we create to alleviate stress causes much of our stress. So which came first, the chicken or the egg?

Researchers from Carnegie Mellon University analyzed data from 1983, 2006 and 2009, and found people’s self-reported stress levels have increased 10- 30% in the last three decades. 4 Despite this increase, nothing has created more stress faster than the COVID-19 pandemic. In comments regarding the 2020 APA stress survey, Arthur C. Evans Jr., PhD, APA’s chief executive officer, said, “This survey confirms what many mental health experts have been saying since the start of the pandemic: Our mental health is suffering from the compounding stressors in our lives[.] This compounding stress will have serious health and social consequences if we don’t act now to reduce it.” 5

It is important to give credit to the role that videoconferencing tools have played in coping with the pandemic. Zoom, Skype, etc. have allowed for face-to-face interactions ranging from business meetings, where they were the norm, to happy hours, worship services, and fitness classes. Therapy has even moved online, with the majority of visits with healthcare professionals being conducted through telemedicine. Technology like social media and text-based communication have allowed us to stay connected to family and friends, but they can cause envy, miscommunication, FOMO (fear of missing out), bullying, and feelings of being ignored or excluded. Not to mention things like perpetual distraction, sleep dysregulation, loss of work/ life balance, and amplification of negative emotions that can come from overusing these tools.

According to the American Psychology Association, the majority of technologyinduced stress comes from the omnipresent smart phones we all carry. 3 Paradoxically, the technology we create to alleviate stress CAUSES much of our stress.

The response from technology companies has been to design in safeguards to help users manage the negative effects. An example of technology that can “help you over the hump” can be found on Reviewed.com’s list of the 10 best apps to block social media. 6 These apps allow you to provide yourself an allowance of time to spend engaging with technology. For example, the app “OFF- TIME” allows you to block the specific things that distract you the most—social media, games, and even text messages—by allowing you to set schedules for specific activities, e.g., Work, Family, or Me Time.

Silicon Valley has seen a market for tools to help you meditate, organize, declutter, break habits, get therapy, or just journal. These tools include everything from free resources to platforms that require a subscription. In the appendix I provide links to a few of the best lists of available apps. The key to success in these efforts, as in any endeavor, is to decide in advance what kind of relationship you want to have with technology, put rules in place for yourself (which the technology can help you stick to), create obstacles that give you pause before you deviate from your rules, and stick to your intentions. The key is finding what works for you. A simple search for “wellness” or “mental health” in the app store on your device will provide you with a list of relevant apps that you can sort based upon price, popularity, or subjective reviews by experts.

If you’ve made it this far, you’re likely a little stressed out. Take a second, lean back, take a deep breath, and then find five minutes later in the day when you can make a plan to consider your relationship with technology and stress. It might mean using one or more of the apps available to manage your stress or it might just mean planning to unplug from everything and sit quietly focusing on your feelings each day. Right now, for me, it is going to be taking my four-legged friend out for a brisk walk in the unseasonably cold air . . . and leaving my phone at home. Always remember for larger issues, TLAP is a resource you can always turn to for help. Visit tlaphelps.org. AL