Social Diary has collaborated with a medical expert to allow our readers to connect and have their concerns answered over their wellness-mental and physical. This week:
Samreen Asks: Why have we all become distracted individuals, and is there any scientific evidence for that?
Have a question? Have Dr.Uzma provide her expertise by reaching out to us with your health concerns on [email protected]
The writer is a Consultant Clinical Psychologist, Head of Department of Humanities, Education and Psychology at Air University Islamabad and CEO of Psychological Rehabilitation and Training Services PR&TS.
Dr.Uzma: It was a family dinner at my place and my extended family was invited at home as well. I had a huge achievement to announce. Alas! No one was there to reciprocate my accomplishment. I wondered, have we all developed tendencies of mild levels of Attention deficit hyperactivity (ADHD)? Or is it the amount of stimulation and distractions that surround us are inevitable. All individuals, regardless of occupation- are preoccupied and none of us are living in the present moment. We all suffer from anxieties due to distractions and thinking about future outcomes.
At physiological level, three chemicals are involved in behavior formation and emotional regulation. Dopamine is the chemical that is involved in pleasure and reward. Do you ever notice that we keep scrolling and saying just one more episode? Yes, that’s the increasing tolerance level that we require more intensity for gratification. Dopamine is the chemical that is involved in impulsivity and craving. It always tells us to get a little more hence no termination to the ongoing activity.
Second comes serotonin, this chemical is alternatively known as happy hormone. It plays a role in inhibition of impulsive behavior and is involved in mental well-being. The third major chemical is cortisol, which increases when we are in a stressful situation regardless of real or imagined stress. When we remain unfocused and unable to complete tasks assigned our cortisol level increases.
Therefore, as we have seen, we all act impulsively to nearly all situations. It can be linked to our regular and excessive use of technology and gadgets. The new generation hardly makes any well-informed decisions or acts in a rationalized way. This happens because their brain part that is involved in judgement, personality, and cognition is hardly ever nourished. Why? Because it develops till the age of 25 years and we spend almost all our free time on gadgets rather than nourishing our brain by reading, writing, and spending time in nature.
In the present, to accomplish more and feel less stressed we need to define our daily aims and set small rewards. We all procrastinate, have concentration issues, suffer from insomnia. Why has this become normal for us? Behaviors that are causing lack of calm in our body needs modification.
Well once you have developed insight, next is working on a task and limiting our distractions. It is better to practice deep breathing before starting any work. This will make you focused and will help in improving concentration. Next you need to keep in mind that we have a limited attention span of approximately twenty minutes. Therefore, we must stay focused during the time allocated to a task and then take a break of no more than five minutes. It’s inevitable to bring change in a day therefore it’s important to work in chunks and get to the desired results. You will observe soon that you will maintain serenity in your body and will feel less stressed, less impulsive, and more accomplished.
