We can certainly say that electronics have become a permanent part of living

in society. In the article “Hooked on our smartphones” Jane E. Brody (2017) brings

out her concerns on how society is changing due to the ever-increasing use of these

machines. Her observations are enlightened by Nancy Colier, a psychotherapist who

has written the book “The Power of Off, and who have also been considering the

issue. Technology has brought many advancements to the way we live today,

therefore abolishing it from our lives is a rather radical and unrealistic goal. We need

as individuals, and consequently, as a society, to create healthy habits around

technology usage.

Technology has made our lives more practical and has democratized access

to information. As Brody (2017) states in the article, electronic devices have become

a “pocket-size information bank”. Twenty years ago we were going to libraries and

doing an extensive search in robust books to find information that we have at the

reach of our fingertips. This not only saves energy in our already busy lives, but it

also has the potential to make society fairer in regards to academics. One might not

have access to the Congress Library but he can still access an uncountable amount

of books online.

Given the important role smartphones have in our routines, we need not

eliminate them but rather find balanced ways to fit it in our lives. It’s unreasonable to

imagine that we are all going back to live as small communities organized around

agriculture and give up computers altogether. On the other hand, we cannot deny

that the revolutions caused by ever-growing technology have brought in our lifestyle.

A grave consequence of the enormous amount of time we spend around the screens

is our nervous system constant state of hyperarousal (Colier, as cited in Brody,

2017). Fight-or-flight mode was often activated in past generations in preparation to

deal with threats, nowadays, though, we're continually concerned with the next buzz

of our phones. That’s why it’s imperative to find time to disconnect. Having offline

time planned into our day could be a powerful tool to avoid becoming addicted to our

smartphones. Some restaurants find another simple way to facilitate face to face

interaction by not offering Wi-Fi access.

With all this in mind, we can conclude that technology now has a place at the

table and it’s not a matter of eradicating it but of learning to take advantage of the

advancements without impacting our overall health. It’s more sustainable to make

everyday adjustments to make sure we disconnect and enjoy offline downtime than

to strive for complete disconnection from the digital world. One suggestion would be

going through a digital detox program like the one offered by Ms. Colier. It’s

important to find a balance so we can, healthily, enjoy life to its fullest.

Word count: 470

References:

Brody, J. E. (2017, January 09). Hooked on Our Smartphones. Retrieved August 12,

2019, from

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/09/well/live/hooked-on-our-smartphones.ht

ml?fbclid=IwAR0uHpPJcwQBERtnxpvc7sFMIO9eKcPdBmTsV1E0R_GPU1if

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