Tunnel Vision Scrolling
It seems like there’s been an increase of people self-diagnosing themselves with ADHD post COVID. “It’s been so hard for me to focus” or “I’ve been so ADHD that I can’t get anything done without making careless mistakes.” If you have occasional inattention and it doesn’t impair your functioning, and you aren’t distressed about it, then you most likely don’t meet the requirements for an ADHD diagnosis. It’s also not fair to those suffering with ADHD to have their struggles be minimized in such invalidating ways. I want you to understand how debilitating it is for sufferers, so please be mindful of how you describe your experiences to others if you have not been diagnosed. If you are experiencing distress, I encourage you to reach out to schedule an appointment with a psychiatrist or mental health therapist to begin to explore your symptoms and gain clarity.
The reality is that our culture highly encourages inattentiveness. Think about how much information we’re constantly bombarded with on a daily basis. Especially, post covid - with the option to work from home whether that means a hybrid option or being fully remote, there are so many things competing for our attention. Our phone notifications alone can be overwhelming, especially those who have the little red notification icon turned on (talk about anxiety provoking). Social media can exacerbate our inattentive symptoms, solely by just existing without limitations, restrictions or boundaries. Comparing our reality to an illusion causes us to be in our head more than we can live in the moment. It causes us to compare ourselves and our realities to the snippets of another’s person lifestyle (no wonder why self-esteem has also plummeted post covid). What do we really hope to achieve by posting pieces of our life in pictures with text that has no purpose other than to captivate our audience? A few likes gets us a short-term Dopamine release, but then what? We have to keep striving for more, which means, keep posting, keep scrolling, keep judging & repeat.
Don’t even get me started on FOMO (fear of missing out). To always feel this internal drive to try and keep up with what everyone else is doing…how exhausting. Social media engagement associated with FOMO can lead to lower moods, increased anxiety and feelings of loneliness and lower life satisfaction. Here are a few other ways you can attempt to cut down your social media time that are not too hard to engage in:
Consider the impact on your mood & overall well-being. This is where mindfulness and self-discipline come in. Do you care enough about how it effects you? If not, ask yourself why? Have you noticed how your body reacts to social media as you’re scrolling or the negative thought spirals leading to the “I’m not enough” or “doing enough” ways of thinking?
Resist the urge to share every detail of you life. LIVE in the damn moment and smell the f*cking flowers instead of taking pictures of them. Too much of anything is not good for us, so keep people guessing and enjoy how it feels to be a part of these moments instead of snapping them for others to react to.
Turn off your social media notifications - something so small can allow you to feel so much lighter and less reactive.
Only follow people who provide you with positive experiences and content - it can be helpful to limit exposure to upsetting or negative content.
Rewire your circuits by taking a social media detox - this sh*t is hard but so satisfying when you realize how freeing it can be. Author, Barrett Huang said “keeping your social media usage down for at least 7 days will help to rehabilitate your brain from craving it anymore. The same works for other areas of life, too, such as cutting back on sugar.”
We are all guilty…& we can all do better. So why not start now? Take time to think about what resonated most with you from the tips above and choose one to challenge yourself with. Be mindful and be present, but most of all, be well & stay grounded.
