Wednesday, April 8, 2020 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon
17
Hooked on digital devices? Seven steps to sanity
By T. Lee Brown
Correspondent
Hooked on the news or
constantly checking digital
devices during the COVID
crisis? Is it making you more
miserable and anxious? You
are by no means alone.
The following steps can
help you get a grip on the
situation and your own state
of mind. Featured in today9s
approach is Catherine Price,
founder of the Screen/Life
Balance program and author
of How to Break Up with
your Phone.
1. Assess: For three days,
keep close track of your
media and digital device
input. Using pen and paper,
not an app, jot down the
time you spend with various
media, movies, news, email,
even personal conversations
and books. Here9s the impor-
tant part: note how each input
made you feel.
Set aside 15 minutes
before bedtime to look at
your list. Note any trends.
Which input inspired you?
Which amped up your anxi-
ety? If you checked the news
50 times, did any result in
genuinely useful information
that you could act upon?
2. Media plan: Make a
media plan for yourself. Price
says this allows your prefron-
tal cortex, the rational part of
the brain, to take command
over the freaked-out primitive
part of the brain (see related
story, page 3). Ask yourself:
How many times am I going
to check the news today, and
what sources am I going to
use? <Probably Facebook9s
not a good idea, guys!= said
Price.
Your plan might include
a Digital Sabbath 4 a day
off for rest and reflection.
Plan ahead to avoid logisti-
cal hassles. Our family does
Digital Shabbat from sun-
down Friday through sun-
down Saturday, following the
Jewish tradition. Kids love it.
We light a candle at sundown,
and Friday nights are now
family game night.
3. Limit access: Reduce
access to the cause of your
stress. If you have TV or
radio on in the background,
<you9re going to be con-
stantly mainlining anxiety,
and it9s going to feel bad,=
according to Price.
Turn them off.
Uninstall all news apps
from your phone. Turn off
notifications on your devices.
Cover your TV or computer
monitor with fabric or a
towel. Take a cue from kids
at Sisters Elementary School,
who drew their own posters
to hang over monitors for
Screen Free Week.
Set up a charging station
for tablets and phones 4
away from where you hang
out most. Try a closet or the
garage. Block websites and
apps that are problematic.
Price likes the app Freedom,
which she says changed her
life. A more blunt instrument
is the app Self Control, a per-
sonal favorite.
4. Make boundaries:
Friends and loved ones might
push us too far into COVID
craziness. Setting up bound-
aries with them is impor-
tant. Price said many people
<haven9t yet gone through a
process of getting to the point
where they conclude, »Yes,
this is happening and it9s ter-
rifying4but there9s only so
much we can control.9=
She encourages mention-
ing that you9re trying your-
self to decrease your own
stress around the crisis. Ask
to speak about something
else. Suggest concrete alter-
natives, such as holding a vir-
tual dance party, knitting, or
putting together puzzles via
Zoom, Skype, or FaceTime.
5. Prepare alternatives:
Changing habits is most suc-
cessful when we have an
alternative at hand, some-
thing to replace the problem
behavior. <Identify something
that you want to do with your
time,= Price said.
Lay books, magazines,
and journals out on tables.
Set up stations with craft sup-
plies, model cars to build,
shoes to polish. Try a letter-
writing area. Get out your old
knitting bag. A pack of cards
for solitaire. Plan on healthy
use of digital devices: replace
news apps with meditation
apps.
This could be a good time
to try mindfulness medita-
tion, where you set aside
some minutes to pay atten-
tion to your breath, body,
and immediate surroundings.
<Recognize that your mind
will run away during those
minutes,= said Price, <and
that it9s totally normal.=
Nature time and Sit Spot
exercises work well, too.
Keep an eye out for more on
these in future issues of The
Nugget.
6. Set goals: <Many of us
are feeling frantic right now,=
Price notes, yet we9re finding
time to stress out on the news.
Write out a list of soothing,
healthy things you would like
to do this week: Take a walk.
Make a collage. Sew a face
mask. Listen to a symphony.
Send a letter every day in
April, for national letter-writ-
ing month.
Said Price, <I don9t mean
to downplay the craziness
of the moment, especially
for parents of small kids&
Consider that there might be
something you can do with
your news time that would
make you feel more nour-
ished and cared for.=
Ambitious goals like
inventing a better mousetrap
or memorizing the complete
works of Shakespeare might
cause more stress. The prior-
ity now is getting through this
crisis healthy and sane.
7. Start and end the day
screen-free: If your phone is
in your bedroom, chances are
you9re checking it first thing
in the morning and last thing
at night. Resolve to turn off
news and devices by 7 p.m.
or earlier. Keep the phone in
another room overnight. If
you need the phone nearby
for health reasons, switch it
to airplane mode and wrap
it in a towel. Do not remove
the phone from its swaddling
until after breakfast.
And always remember: at
any moment, if your thoughts
whirl into catastrophic may-
hem, you can stop and take a
deep breath.
Part of an ongoing series
of articles in The Nugget
spanning several years, the
advice related here is based
on expert research along
with personal experience and
feedback from my clients.
Note that this article does not
constitute medical advice.
Seek help from trusted medi-
cal and spiritual advisers if
you face a serious addiction
or mental health problem.
Got a hint for Nugget
readers? A question you9d
like answered? Email free-
lance writer tiffany@plazm.
com.
You could win $750
in advertising credit
TO JUMPSTART YOUR BUSINESS!
It is vital th
that
h a t you continue advertising during these
uncertain times. Maintaining your presence keeps your
business top-of-mind with customers who will be
eager to return after the crisis has subsided.
HOW TO PARTICIPATE:
Place a minimum of two display ads during the six week period from
4/8/20 to 5/13/20. For every display ad run during the six weeks you
get a ticket in the drawing — up to six chances to win!
Winners to be drawn on 5/14/20.
Two winners will receive a $750 advertising credit with
The Nugget Newspaper good for any display advertising done
5/20/20 through 12/30/20 including Nugget display advertising
and special sections, Sisters Oregon Guide, and Celebrate.
(Two prizes awarded. $750 prizes have no cash value and must be used toward
future advertising in the designated timeframe).
Ready to learn what advertising in The Nugget can do for you? Vicki Curlett
has the advertising expertise to help you navigate these unique times.
The Nugget Newspaper
Vicki Curlett, Community Marketing Partner
offi ce 541-549-9941 // cell 541-699-7530
vicki@nuggetnews.com
“Sisters Businesses are Here to Serve” page to find curbside pick up, delivery, and more.