"But if you're not getting away from it enough, it could become dangerous." "The last thing I want is to put myself at risk for a heart attack," she says. These constant interruptions take a toll on our bodies and our mental states.įeldman suffers from headaches after long days spent staring at the computer screen and putting out fires over her cell phone. If I'm watching my kids' performance, it's not the end of the world if I don't return an email." I'm not involved in life and death matters. "The minute you see that flashing light, you start thinking, 'Do I need to check it?'" she says. She is desperately trying to curb her habits. Her kids will ask her afterward: "Mommy, why were you on your BlackBerry?" This free-for-all frenzy has a real impact on relationships and families, knocking our work-life balance off-kilter.įeldman, who is also the co-author of Peeing in Peace: Tales and Tips for Type A Moms, has caught herself checking messages during her kids' musical performances and Little League games. "There used to be boundaries," she says, "but now there are no boundaries." to midnight and works with clients across different time zones. There's no shut-off switch, says Beth Feldman, a Westchester, N.Y.-based entrepreneur who juggles a BlackBerry, iPhone, and cell phone from 7 a.m. The mail used to come once a day," he says. "You do get a dopamine squirt from accessing your messages. There's something very irresistible about an unopened message, Hallowell says. I think I have carpal tunnel or something. "Like Pavlov's dog, I hear the bell and I run to the BlackBerry salivating.
"It's a compulsion, like an itch you have to scratch," she says. But they don't realize that it's as harmful for them as obesity or cigarette smoking." Hopelessly Addicted to MessagingĪ self-diagnosed addict, Hoffman estimates that she receives up to 500 emails and texts a day - and stubbornly responds to every single one, even at 3 a.m. Sometimes they brag about it, like being busy is a status symbol. You've got to take back control, says Edward Hallowell, MD, author of CrazyBusy: Overbooked, Overstretched, and About to Snap! "The great thing about modern life is you can do so much," he says, "and the curse of modern life is you can do so much." I tend to lose out on a lot of other experiences, like when I should be paying attention at the dinner table." It can certainly allow you to do a lot more in any given day, but there is certainly a cost associated. "I found a PDA to be a double-edged sword. "I live and die in email," says IT manager Christopher Post in Camp Hill, Pa. An AOL study revealed that 59 percent of PDA users check every single time an email arrives and 83 percent check email every day on vacation. Researchers from the University of Glasgow found that half of the study participants reported checking their email once an hour, while some individuals check up to 30 to 40 times an hour. (Are you addicted to technology? What electronic toy can you just not live without? Compare with others on WebMD's Health Cafe board.) The Paradox of Modern Life Here, we look at simple strategies to reduce the electronic overload and regain a healthy balance of life, work, and technology. Our uber-connected lives have made us virtually available at any time, at any place - the movies, the golf course, traffic lights, you name it. Email, PDAs, iPhones, laptops, and cell phones dominate our modern world. Hoffman is not alone in dealing with technology overload. Her boyfriend calls her laptop, which she brings to bed every night, "the other man." She's got a 24/7 technology habit, even checking messages from the bathroom, a Whistler ski lift, and a pool raft at L.A.'s Chateau Marmont hotel. "My BlackBerry runs my life," Hoffman says. My dining partners are staring at me with contempt as I write this." She lunged for it and swiftly pecked out a response to my request for BlackBerry anecdotes: "I'm so addicted to this device that I stopped mid-bite to rush to send this message. But then, poised next to the breadbasket, her BlackBerry Pearl came to life, and so did her technology addiction.
Sipping champagne and nibbling on cheese at the posh Louis XV restaurant, she was eagerly awaiting her entree, a poached Breton lobster. Jenn Hoffman, Phoenix-based CEO of The J Brand Group, should have been enjoying a relaxing vacation on the Cote d'Azur.
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