Is texting culture giving us anxiety?

It might be...

I… Oop

Hi there,

I hate to admit it, but I am that person that takes days, and sometimes weeks, to respond to texts. Sometimes I don’t respond at all. If you despise the slow texters in your life, please know that such habit causes us much anxiety and grief; and take pity on us. If you are a slow texter, well.

Five things to share:

1. Despite being a useful mode of communication, the expectation to be reachable and responsive 24/7/365 can be highly stressful and overwhelming for many. Without any set protocol or guidelines available for what is considered acceptable texting etiquette, is texting culture giving us anxiety?

2. I’m currently reading Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less by Greg McKeown. The main point of the book can be summarized as follow: Less but better. Although McKeown’s main focus is our professional lives, the less but better mantra can be applied to our digitally-caffeinated world. A question: If you could only choose one digital communication method, without any consequences, what would it be? My answer is email.

3. I couldn’t find any good video on text anxiety, so I’m sharing with you a favourite exposé commentary video: a youtuber with 943,000 subscribers (whom you might have seen around the web) is running a cult. The power of the internet, amiright?

4. A quote I want to share with you this week:

   The facts are always friendly.
   — Carl Rogers

   We may at times get lost in shocking headlines, ideologies, fantasies, hopes, dreams, ideals, and so on, but the facts are friendly: Pay more attention to reality.

5. Texting culture is giving all of us anxiety.

   The boss can reach us after work hours, mom’s text can arrive when about to climb onto a random person’s motorcycle in a different country. What about the long, confusing conversations with the husband while at the office? No wonder, then, one-fifth of Americans in an American Psychological Association study associated their mobile devices with stress. Establishing a schedule for texting can be a good start.

That’s all for this week!

Thank you for reading, and please share with anyone you think may benefit.

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Until next time,

Mehret