Why I Turned Most Notifications Off
It's fair to say we live in a world of over stimulation...surrounded by 24 hour shops, television, emails, demanding jobs and families...if we didn't "need" sleep, some of us wouldn't stop at all. Most of us are operating in survival mode. We also have rising rates of anxiety, with people always on edge and permanently functioning in fight or flight mode. I don't know about you, but I haven't seen any wild lions or tigers roaming around the streets, which might actually pose a threat. Have you? Yet why do so many of us operate from this place of fear? Likely it began from childhood with the pressures we felt from our parents to perform. This then morphed into the expectations we put upon ourselves to be super heroes and master everything ie our job, staying healthy and fit, hobbies, running a household, caring for loved ones...the list goes on. And where has that now gotten us too? Stressed out to the max! Our nervous system is working on overdrive and this is resulting in hormonal imbalances. We can't sleep when we want to and rely on caffeine to keep us awake when we are meant to be. Couples are struggling to fall pregnant and employers are having to manage high absenteeism due to sick day rates on the rise. Which brings me back to how over stimulated we are. Nearing Christmas 2016 I was approaching a meltdown. Because of all the signs I was receiving (illness, fatigue, injuries) I knew things had to change. One of those things was turning OFF the majority of notifications on my phone. What this means now is that I don't get that rising anxiety as you watch your emails increase over the day or on the weekends you're not constantly reminded of the building work that awaits you Monday morning. I don't see all the social media notifications that either illicit a curiosity or urgency to respond. I don't feel as though my to do list is getting too large to manage as I can't see what is accumulating until I actually open the app. And all of this has left me feeling so much more relaxed, unconcerned about the immediacy, and more importantly less stressed and anxious, which is hopefully enabling my hormones to rebalance naturally. I'm calmer and more centred and choose when and where I have the time and space to open my social media and email accounts. Because this has made such a positive impact on my life, I ask you all to consider doing something similar in yours. You can start small and work up from there...but just take some time to disconnect and switch off in order to let your body rest and recover. Your mind, body and spirit will thank you for it!