How to Reduce Screen Time In Case If You Work Online

How to Reduce Screen Time In Case If You Work Online

When the pandemic struck back in 2019, the drastic changes to the working sector were inevitable. As if the depression of staying locked in was not enough, the ‘work from home’ method also meant more screen time for both, the adults and the kids. While one may point out the many benefits of working from home during COVID, including increased safety and security, there is no denying the damages to mental and physical health from constantly being in front of screens. 

Every other process had to operate some way or the other. Education, conferences, appointments, and interviews could not stay halted for too long. Eventually, working had to resume, and there was no other easy way than to switch all of these tasks to online ways. 

Excessive Screen Usage

All communication platforms reached their heights, as people had no way to communicate other than message or call over the Internet. Applications like Google classroom and Zoom became the no.1 solution for carrying out conferences and classes, allowing free voice and video calls anywhere. We constantly find ourselves thanking the Internet for existing and allowing us to carry out our daily activities, as well as keep us sane, while we stay confined within our homes.  The online world has kept us all connected through such difficult times, nonetheless, it has faced severe backlash too. Increased laziness, anxiety, and failure at a healthy routine are some of the many drawbacks, but what many fail to consider high risk, is the high usage of screens. 

The Negative Impact on Health

 

It is nearly impossible for one to go without using their devices each day. According to studies, around 80% of adults stay glued to their screens for more than 2 hours on a usual day. However, ever since the lockdown, it has highly increased, thus leading to more health problems. Here are some of them:

  • Eye Strain – Be it a virtual meeting, presentation, online gaming, or simply scrolling through media, our eyes tend to blink less while we stare at the screen. This disrupted movement of the eyes put immense pressure on it to focus harder, thus resulting in a strain. 
  • Obesity – Screens restrict our movements. From children to adults, it can cause us to remain in the same position for hours, which does not only bring up random aches in the body but also leads to obesity. 
  • Disturbed Sleep – How often do we get on our phones just before bed, and end up wasting hours? Every day. The blue light emitted from our screens disrupts our sleep cycle, which eventually leads to insomnia. 
  • CVS (Computer Vision Syndrome) – Excessive screen usage can also be a cause of CVS, which blurs one’s vision. This is usually in the case of being in front of the computer, TV, or video games all day. 

Recommended Tips To Reduce Screen Time

Work from home
Work from home

Though it is highly tempting to binge-watch our favorite series on Netflix, right after we attend a meeting or finish our remote tasks, it is still, another screen we would stare at for hours. What we call a distraction, is more stress over our eyes. Yet, without further fretting over that, here are some tips to reduce screen time, especially when working from home:

  1. Manage where your time is spent – Perhaps the best way to realize you are over-spending time on screen is to track it and manage accordingly. Applications like Clockify, and Timely track the time spent on each device you put in it. With that, it is easier to plan the exact amount of time that each task requires. E.g., if you have just winded up a meeting, and often accidentally hover to online shopping right after it, thus spending hours, tracking and managing can notify you when your time is up so you know when to stop. 
  2. Find alternatives – There is no denying the need for video calling, especially when a company manager has to hire new people and train them over video. Yet, there is an option of recording one clip with all the instructions and sending it to avoid excessive screen time on each video call. Also, if you are fond of making notes from your work on your phone, there is always an alternate way of switching to the traditional pen and paper. 
  3. Turn off Notifications that are not urgent – Notifications, as important as they are, are the biggest temptation of getting back to our screens. Just when we divert ourselves off the screen, a little ‘ting’ or vibration of a new notification causes a strong urge to get back and check it out. Luckily, smartphones these days come with the ‘Do not Disturb’ feature, which can allow notifications from people who are marked as important in settings, and do not show the rest. 
  4. No phone at bedtime – As hard as this may sound, it is necessary. If you happen to a victim of endless scrolling when you get to bed tired of working on screens all day, know that your body, especially your eyes, deserves some rest. The best way to achieve that is to switch off your Wi-Fi when you are set to sleep. You could try listening to peaceful music to help you sleep faster, and keep your bedroom dark so your mind knows it has to rest. 

Controlling Addiction to Online Gaming 

Before the work from home system, it was easier to take a break from work and get some fresh air outside. However, now that it is not allowed, people have found alternatives, and yes, that is gaming. A majority of the gaming companies experienced a vast boom in their sales, especially in the field of online gambling. Gamblers all over the world were thrilled to be playing their favourite games online, especially at sites like free-slots-no-download.com, thus accessing unlimited free slots. Yet again, these games often result in addiction, which eventually leads to similar problems as mentioned earlier. However, a good way to control this is using the recommended tips above, which will not allow more productivity, but also a healthier lifestyle. 

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