Something I’ve noticed about myself that’s related to this: I often go through intense periods of depression and anxiety with thoughts that center around a perceived lack of meaning in my life (i.e. wondering what the point of my life is despite it being “good” by most measures). One thing I notice about these periods is that I tend to “float” between stimuli such as YouTube videos, “fast” news articles, and even HN posts and comments, often feeling like I have no control over the behavior and I’m just having my brain hijacked repeatedly by something on my phone before I can even fully process the thought I was just having.
I’m curious to see if this approach might be a way to short-circuit that feeling so I can align my downtime activities more closely with my values and things that actually bring me meaning and joy. Sometimes it feels impossible, though, because I’m basically addicted to information by way of the internet. I’ve been using a computer since I was a child and I’m now in my mid-30s, so 30 years of behavior seems incredibly challenging to overcome.
I’m curious to see if this approach might be a way to short-circuit that feeling so I can align my downtime activities more closely with my values and things that actually bring me meaning and joy. Sometimes it feels impossible, though, because I’m basically addicted to information by way of the internet. I’ve been using a computer since I was a child and I’m now in my mid-30s, so 30 years of behavior seems incredibly challenging to overcome.