“Off The Grid” Passion Blog #2 9/19/24

A burden one in four people in our country face on a day-to-day basis anxiety which is described as a feeling of worry, nervousness, or unease, typically about an imminent event or something with an uncertain outcome. There are multiple types of anxiety, some people fall more towards a social aspect where they have issues or nervous feelings whilst communicating with others, while other people suffer from intense feelings due to disorganization or even post-traumatic stress induced feelings. One commonplace throughout the field is a root cause, almost all anxiety can be traced back to technology in some way or another.

Harvard scholar (nothing else), Theodore Kaczynski believes that the issues with technology started with the industrial revolution, “The Industrial Revolution and its consequences have been a disaster for the human race.” I agree in the fact that since the industrial revolution anxiety has grown in the country significantly which could be viewed as a disaster, with advancements in technology came the average nine to five workday and other stressors that leads to an overwhelming society.

After the industrial revolution, came a technological period of break through leading to things we all possess known as smart phones and devices. We as a society have grown so accustomed to these devices even relying on them fully for services that we used to complete no problem without them, with this dependent comes attachment which can enhance systems of depression and anxiety, in some extreme cases individuals even experience withdrawal systems when away from their devices. Studies show that phones also increase the workday, the average saying is that people work nine to five but with devices people can take calls after work or on days off, leading to the work week being increased up to ten hours a week of unpaid phone conversations. These conversations can create less free time falling into family arguments thus increasing feelings of worry due to not having enough time to complete daily tasks.

A main factor of anxious internal feeling also comes with phones but is an entity in itself, social media, which is a form of mass media communications on the Internet (such as on websites for social networking and microblogging) through which users share information, ideas, personal messages, and other content (such as videos). Online media is a main draw of social anxiety, in recent years, the greater population has been deprived of human interaction which leads to many not truly knowing how to talk to another person due to years of instant messages from behind a screen. These years of texting and depriving themselves of human interaction leads to the growing fears of interviews, public speaking, and networking all desperately important in modern society. On top of this, social media creates a toxic culture of everyone only doing things so that they can post it and prove to their “friends” that they are better, this leads to people constantly worrying about their public image which is extremely unhealthy in that they are only completing tasks for others and are not feeling self-fulfilled. As a whole, social media creates unrealistic standards in society that leads to people feeling depressed about their achievements, bodies, and life, as well as increasing anxiety to “fit in.”

Now, how does escaping society decrease feelings of anxiety? It is simple, people living “off the grid” do not have any nine to five or boss to worry about, they do everything for themselves and for their families that they provide for, leading to that sense of fulfillment states in the previous post. On top of this, people who have escaped society have little need for the technology that causes so many others to put on a fake persona leading to the anxious feeling of trying to fit in. As a whole, Harvard scholar (nothing else), Theodore Kaczynski, moved off the grid to escape the technological rat race he was intertwined too and though he had some radical views, he stated that living off the grid greatly increased his happiness in life and lowered his stress and anxiety.

As a college student anxiety is at an all-time high though it is manageable. From personal experience the more I limit my presence on social media, the greater my happiness is and the less stressed and anxious I feel. It is inherently impossible to escape the anxiety that comes with due dates and exams, but preparation and time management can be a big step forward in limiting anxiety.