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Just finished watching @SocialDilemma_ documentary on Netflix on social media and what it is doing to us. Some thoughts:
1. Loved this quote by @tristanharris that went something like "How can you wake up from the matrix, when you don't even know you're in it?"
1. Loved this quote by @tristanharris that went something like "How can you wake up from the matrix, when you don't even know you're in it?"
2. As psychiatrists and even PCPs, more and more I feel like we should ask all patients, especially adolescents about their screen time and social media use at every visit. I feel like there would be a lot to learn and teach in that conversation.
3. I understand the argument that it is a losing battle if you're equipped with a brain that's a million years old and you're up against 21st century supercomputer algorithms but mindfulness meditation can be used to push back to some degree against the attention drain.
4. I absolutely think the current levels of polarization in society are not sustainable for a working democracy. We desperately need to start talking to each other again, we need to ACTIVELY look for points of agreement - that's not to say it is simply a numbers game (cont)
You can have many things you agree on but the one thing you disagree on can be absolutely critical - like erasing your identity - but the points of agreement, at the very least, can become starting points for progress on where you disagree.
5. Reposting this again because it is relevant: Why a healthy dose of skepticism is crucial for a democracy to work as it is supposed to and why that has become so difficult to practice in the age of the Internet https://www.3quarksdaily.com/3quarksdaily/2020/07/the-democratic-virtues-of-skepticism.html?fbclid=IwAR1nIUu_GvpDqMt-7a28BzsvwcA6jy04r_cVB0tyzs2q-aGuIphuHvU0dpk
6. The irony of posting against social media, about a documentary I heard about ON social media, on social media, is not lost on me. However, for the near term at least, I think we have to learn to live with social media responsibly because just like most addictions (cont)
to stop cold turkey is not the best course of action. PS: I plan on pursuing addiction psychiatry after residency (fingers crossed) and I do think social media and internet porn addiction will have to be formally addressed in the near future. Hopefully that conv starts now! END.
