Is the Internet making us all a little ADD?
I would hate to be a kid today. There is a GREAT article I read on kids and depression and how it is being masked by overuse of social communities. http://www.newsday.com/news/opinion/ny-opmcd0712679046may06,0,4832350. There is so much pressure on them to perform. Not only are they exposed and pressured by the usual stuff of illegal drug use and premature sex but they also have bigger demands academically than we did as kids. Then you throw in the distraction of You tube, facebook, and twitter, who wouldn’t be ADD or ADHD? How can anyone these days focus on one thing given how much outer stimulus we’re being bombarded by?
What no one counted on and the article above addresses is that depression would be a by product. I would also submit that the foods we eat on the go, the rapid pace of American life and emissions from cell phones in overuse are also contributing to more bi-polar disorder. What to do? If you must eat fast food as part of your daily diet, make a point of getting real leafy greens in somewhere during the day and I dont mean head lettuce. Spinach, kale, arugula are the best and most rich with the mineral responsible for keeping our nervous system from frying. I also would recommend taking it in capsule form – preferably as magnesium glycinate. 800 mg a day is recommended by holistic doctors.
You’ve heard me bang this drum before but I will say it again. Stillness for five minutes three times a day can really help with focus. Just drop into your breath and breathe deeply down into your gut setting an intention to release any muscle or emotional tension you feel in your body. After five minutes, ask the question, is there anything I need to know at this moment to assist me as I move back into my day? Just try eating more magnesium rich foods and practicing this stress management technique for three weeks and I guarantee you, the chaos will get a little less crisis driven.
Dr. Toni Galardi is a licensed psychotherapist in practice in Santa Monica, CA and has written a new book, The LifeQuake Phenomenon: How to Thrive (not just survive) in Times of Personal and Global Upheaval available through Amazon and Barnes and Noble. Her website address is http:www.LifeQuake.net