So many things which make our lives easier on the one hand, are proving to be a danger to our mental health on the other hand. One of these surely must be the mobile phone. In the beginning it was just a way to keep in touch with one another when we were out of reach of the old stalwart – the landline telephone. It made us feel more secure if we were travelling, knowing that we would be able to contact someone to help us if we ran into trouble. It also meant that we could talk to family members who also had a mobile phone at a cheaper rate than if we had to call them on their landline.
What has happened over the years to make us a little dubious about the actual benefits of owning a mobile phone? Well, for one we all seem to not just own a mobile device, but it has to be a smart phone. Very smart actually, as suddenly it feels as though we are being monitored and observed every step we take. We can never wait to download all the apps on our new devices and make sure that we have all our contact numbers saved. That’s wonderful, but now every time we blink, the unseen powers out there who are controlling our lives via our phones are reminding us of long forgotten events, birthdays of every Tom, Dick and Harry, (not that Harry, thank goodness!) as well as making suggestions continuously about what we should be watching, reading, or buying!
The worst part about all the apps which we are able to download onto our smart phones is the fact that the children of today are so techno savvy that, from a very early age, and as soon as they can get their little hands on a device, they become expert at finding undesirable content out there in the social media world. Parents need to be extremely vigilant when it comes to allowing their children to use mobile phones, yet many very young children have phones of their own long before they are able to read and write! Crazy and just a proverbial accident waiting to happen?
Socially, people are often no longer communicating in a safe and healthy manner. You only have to go into a busy shopping mall, to realise that every single person you pass is either reading their messages as they walk or speaking on their phones, and not even looking where they are going. Here in South Africa, where jaywalking across busy highways is a common occurrence, it is terrifying just how many people are actually on their phones whilst zigzagging their way from one side of the road to the other.
Depression is on the rise in many countries by all accounts and in many instances, this has been attributed to social media. Facebook always shows us how wonderful everyone else’s life is. Everyone out there seems to travel, entertain lavishly, spend, spend, spend, so what is wrong with me, one might ask oneself? Peer pressure has always played a role in mental health issues and now with most youngsters going online to check out what is happening with all their friends and acquaintances, it doesn’t take much for them to feel that they don’t fit in or that they aren’t as good as anyone else. Parents or caregivers should try, if at all possible, to identify changing behavior in the children in their care. Moodiness and reclusiveness could be signs that all is not well, and care should be taken to try to identify what is causing the change in the child. Suicide amongst many young adults is on the rise according to reports which are regularly being aired and the reason is often given as social media and its negative impact on mental well- being.
I could write reams and reams of reasons as to why I want to stop the world so I can get off – just long enough to recharge my mental batteries and before I lose any vestige of humour, which I sometimes fear is in permanent hibernation! Instead, I shall take a breather, watch the birds having fun outside my window and then it’s time to make an early evening meal before the lights go out in our part of Johannesburg at 6pm – 8pm! It’s called loadshedding, and is the result of the Government’s total failure to maintain our power stations as well as all related infrastructure for the past 30 years!
Speak again soon, I hope!
The Magic Roundabout 