Imagine slicing through a big ripe juicy tomato from a backyard garden and putting the slice on your sandwich. Imagine the anticipation you feel of biting into that sandwich. Now, in the middle of winter, imagine slicing through a pale, uniformly-round, juiceless tomato. It was picked green on a huge tomato farm in south Florida and made the long journey to your grocery store. You may still be glad to add the slices to your sandwich, but it is not the same experience. They are so different perhaps we should not even give the same name to both. In other areas of life do we too often settle for the equivalent of factory-farm tomatoes?
Over the years I have read hundreds of students’ reflections on TV watching and screen use. Although there has been great diversity in their habits, one line shows up repeatedly. They say something like: “I get home and watch some videos to unwind,” or “at end of the day before going to bed I watch a couple of shows to relax and decompress.”
After reading about this use of TV/videos so many times, last year I asked the important question: does it actually work? This is what I found.
Study results are mixed. Yes, it can do good things to your brain waves, but it depends on what you are watching. Some shows and videos increase stress or rev you up. So, a qualified yes. But what if we ask another question: Are TV shows the best means of decompressing and lowering stress? Is scrolling through videos a very good way to do so? Here, the answer is clear. No.
What are better ways? One researcher stated you would be better served by just closing your eyes and breathing. Here are some other ideas adapted from this article by Jessica Stillman.
Writing - screens increase the chatter in your brain, writing decreases it. Research affirms that journaling is an excellent way to clear your mind, reduce anxiety, and sleep better.
Nature – Studies also show that spending time in nature helps reduce stress and anxiety and increase creativity and empathy. A hike in the wilderness is great, but just taking a few minutes focused on some flowers in your yard or a walk in a park is beneficial.
Prayer/worship – For reasons you can imagine. What are reasons that prayer and worship would help one decompress?
Exercise – Again, no explanation is needed here. We know this is true. The next one might not be as obvious . . .
Reading is better for stress relief than TV/videos.
I want to make clear, I am not totally opposed to relaxing via TV. I like watching a movie on Friday evening after a long week. And there are other appropriate reasons for watching videos or TV besides just stress relief. I enjoyed watching a TV show with family last night. But I do exhort you to not have screens be your default for stress relief and unwinding. It is easy, but not the best. The above alternatives are all like juicy backyard vine-ripened tomatoes. Why settle for industrial-picked-green tomatoes when the juicy alternative is right at hand?