Okay, I confess: I’m a geek. You’d never know it by looking at me, especially when I’m on my bike, but I am.
And hey, it’s almost become as cool to be a geek as it is to be a biker. I’m doubly-cool.
What isn’t cool is the way this “geek lifestyle” affects your health. Let’s see if you’re a geek by the unhealthy symptoms cropping up in your life:
Poor sleep patterns: This particular lifestyle often results in lack of sleep or frequently waking over the course of the night. I am so guilty of this.
Take tonight for example. After having completed two weeks’ worth of hell at work, I find myself with next to nothing to do. I watched TV until my eyes felt like they were going to fall out of my head, tried to go to bed, couldn’t sleep, read (finished “Good Omens” and started on “Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix”), realized my arm had fallen asleep, got up… and now here I sit in the darkness, typing away.
This is pretty much standard operating procedure around here. At least I don’t use the laptop in bed. I’m not that bad – yet.
Headaches: The geek lifestyle involves recurring headaches resulting from staring at monitors that are too bright, too dark, or too small. You can also have headaches due to bad posture.
My monitors (yes, I said “monitors”. I have two 21″ flat screens set up side by side) are huge, so no problem there. However, staring at a monitor in a dark room probably doesn’t help my headaches.
Back pain: Poor posture, a desk that is too low or too high, a crappy office chair, and poorly positioned monitors puts a strain on your back.
This is probably the only symptom on the list I don’t suffer from.
Poor Attention Span: *Glances over at James* Dude.
Alright, some people really do suffer from ADD, but working on the computer for hours on end won’t give you that problem. Lack of sleep definitely shortens your attention span, although the author of the article believes genetics and habits contribute to an ever-decreasing attention span.
I must have good genetics and habits because I rarely, if ever, suffer from a poor attention span…unless the topic I’m writing about is particularly boring, but that’s another story.
Alright, so I’m two for two.
Split focus: Working on the computer, whether doing coding, graphics, or writing, takes an incredible amount of focus. Many of us work on multiple tasks simultaneously. The article claims that “the geek brain is just not trained to sit quietly and listen.”
If that’s the fifth qualification for the geek lifestyle, then label me guilty as charged. My brain never seems to stop. Even when I’m working on one task, I’m thinking about another. Hell, I don’t have to be working to be still thinking about work.
So how do you break free of the geek lifestyle? Get out and get away from the computer – often. Force yourself to develop a routine where you establish regular sleep patterns and stick to it. Exercise. Do something physical to compensate for the hours of inactivity at the keyboard.
Now, if only I could follow my own advice…
How funny! (It WAS meant to be funny, right?)
Step away from the computer ….
Um…I’m not sure how to answer that one. I know it sounds like a contradiction, all of us are chained to our comps and sometimes I wonder if I own my computer or it owns me. I can’t get up at night for a drink of water without doing a quick check to see if any emails or comments have come in. Days and even weeks could go by before I declare that I have to get outside – only because I can’t stand the sight of the computer anymore. If I’m away from the comp too long, even on a forced break, I feel guilty, like I should be working. It’s difficult and that little voice in the back of my head tells me it’s detrimental behavior, but somewhere along the line a balance needs to be struck.
And judging by your answer, I’m not the only one. So, I guess, yeah, I was serious.
My name is Jamie, and I’m an addict. It’s been less than 20 minutes since my last email check…
Most of us may not consider ourselves “geeks” yet we spend a lot our time in front of a computer. In reality, you don’t have to live a geek lifestyle to show early signs of health problems that affect those in techie fields such as programmers, web designers, or other IT workers. Today, most office workers sit in front of a computer for more than eight hours, then go home to sit in front of a computer for another eight. One internal medicine physician tells Tech-Recipes there are several health problems he sees among the tech-focused population.
No neologisms? Verbizing nouns and vice versa? I thought that was chronic. I like a good made-up word myself.
.-= Jacqui´s last blog ..Tech Tip #13: The Powerful Right Mouse Button =-.