Help? Negative feelings- the internet

This thread may strike some as odd but I'd really appreciate it if those with possible answers/insight could make sense of this for me.. it's really hard to explain and perhaps odd, but I will get negative feelings and an overall negative energy if that's what you would call it towards the Internet and certain technologies. It Is a sort of unexplainable feeling that is perhaps from my subconscious tends to arise every now and then.

As I said it's very hard to explain and perhaps strange but I'm unable to understand where this is coming from, as wjen I am full of my hyper so to say internet energy browsing sites etc I feel the opposite but its only until later at a more regular/grounded state that I begin to feel this way.. I will literally want nothing to do with the internet and even remove my laptop from my sight as a sense of relief. .

As I said I'm sure this sounds very strange and it doesn't help that I'm unable to really explain it that is anyone has answers as to what is this feeling could be coming from is it a sort of subconscious thing I hope it sister and isn't too silly something any help would be great thanks...

Information overload.
Spend less time on the net, break it up into shorter intervals.
Or maybe you learn things you really didn't want to know and blame the computer for bringing that into your life.

Originally posted by DAVID64
Information overload.
Spend less time on the net, break it up into shorter intervals

I tend to really only get on the internet a few times a week As I am a night owl and have a weird sleeping schedule. But I thought that it could be something similar to what you said on information overload maybe too much negativity? I don't knowI'm sure that I sound weird but when I get like this I don't even want to be in the same room as my computer. I guess I'm a weirdo lol I don't think that has anything to do with learning things that I didn't know I like to be informed and generally hate not being so as most people are.

reply to post by TheIceQueen


Edited my post to add another idea.

The internet, like life, is what you make of it.

If you feel there is too much negativity on the sites you frequent, try watching Lolz Catz videos for a little bit to cheer up

I know what you mean though, it's a wild ride sometimes and it can get to you emotionally depending on the content you view. In moments like that it's always best to take a good break and do something you know you enjoy instead.

reply to post by Dominar


I came here to post this. Less doom porn, more cat videos.

reply to post by TheIceQueen


Would you say, you feel this way because of the people on the internet? Maybe the content? Or are your feelings more directed towards the technology itself?

Originally posted by iunlimited491
reply to post by TheIceQueen

 

Would you say, you feel this way because of the people on the internet? Or are your feelings more directed towards the technology itself?

that's a good question.. I think bad it is a mixture of both or perhaps something else that I can't quite put in words included as well.. it's no secret that people can and do act horrible on the Internet but this is expected and I don't feel like this is what triggers it.. I really just don't like the way technology is going, I'm not exactly sure why I feel this way noronce again can I really describe what I mean in words. the intrusive social media and future agenda I guess you could say of it..

reply to post by TheIceQueen


Hmm, I understand what you're saying.

Social Media, even though it is an extremely valuable tool, can surely cause negative emotions to manifest in ones subconscious. Everything we see on the inter-webz today is social-media. It provides a glimpse into the collective mind-set of an entire species. Humans.

The key is to take any vibes you may get from the thoughts of the masses, and spin them to your own personal benefit. Use any emotions the internet may give you, and strengthen your own views. Including the view of yourself.

There is a secret to the internet, - But you have to find the strings, - Before you can control the show.

Best of luck.

I saw a documentary about people who are very sensitive (or believe they are very sensitive) to all kinds of electromagnetic radiation and pollution (including computers).

Perhaps there is an underlying physical cause?

reply to post by halfoldman


You could be right... Electromagnetic Hypersensitivity (wikipedia).

Does the feeling have any sort of resemblance to Shame? I mean, even a small teeny bit of the sameness, as feeling of shame, &/or self-deprecation, disappointment in self, disgust, resentment, incredulity, near-despondance? Please consider all these feelings Ive listed, one by one. Try & put a finger on the feelings this you speak of feels most like, or are parcel to this feeling you mention. That will help work out the cause.

You mention socialmedia. I've found the internet to be a rich, if flat, space to enrich/entertain oneself via reading, particularly here on ATS & science sites such as NASA, Natl Geographic, etc. & of course, is a deep well of (my particular interest) art, artists, fine art critique, history, &visual "gluttony" in a good way, yet described w/verbiage evoking a "sinful" use of something intended for moderate intake). I hardly EVER (1x per month) login to "Visage Diary" ( a.k.a Mask Place) and when i do, I go in w/a specific, minutelong task in mind & never EVER get distracted while there. That seems to be the trick to spending hours online w/no icky feeling after.. Avoid social media. Keep it to yourself, meaning no sharing with ppl who know you in real life or with ppl for whom it's more than YOU learning & sharing w/little ego involved.

reply to post by TheIceQueen


The internet is both an amazing tool in its capability of information discovery and providing an opportunity to basically have discourse with any random individual from around the world; however, it's also a brutal social lens in that, through perceived anonymity, it also provides its users with the opportunity to say whatever is on their mind with very little social recourse. Worse yet, internet users tend to dehumanize the other people that they are interacting with as face to face interaction and threat of recourse just simply does not exist for them. It allows for risk taking that may not normally occur in day to day, face to face interaction. This is primarily why the internet can become such a brutal social lens as it magnifies the worst in society so that internet users may seem totally amoral, rude to downright nasty, abysmally stupid (or blisteringly stupid) and much, much more. It's really depressing on a social level.

Additionally, the internet also becomes a tremendous echo chamber. Part of this is through deliberate information propagation and seeding through the usage of sock puppets that gets picked up and shared by actual real people who either appreciate or are repulsed by the specific ideology it represents without much thought. Social media is a very huge tool for marketing and sociopolitical influence. If you're picking up on that, it makes it even more frustrating and depressing to view because it's pure manipulation. Seeing that feature of the internet alone is a bit of a mind wrecker that can suck every drop of hope out of a person.

You mentioned that you are a night owl. I presume that that means you're likely to be an insomniac. Insomniacs have a slightly higher incidence of depression. Basically, all those hours spent in total solitude in the dark of night can be pretty tough. It's freaking lonely. The internet is great in helping alleviate that loneliness because, odds are somebody is awake somewhere in the world. The problem is the above two paragraphs can also become blisteringly evident and can leave a user to feel even more isolated and actually feed depression. As a fellow night owl, I used to browse the net until I realized that it was actually depressing the hell out of me. Now I stick with what I did as a kid on hard to sleep nights--I read a book instead.

There can also be physiological affects to internet usage (or any technological tool that allows for instant gratification for that matter). Our brains are basically geared to reward learning and successful information seeking by its release of the neurotransmitter, dopamine. The problem is that this aspect of our brains developed, from an evolutionary standpoint, over hundreds of thousands of years without the internet so it's not really set up to take in quite as much as we do when we venture online. Dopamine isn't intended on staying in the brain for long so it is metabolized by an enzyme called MAO. In a bit of irony, both dopamine and serotonin share the same enzyme, MAO and one of the symptoms of reduced levels of serotonin is sleep disruption or insomnia. So really, if you've always been an insomniac, you're really not doing yourself any favors at all by going online at night to pass those ever so boring and lonely hours because it'd be a one-two punch. Psychologically, the internet alone can be depressing. Physiologically, it can be noxious, addicting, and quite possibly muck with both the levels of dopamine and serotonin in the brain with negative mood consequences and potentially increased sleep disturbance.

reply to post by TheIceQueen


There is a reason for everything. I would look into into hypnotherapy if you wanted definitive answers.