Digital Wellness for Veterinary Professionals | Episode 55 | Reviving Vet Med

Technology is deeply integrated into veterinary practice, from managing schedules to engaging with clients and staying connected through social media. However, excessive screen time comes at a cost, impacting mental health, sleep, and work-life balance.

In this episode, we explore the importance of digital wellness for veterinary professionals and share practical strategies for creating healthier tech habits. Learn about the effects of social media on mental health, how to set boundaries with screens, and the steps to perform a digital detox. Whether you're feeling stretched thin or simply looking for ways to regain focus and energy, this episode offers actionable tools to reclaim your time, enhance your wellbeing, and reconnect with what truly matters.

Resources

Merck Animal Health Veterinary Wellbeing Study (2017): https://www.merck-animal-health-usa.com/about-us/veterinary-wellbeing-and-scholarships/inaugural-2017-veterinary-wellbeing-study

Merck Animal Health Veterinary Wellbeing Study II (2019): https://www.merck-animal-health-usa.com/about-us/veterinary-wellbeing-and-scholarships/veterinary-wellbeing-study-ii

Is Facebook bad for the mental health of veterinarians? (blog): https://revivingvetmed.com/facebook-bad-mental-health-veterinarians/ 

Ten tips for limiting screen time and improving veterinary wellbeing (blog): https://revivingvetmed.com/ten-tips-limiting-screen-time-improving-veterinary-well/

Discerning the effect of the relationship between disclosure and responsiveness on depression, anxiety, and compassion fatigue among veterinarians (article): https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36706015/

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Transcript

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Today's episode is inspired by an important day that we just had. December 10th was World Digital Detox Day. This day encourages us to pause and reflect on our relationship with technology and consider how we can create healthier boundaries to reduce the negative effects of screen time. For those of us in Vet Med, this is particularly relevant because our work demands so much of us mentally, emotionally and physically. Add excessive screen use to the mix and it's no wonder we feel stretched thin. In today's episode, we'll discuss the negative impacts of excessive screen time, how social media affects mental health, strategies to nurture digital wellness, and tips for setting boundaries with screens.

I'll even share with you how to perform a digital detox, and at the end you can hear details about a contest I'm hosting this month to help you stay mindful of your screen time. So, with that said, let's go ahead and get into the episode. This is the Reviving Vet Med podcast and I'm your host, Dr. Marie Holowaychuk. My mission is to improve the mental health and wellbeing of veterinary professionals around the world. So, let's start by talking about why the topic of digital wellness and digital detoxes are so important. We know that technology is woven into every aspect of our lives, certainly in the veterinary space, from consulting with clients to managing practice schedules, to staying updated on the latest veterinary research, and for all of us, connecting with family and friends.

But while technology has undoubtedly enhanced our lives in many ways, it absolutely comes with a price. So as veterinary professionals, we're often glued to screens for long periods, whether it's reading and writing medical records, responding to emails, or attending virtual CE sessions. And then outside of that, many of us continue to stare at screens. Whether we're scrolling through social media, binge watching streaming software, or answering more emails. It can really seem endless in that we never get a break from screens. So, here's what we know about the use of screens. Prolonged screen use can lead to decision fatigue, where the sheer volume of information we consume leaves us mentally drained. So, what this means is that at the end of our workday, simple decisions like what am I going to have for dinner? Or what am I going to do for my workout?

Seems insurmountable and impossible. And over time, this decision fatigue can contribute to burnout, which of course we've talked a lot about on this podcast and is a pressing issue in the veterinary profession. We also know that excessive screen time disrupts our sleep by suppressing our melatonin production, and that leaves us then unable to recover after the long and often emotional workdays. And that is because in order for melatonin secretion to take place, the body naturally has to be cued in terms of decreased light stimulation, which would happen, of course, if we didn't have our screens shining into our eyeballs. So, we want to make sure that we are managing that. And of course we'll talk about strategies for this later on.

There's also the constant connection to work when we are always on screens, which therefore increases our stress and anxiety, and it can interrupt our in-person interactions and our overall productivity. I'm not sure if you know this, but even the visual presence of a phone can disrupt focus and conversation. Because even looking at your phone, even if you're not turning it over and looking at the screen, actually can result in a dopamine surge and again carry you off track for whatever it was that you were doing. Research suggests that social media also decreases wellbeing by increasing jealousy, insecurity and depression. And we'll talk about that when we talk about the impact of social media later on. So, beyond the mental health and general ramifications that screen time has, there's also a lot of impact on physical health.

And I think we often underestimate this. Certainly, in adults, we talk about the detrimental impact of screens on children and that can take away from their physical activity and thereby reduce their physical health. And the same is true for adults. We know that excessive screen time replaces healthier activities such as exercise, outdoor time, and certainly going to sleep on time and getting enough sleep. And studies link increased screen time to a higher risk of chronic health issues and even a higher likelihood of premature death. And there's a lot of startling statistics in this area. The average person spends more than seven hours a day in front of a screen which contributes to sedentary lifestyles and health risks. And I can attest to this.

When I am not in the clinic and working from home, it is definitely all day that I am in front of my screen. And even those days I am in the clinic I'm often in front of the computer working on my medical records. So as scary as this sounds, it is pretty average in this day and age. And so again for veterinary professionals this is sure to be the case due to responding to emails, doing client communications and documenting them. And even for some of us, maintaining a practice or work online presence that's going to pull us even more into excessive screen time. So, I want you to think about how this impacts you. How often do you leave work feeling overwhelmed, only to spend your evening glued to your phone or laptop?

And how does that affect your mood, energy and ability to connect with other people in your life? And it's important to talk about social media as well. Social media for me is a double-edged sword. It is invaluable for connecting with my followers, for sharing, wellbeing related information, and certainly for staying in touch with friends after decades of moving around the country. And social media, while an excellent tool for connecting with others and sharing ideas, can be particularly tricky to navigate. And I think if we're all being honest, social media comes with some serious drawbacks. I think first and foremost it can be a major time suck.

I remember a few years ago when I installed the Quality Time app on my phone to monitor my usage and I was shocked by how often I checked my phone and how much time I was spending on Facebook, and this awareness really helped me to reduce screen time. And even so, I found myself scrolling through Instagram the other night and if I was being honest with myself, I probably would have gone to bed 20 minutes earlier. And that time just flew by as I got sucked into my phone and it took away from other things that I wanted to be doing such as getting ready for my precious sleep. The other big thing with social media is that it often leads to comparison.

We can all agree that we all share the best parts of our lives online and leave most of our challenges hidden. You know, I've had people over the years say that I look so busy and I'm traveling all over the place. And while that may be true to some degree, what they don't see are the nights spent alone in my hotel, or the hours of preparation that go into those events, or the exhaustion that is spent in the airports and you know, I think it's important that we recognize that it really is just the glossy finish that we are seeing on social media and it's not actually an accurate representation of what that person's entire existence is. And therefore, it's not realistic to compare ourselves. So, let's talk about some of the stats that highlight the mental health impacts of social media.

There was a study that was conducted in 2022 that found that people who spend more than three hours a day on social media are twice as likely to experience symptoms of depression and anxiety compared to those who don't. We also know that among young professionals, heavy social media use correlates with increased feelings of loneliness and decreased life satisfaction. And for veterinarians specifically, there was the very first Merck Animal Health Wellbeing study that was conducted back in 2017 that demonstrated that veterinarians who use social media for more than one hour per day had lower levels of wellbeing and worse mental health than those who used it for less or not at all. And the following UP study in 2019 reported that up to 30% of veterinarians felt additional stress from managing their professional presence online.

And of course, this was especially in the context of dealing with client reviews or answering questions outside of work hours. So, there's no doubt that while social media can be wonderful, it can definitely carry its stressors and negative impacts as well. I do want to highlight one of the more positive studies looking at the use of social media among veterinarians, and that was a recent study that was published looking at the use of Facebook groups to connect with other veterinarians with challenges. And what the research identified was that when veterinarians disclosed something that they were struggling with or a challenge for them, and that challenge was met, or that disclosure was met with compassion and understanding and demonstrations of empathy, those veterinarians actually had improved mental health and wellbeing.

So, there's definitely evidence to support some positive things that can come out of social media, especially if you don't have the opportunity to connect with veterinarians in person. So, when it comes to digital wellness, we are reminded of this importance. And I want to be clear, you know, this isn't about abandoning technology altogether, it's just about using it in ways to enhance our lives without harming our mental health. Like I said, technology is amazing. I use technology more than ever and I really do value social media for some of its uses. We do want to be clear in the context of social media that we are using it actively. So, there's research to demonstrate that using social media for things like sending messages, for commenting on posts can actually reduce depressive symptoms by 15%.

So, this is considered that active social media use, which means that you're going on social media and doing things with intention. You're attempting to connect, you're posting, you're commenting, you're doing things that really demonstrate that you have a reason to be there. In opposition to this, there's research to demonstrate that passive social media use, like scrolling and liking, is linked to a 33% increase in depressive symptoms. So again, a lot of what we do when we're on social media is just to scroll and passively like posts without actually engaging in anything. And this can have detrimental effects on our mental health. So, some people have found that quitting social media altogether can be beneficial for their mental health.

There was actually a Danish study that found that taking a week off of Facebook improved life satisfaction and positive emotions, especially for those who were using social media passively or had really heavy social media use. Because, let's be honest, the constant barrage of curated content can make us feel like we're never doing enough. And the truth is that nobody's life or veterinary practice or veterinary business is perfect. And comparing ourselves to others based on their highlight reels is really a recipe for low self-esteem. So, I want to share with you some strategies to nurture digital wellness that have helped me over the years. And a lot of these come with evidence to support them. And I'm going to go through these 10 strategies one by one. And the first one is to designate tech free times.

So, make it a rule to not have your phone at the table, during meals, after a certain time in the evening, or even for the first hour of your day. Use this time to focus on yourself, your family, your pets, your partner, whatever it is that brings you joy outside of your screens. I have made it a habit to not look at my phone within about 30 minutes to an hour of when I go to bed and for the first hour after waking up. And it has been transformative for me. Tip number two is to audit your social media accounts. So, I encourage you to go through the accounts you follow. And if an account makes you feel inadequate, stressed or overwhelmed, unfollow it or mute it so that it's not coming up in your feed.

The third tip is to set up physical boundaries. So, this is to create zones in your home or workplace where screens are not allowed. So, this could be the bedroom, the dining room table, the break room at work. Create these zones so that people are given permission to not have to decide whether they use their phone, but just to know that this is a rule, we do not use our phones here. The fourth tip is to turn off notifications. This is one of the best things that I have done for myself. Notifications like the constant beep and back when I had a BlackBerry, the flashing light just pulled our attention in dozens of directions all the time. So, whatever you don't need to be notified about, especially for social media apps, turn it off. This way you can stay more focused.

This is easy to do on your phone so that you're not constantly being barraged during the day with notifications for every new email that you receive or every message that comes through your phone or whatever it is that you don't need to be notified about. The fifth tip is to set work boundaries around your email and your outside of hours communication. Do you really need to have your work email on your phone or is this something that you can only have on your laptop or your work computer? This again is just a way to have that boundary that prevents you from feeling like you have to do work at all times of the day. Tip number six is to track your usage with apps like Moment or Quality Time. Again, this is just meant to increase your awareness of your screen time.

You know, I think we all hear these studies and I'm not going to be able to quote the numbers, but you know, I think the average person checks their phone 700 times a day or something ridiculous. And you might think, oh, you know, that's not me, like I'm not that person. And you may be surprised until you install one of these apps or for many of our phones now it's an automatic feature within our phone. Check your numbers and just see how often are you checking your phone, you know, in terms of how often you're unlocking your screen, and which are the apps that you are using the most. Tip number seven is to batch your screen time.

So, for those of us that have to be on social media for our work or we have to be in our inbox for whatever reason, it's a really good idea to schedule this time so that it doesn't bleed into all times in your day. So, for me, for example, I will spend very specific times and very limited times on social media again, going on with the intention to share some things in my story or comment on something or follow somebody new. And similarly with my email, if you email me, you will see my auto reply that comes up that says I am not always in my inbox Therefore, it will take me several days to get back to you if it's not an emergency. And this is to prevent me from just being in my inbox and on my social feeds all day long.

Tip number eight is to pair screen time with healthy habits. So, these are things like exercising while watching a show or only checking your social media while you're doing squats or listening to podcasts while you're walking. I guess that's not really screen time because you're listening, but you catch my drift. It really is making sure that you're only using your screens or ideally using your screens when you're doing something healthy, not just lying on the couch at night. Tip number nine is to use airplane mode or turn off your phone at designated times for uninterrupted downtime. I love flying on airplanes because this is the one time that I get to actually turn my phone completely off, or at least not get notifications for a certain period of time. That's changing because a lot of airlines now have WIFI on their aircrafts.

But nevertheless, this is a great idea. Again, in the evenings or during those special moments where you don't want to be interrupted to just take advantage of this feature. And then tip number 10 is to be intentional with your tech use. So, avoid that mindless scrolling. If you find yourself just sitting on social media mindlessly using it for more than an hour, it really is an indication to turn it off. We want to make sure that when we open up our social media that we're doing it for a specific reason, that it's not to excess, and that ideally that we're using it actively. So, if these screen time tips feel like they're not going to be enough, or if your screen time habits feel overwhelming, a digital detox can be a really great reset.

You can think of this as a way to recalibrate and reestablish healthier habits. So, a digital detox allows you to take a step back to reset and to reconnect with what really matters in your life. There's research to show that doing a digital detox reduces stress and anxiety caused by the constant notifications and the inability to disconnect. That it also enhances focus, productivity and the quality of in person interactions, and that it fosters mental clarity, giving you the space to prioritize your wellbeing. So, I don't know if you've ever tried this, but I have certainly over the years introduced more opportunities to do a digital detox where I will stay off of social media for a set period of time, or I will make a commitment to not be in my inbox for a certain period of time.

And this can be very liberating, to be honest. There is nothing better than recognizing that you don't have to check your phone all the time. And there's a strategy that you can put in place to do this, and I'm going to walk you through that now. So, the first thing is of course, to plan ahead. Okay? This is not something that just happens without planning, unless you really want to scare some people by not responding to them as you normally would. So, you want to make sure that you decide when your digital detox will begin and when it will end. This can be as short as a day or a weekend or as long as a full week.

But you want to make sure that you let people know so that, number one, they're not worried about you, and number two, so that they can support you. So whether that is sending a message to let people know that you're not going to be checking your phone, whether that's putting an auto reply on your inbox, letting people know that you're not available and won't be checking email, you want to make sure that you set some parameters around this and that you notify the people that are important to notify. The next strategy is to find something that's going to replace that screen time. So, if you would you normally spend, you know, hours a day on social media or screens, you're going to need to find something to fill that up, you know, and replace that habit.

Whether that's going for a walk, engaging in a hobby that you used to do, cooking a recipe, spending time journaling, whatever it is. Make sure that you have a plan in place for when you have that itch to pick up your phone and get on social media. You've got a contingency plan so that you know what you're going to do instead. Another strategy that you can use when you're doing a digital detox is to keep a journal. Write down how you feel during your detox. Notice what you're seeing, whether it's improvements in your focus, whether you're sleeping better, whether your stress levels have come down. I know a lot of individuals who have done a digital detox who have really decided to make some big changes in their screen use after that has happened.

Which leads me to the final part of the digital detox, which is to reflect and adjust. So, after the detox is complete, identify what you want to keep doing. Maybe it is limiting or taking yourself off of social media platforms or maintaining screen free evenings to identify what feels really good for you and what you want to continue and what you don't want to go back to. So, I will say that if you are looking for a lot of structure around doing a digital detox, I am doing a giveaway for the month of December. I have a 30-day digital detox calendar that is a flip calendar that you can use any month of the year. If you want to do a digital detox every day of the calendar, there's a new prompt for a strategy for you to try that limits screen time.

So, in order to qualify for this giveaway, there's going to be a link in the show notes for you to sign up and I will also ask that you please follow me on social media at Marie Holowaychuk and also Reviving Vet Med. Both of those are on Instagram. So, follow me on social media, following Reviving Vet Med and clicking on the link in the show notes or there will be a link that will be on my link in bio page on Instagram and signing up for the digital detox calendar giveaway. So even if a full digital detox feels daunting, you can still benefit from setting boundaries with screens. And here's a few simple ones that I'm going to leave you with. First is again limiting work related screen time outside of working hours.

It's really important to try your best to avoid checking work emails after you're finished for the day. I think this boundary is so important, especially for veterinary professionals who already work in such an emotionally demanding role. It's so important that you have some time in your day where you are completely stepping away from work. So, if you do need to check emails at the end of your day, just make sure that doesn't take place in the entire evening and do your best to limit that as much as possible. The other things I said are to batch notifications, so again turn off alerts for non-urgent emails and check them only at specific times of the day.

Instead of constantly monitoring your inbox, set aside in your calendar times for email and client follow up and try to adhere to those so that your attention is not being pulled in a lot of different directions. Another great way to set a boundary is to engage in so-called analog activities. So, spending time engaging in hobbies that don't involve screens like gardening, knitting, playing a musical instrument, reading a physical book. These can be all really helpful to again reduce our screen time. And then the last strategy that I'll leave you with is to teach your team boundaries. If you're a leader in your practice, or if you are even an employee in your practice, you want to make sure that everyone around you is setting their own boundaries with screens and is adhering to your boundaries as well.

So, modeling healthy behaviors by limiting after hours communication, making sure that you are only responding to messages within hours, or if you are writing emails outside of hours, that you're scheduling those to get sent in hours, this is going to give everybody else permission to also set their own boundaries when it comes to screen time. So ultimately, nurturing digital wellness isn't just about disconnecting from screens, it's about reconnecting with what matters. I want you to be intentional about how and when you use technology so that you can reclaim your energy, focus and peace of mind. And so, for us in veterinary medicine, this translates to being more present with our clients and our colleagues and creating more fulfilling personal lives by also protecting our mental health in what is becoming an increasingly digital world. So that's it for this episode of Reviving Vet Med.

If you've been feeling the weight of your screen time lately, I encourage you to try just one of these strategies we discussed today. Whether that's scheduling a digital detox, setting up tech free zones, or simply turning off notifications in the evening. And don't forget to enter the contest for a chance to win the Digital Detox Calendar. It's a fun and practical way to keep your screen habits in check in the coming year. Please take a moment to forward this episode to a colleague or co-worker who you think would benefit from it. And we would also appreciate it if you would subscribe to the podcast so that you're sure to get the new episodes as soon as they drop. If you're interested in any of the resources mentioned in today's episode, please check out the show notes and you can follow us on social media at @RevivingVetMed for more tips and strategies for wellbeing in veterinary medicine. For any questions about today's episode, suggestions for future topics, or inquiries about sponsorship, please email at podcast@revivingvetmed.com. I'd like to thank Asia and her team at Bear Beat Productions for producing this episode, and I'd also like to thank you for listening. I hope you'll tune in next time. In the meantime, take care of yourself. Bye for now.