Does Online Media Feed Our Addiction To Music?
I wake up in the morning and try to do something differently. As odd as it may sound to many of us, I won’t put the music on during my morning coffee – let’s be in silence. Not much time passes till I notice a certain restlessness in the mind. The silence has become too alien and simply – boring. Why sit in silence if I there can be an enchanting sound? I’ve never really asked myself why do I put the music on as the first thing alongside my morning coffee. It didn’t stop there – I have my headphones almost every moment I don’t have to do brain work or interact with someone. Definitely not behind from an average American spending more than 4 hours a day with music. One can say it’s a mere habit, yet with the help of neuroscience, there’s more to discover. It’s startling to find out that a compulsive habit of listening to music can actually be an addiction.
What’s baffling to find out is that music consumption has become a form addiction, yet to an extent. The digitalisation era has enabled everyone to enjoy music at any time and in any place with almost no financial cost, making many of us susceptible to a mindless excessive consumption. Music interacts with the brain quite similarly to a drug. It acts as a rewarding stimuli, releasing dopamine in the brain like food, sex and drugs do. As a result, our brain keeps asking for new doses of pleasurable tunes that make us feel good. Musical sound is a powerful emotional stimulator, it shapes our sensations and moods, and while it can act as a therapeutic external factor and a performance enhancer, music can also become an addiction with negative effects on life. An excessive music can become utterly pervasive and interfering that it leads to a behaviour that hinders the progress of other aspects of life.
Music makes an enormous part of the vast pool of endless addictions of digital media. Whether you are a diehard music lover, an audiophile or just an average listener? – there’s a solid chance that your time with music has become an imprudent habit.
Are you like me who indulged into the realm of rhythmic beats and euphony, never having a slightest doubt whether there can be a bit “too much music”?
Pay close attention to how you feel when the music is on or when it’s off. Has silence become too dull and somewhat upsetting?
Are you one of them who plays music when your focus is needed on something else? 40% of people globally listen to music while they study or work. Depending on the task, have you given it a thought whether those beats or melodies have become so engaging that they impede your productivity and cognitive work, making you dillydally rather than boosting your performance? Are you paying attention to your task or to your music?
Enrich your life with the most beautiful art – music – but make sure to keep the yin-yang intact.
