The Joy Deficit: Why Screens Make Us Feel Flat

You’re Not Burnt Out - You’re Underjoyed

So many of us are feeling exhausted, but as I’m researching the impact screens are having on people, it occurs to me that most people aren’t exhausted from life, they’re exhausted from life not feeling like life anymore.

Because of the ubiquitous nature of technology, many find themselves spending their free time:

• scrolling
• consuming
• watching
• comparing
• reacting
• numbing

This is causing our emotional world to flatten.

While screens simulate stimulation, they do not produce joy.

Real joy requires:

• presence
• human connection
• meaning
• movement
• novelty rooted in reality
• contribution
• creation
• emotional engagement
• sensory experience

So while screens provide passive entertainment, emotional spikes, instant gratification, and surface-level novelty, they cannot deliver:

• awe
• fulfillment
• laughter that makes your stomach hurt
• purpose
• closeness

When people say they feel numb or disconnected, it’s most likely not because they’re burnt out, it’s because their emotions are undernourished.

One fix can be “Micro-Joy Moments.”

Try one of these today:

• step outside for 1 minute
• make real eye contact with someone
• call a friend on the phone
• laugh with a friend
• cook something slowly
• read one page in a physical book
• touch the ground with bare feet

These tiny joys can reset your nervous system.
Screens can’t do that.