Opinion: Is digital invasion costing us happiness?

United Nations has released a new happiness report and it ranks countries on different parametres. But what we find missing is that the report doesn't talk about the digital invasion that has changed the way we live, and in many ways is translating into unhappiness.

People are often seen, in offices as well as outside, glued to the screens of their smartphones or other devices. They are either checking their emails of just surfing the internet - without having the need to be on them, at times. Often, it has been found that this is the cause of unhappiness and depression.

Internet has taken over our lives in unimaginable ways - sometimes we are online because the work demands, sometimes for fun, sometimes because of the urge to be in constant touch with the world. And the rest of the time, subconsciously.

For example, when you wake up in morning, the first thing you do is dive into a pool of Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat and Twitter. You randomly browse in the cab, have a constant urge to fiddle with the phone in meetings; you post updates during coffee breaks with colleagues, check notifications on dinner table and check the phone even in the middle of the night - the list is never ending.

We rarely give it a thought, but the internet is not leaving us with the time we genuinely need to be with ourselves, and this in turn is costing us happiness.

Your mind is always occupied with the vacation photographs of your friends - who is eating what and where who is having a tough time in relationships. You are living on social media, in fact, you are consumed by social media.

And in this entire process, your mind is left with no time to do things that can bring you joy and peace and make you value yourself all the more.

For instance, how often do you read now? How seriously do you pursue any hobby? When was the last time you enjoyed a conversation with friends without looking at your phone? Perhaps the lack of all of it is another cause of depression nowadays, which translates into unhappiness.

While there are many things leading us to our unhappiness, in this digital age, there is one more thing that has become a major cause of our unhappiness - the increasing use of technology, the uninterrupted social media supply, and the constant urge to be in touch with the virtual world.

This doesn't mean that you should dismiss technology, but it is advisable that you cut down on your internet time and live more in the real world and less in the virtual space. Your happiness is in your hand.

(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL)