“Oh my gosh, I’m so overstimulated.”

This buzzword, which has popped up more frequently on social media and in daily conversations, refers to the symptoms we feel when ambushed by an overload of sensory information, including loud sounds, strong smells, crowds, certain unpleasant touch, lights and more. Experiencing any combination of such sensory information can then lead to feelings of anxiety, panic, discomfort, restlessness and irritability.

So why is everyone “overstimulated” all of a sudden?

Simply put, there’s a constant stream of sensory information overwhelming our brains. 

Your cell phone is likely the biggest enemy of finding peace. Our “pocket computers” grant us access to constant entertainment and, in turn, more stimulation. 

When was the last time you walked to class or work without music blasting in your ears? When was the last time you allowed just your thoughts to entertain you? No music, no podcast, no call to chat with a friend or your mom. 

Our generation is uncomfortable sitting in the quiet. 

Recently, I’ve been actively creating quiet to see how I react. Unsurprisingly, I always feel uncomfortable. While I dig at this discomfort in an attempt to dissect its origin, I always end up at the same explanation, a coping mechanism I’m sure many of us turn toward: avoidance.

The American Psychological Association defines avoidance as the practice of keeping away from situations, for example, due to anticipation of consequences or anxious feelings associated with said situation.

Unintentionally, I often avoid any stressors in my life by turning toward forms of sensory information. For me, that looks like playing my favorite songs or calling my mom to hear about her day to escape my own. Both of which seem fairly harmless.

My biggest question: Is avoidance a bad thing?

Sometimes we yearn for a distraction from reality. Sometimes we don’t want to think about the personal, professional and social pressures that come with being in our early 20s. 

But are these distractions hurting us more than they are helping us?

I think they’re hurting us more than we know. We’re human, we’re supposed to experience human feelings. The human experience includes joy, sadness, loneliness, anxiety and everything in between. If we don’t feel the lows, we cannot fully appreciate the highs. 

Distracting ourselves from those lows is a temporary fix — we will be forced to face them eventually.

Or at least that was my initial thought.

I’m most fearful that these constant, convenient distractions are leading to chronic overstimulation. We are so dependent on virtual escapes that we won’t allow ourselves to face the quiet. What does our world look like if we all constantly require an escape from reality? Are we already living it?

When the escape is constant, your entire life becomes about avoiding and distracting yourself from reality. And at that point, you’re missing out on loads of life.

So, in another attempt to meet life head-on, I’m going to keep facing the quiet and I encourage you all to do the same. 

Alexis Algazy is a third-year political science and journalism major, and city editor for The News. She can be reached at algazy.a@northeastern.edu.