A few weeks ago, I started a Forum Thread about screen fatigue, sharing some of the challenges I have had during the pandemic and the additional screentime incurred to stay connected with family and friends. I shared my commitment this year to take more breaks away from my desk and asked the Archinect community about its experiences with this.

citizen said: "I definitely experience work /desk/ environment fatigue.  I sometimes cringe a bit when I walk back into my little home office if I've managed to escape it for a few minutes. I don't know how much of all that is purely screen-related.  But the fact that I'm looking at my screen 90% of the time certainly can't but worsen things."

For many architecture professionals, heavy screentime is the norm, even before the pandemic. The majority of our work is on screen. In fact, that is true for many "white collar" professionals. But the pandemic has forced (or perhaps, pushed) many of us to more screentime when it comes to social activities. Where before we could gather in-person (for activities outside of work), we now must convene virtually.

tduds said: "I realized pretty early on that I despise Zoom meetings, even with friends. There was that period I think we all went through last spring, where everyone you hadn't talked to in 5 years suddenly wanted to have a Zoom happy hour because we were all stuck at home. I mostly found them exhausting. Not sure why, I'm certainly an extrovert, but for whatever reason, I figured out that I love face-to-face, in real-life interaction, and text-based interaction(forums, chat rooms, social media), but everything in between - video chat, phone calls, etc - just drains me. "

Instead of the increased Zoom meetings, tduds is now reading more books and magazines and trying to do more active tasks.

caramelhighrise added: "I know a couple of people that make it a point to get up and take a 2-minute walk around the office every hour on the hour. Not only helps eye strain but also gives you a chance to stretch, grab a drink, and take a mental break."

Have some thoughts on this topic? Share in the comments below, or feel free to engage in the discussion forum.