Sitting at my desk one afternoon, I was on hold with my insurance company for 20 minutes, half listening to their repetitive music. I was also researching a topic for work and thinking about making tacos for dinner. I suddenly stopped what I was doing to pay a bill that I’d forgotten about. I was also using an exercise band to stretch my right shoulder. I thought I was being efficient by multitasking. But when the insurance rep finally got on the line, I couldn’t remember why I’d called. My brain felt like Swiss cheese.
Multitasking is when a person switches between at least two tasks. Often, one task is left unfinished to start the next one. It may seem like a good way to get through a to-do list. But in reality, it can slow us down and be harmful to our health. “You actually have to pause one process to shift to another,” said neuropsychologist Karen Dahlman. This constant shifting creates mental and physical stress on our body.
How multitasking affects your brain
Studies show that multitasking harms your ability to perform short-term cognitive tasks and your long-term brain health. Not only that, but when you try to multitask, you’re not nearly as productive as you think. You’re more likely to make errors in your work, leave out important information and take longer to complete a task.
This is because the human brain isn’t designed to multitask. Your brain is actually programmed to only handle one task at a time. “Too many tasks that involve high-level decisions compete with each other,” Dahlman said. This can tire you out and makes it more difficult to focus your attention on one task, even when you want to.
As you age, multitasking becomes even harder. Dahlman said that the older you get, the less equipped your brain is to handle multitasking. “Sometimes you feel overwhelmed, and you think to yourself, I used to be able to handle so much more,” she said. Focusing on monotasking — doing one task at a time — can help you feel more in control.
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Multitasking can harm your health
Switching tasks can stress you out, raising both your blood pressure and heart rate. Multitasking has also been linked to depression and anxiety. While these effects are often temporary, constant changes in blood pressure can affect blood flow to the brain, leading to strokes and other neurological problems.
Dahlman said that high-level multitasking can also keep you up at night and affect your sleep. It might be hard to calm anxious thoughts, and you may wake up too early feeling pressured to get ahead of your unfinished work.
Another common symptom of multitasking is brain fatigue. Constantly feeling tired can make you irritable, which can then make your muscles tense up, especially in your neck and shoulders. All this affects your overall mood and your physical well-being. It can even affect your relationships.
Unfortunately, people with less access to mental health and economic resources are often more affected by these health-related issues. “If you can afford to pay people to perform services for you, then you can screen out some of those distractions,” Dahlman said.
The myth of multitasking
There’s this idea that people who multitask are smarter than people who choose to do one thing at a time. Another myth suggests that multitaskers are more productive. But the truth is, they may miss important items or skip steps. They aren’t actually getting things done any faster, and there’s no evidence that they’re more intelligent.
Dahlman also addressed the Superwoman myth: The idea that women can manage multiple high-level tasks without consequences. But multitasking strains our brain, and it’s not sustainable. It really is impossible to do it all.
The attention economy is making multitasking more appealing
A survey from the American Psychological Association says that about 40% of people multitask with their digital devices. If you’ve ever sat down to watch Netflix and then started scrolling Instagram at the same time, you can probably relate. It might feel good when you’re scrolling, but in the long-term, it actually increases stress and lowers productivity.
Compared to low-media multitaskers, high-media multitaskers use more of their brains to complete the same task. This basically means you’re not using your brain efficiently. But with all the technology available at our fingertips, it’s almost impossible to stop multitasking.
8 ways to cut down on multitasking
In a world where we’re constantly bombarded with information, it’s not realistic to give up multitasking altogether. Fortunately, there are ways to manage your tasks with less stress.
Here are some tips to cut down on multitasking and get more accomplished without raising your blood pressure:
- Only combine low level routine tasks, like folding laundry and talking on the phone. Do high level tasks, like driving or reading, one at a time.
- Think about when you have the most energy during the day. Use that time to focus on complex tasks like going over your finances or attending meetings.
- Build intentional breaks into your routine to rest your body and brain. Take a power nap or meditate.
- Recognize your limits. If you know you will do something better if you focus, make sure you’re in a quiet place to do that task.
- Be aware of behaviors that reduce attention, like lack of sleep and alcohol use.
- Ask for help and seek support when you’re feeling overwhelmed.
- Limit distractions as part of your daily routine:
- Put your phone on silent mode.
- Take social media apps off your phone.
- Turn off emails while you work, or set times to check your email.
- Create a clean, quiet workspace, and use noise canceling headphones.
Be strategic in managing your demands instead of trying to eliminate them. As for me, I’m going to focus on combining my low-level tasks, such as waiting on hold, with other low-level tasks, like washing dishes. Then I’ll have more space to do higher level tasks one at a time. As Dahlman said, if you can approach your tasks thoughtfully, you can preserve your brain function.
