Keyword: distraction

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Smartphones Anxiety and the Need for Connection September 24, 2014

Host: Armand DiMeleGuests: Ben Starr, Giullian Gioiello, Linda Vanella, Michael Jessen
Category: Anxiety & Fear, Society, Culture & Current Events

Constant connectivity feeds anxiety rather than relieving it: Armand DiMele argues the smartphone is a modern “stick” the nervous mind uses to scan for danger. With co-hosts Linda Vanella, LCSW-R, Giullian Gioiello, and Ben Starr, plus guest Michael Jessen, the group examines phone-checking as compulsion, passive aggression, and a substitute for real presence.

Work Identity and the Theft of Time June 29, 2011

Host: Armand DiMele
Category: Identity & The Self, Society, Culture & Current Events

What does it mean to steal from your employer when the workplace has already stolen your sense of self? Armand DiMele traces how cubicles, microchips, and smartphones eroded worker identity, then opens the question of workplace theft, personal ethics, and what it costs to live with or without integrity.

How Technology Rewires the Brain July 22, 2010

Host: Armand DiMeleGuests: Stephanie D'Ambra
Category: Family & Parenting, The Mind & Neuroscience

Every ping and notification triggers a dopamine hit, and Armand DiMele and Stephanie D’Ambra, LCSW argue this makes smartphones and computers genuinely addictive. They examine how constant multitasking fragments focus, why kids now know more about technology than their parents, and how adults can close that gap by letting children teach them.

Sobriety as Being Present December 29, 2009

Host: Armand DiMele
Category: Emotions & Inner Life, Personal Growth & Change

Armand DiMele reframes sobriety not as abstinence but as full presence in the moment, arguing that most of us are “drunk” on distraction, worry, and longing nearly all the time. Drawing on a candid conversation with a group of men, he explores why being truly present is so rare and so difficult, and how tears, non-judgment, and even the word “yes” can open a doorway to it.

How Modern Messaging Changes Us December 10, 2009

Host: Armand DiMele
Category: Communication & Conflict, The Mind & Neuroscience

Armand DiMele traces how communication technologies from handwritten letters to cell phones have eroded intimacy and altered brain chemistry. Callers weigh in on texting at work, including a nurse whose story links phone distraction to a patient’s stroke.

ADHD and the Science of Commitment Undated

Host: Armand DiMele
Category: Love & Romantic Relationships, The Mind & Neuroscience

Living with a partner who has ADHD often breeds nagging, resentment, and a damaging parent-child dynamic, and Armand DiMele explains why the disorder is a brain chemistry issue rather than laziness or selfishness. The episode also examines genetic research on vasopressin and why some people are biologically wired toward infidelity.