Have you ever heard of ‘screen apnoea’ or ‘email apnoea’?

Are you one of those people who start and end their workday in front of a screen? Has the time you spend at work without looking at a screen become so rare that you can count it on your fingers? The digital world is our constant companion, always by our side. On the one hand, working from home allows us to spend less time commuting and gives us more space for personal matters. On the other hand, many people feel the relentless pressure to keep up with the rapid pace of the digital world. Maybe you, too, find yourself rushing from one virtual meeting to the next, responding to emails on the side, and losing track of everything. While opening your next email, you suddenly remember that you have a half-finished response in Teams, and at the same time, you should already be joining the next meeting.

Have you ever noticed how this affects your pulse? Since you’re just sitting calmly at your desk, your heart shouldn’t be beating as frequently as it would on a walk. Curious? Before you read on, I recommend trying this simple experiment during your next workday:

• Set an alarm every 30 to 60 minutes.
• Write down your pulse and a brief note on how your breathing feels in that moment.
• Feel free to share your insights as a comment on this article.

What is “Email Apnea”?

Linda Stone first coined the term ’email apnoea’ in 2008, which later became known as ‘screen apnoea’, as highlighted in a New York Times article in August 2023. She found that around 80% of people could be affected when doing activities such as reading emails or texting.

If you’ve tried the experiment, you probably don’t need an explanation of the term. But for the less motivated but still curious, “email apnoea” (or “screen apnoea”) refers to shallow breathing or even breath-holding while sending emails or working (or playing) in front of a screen. This behaviour can lead to a lack of oxygen and reduced blood flow to the brain, resulting in fatigue, depression and anxiety.

Linda Stone spent more than seven years at Apple working in multimedia hardware, software and publishing. In 1993, she joined Microsoft Research, where she co-founded and led the Virtual Worlds Group/Social Computing Group under Nathan Myhrvold and Rick Rashid, researching online social life and virtual communities. In 2000, Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer appointed her vice president to improve industry relations and foster a positive corporate culture.Several studies have now examined the effects of excessive texting and screen time on neurological development, learning, memory and mental health. Below, I summarise some of the key findings that may inspire you to change your work habits or support your colleagues in doing so:

• “For many participants, receiving text messages triggered excitement, which manifested as breath-holding or shallow breathing, along with increased muscle tension. The study found that when sending a text message, participants stabilized their torso, tensed their neck and shoulder muscles, moved their heads forward, and breathed shallowly and quickly. Additionally, their heart rate, skin conductivity, and muscle electrical activity increased.”
  (2009, Preliminary Study on the Psychophysiological Effects of Texting, I-Mei Lin, National Chung Cheng University, Taiwan, and Erik Peper, San Francisco State University)

• A study by the Institute of Neuroscience at the University of Texas found that people breathe nearly 50% less when in front of screens, triggering the body’s fight-or-flight response, which impacts cortisol levels, heart rate, and blood pressure.

• Another study found that reducing email use in the workplace significantly increased productivity and decreased stress levels.
  (2012, “A Pace Not Dictated by Electrons”: An Empirical Study on Work Without Email, Mark, Voida, and Cardello)