What is Zoom fatigue and how can we avoid it?

As people World Mental Health Day today, it’s important to check up on ourselves especially as we continue to work from home and adjust to a new normal amid the pandemic.

One phenomenon to look out for, however, is Zoom fatigue.

As people go from one meeting to another on Zoom, some have experienced exhaustion from video calls.

According to Dr. Lovie Hope Go-Chu, Makati Medical Center’s psychiatry section chief, one of the reasons why people experience Zoom fatigue is because of the misperceptions that occur just by holding a meeting online.

“Sometimes pag may lag, may misperception already. May negative thought on the other side. It will affect the interaction,” the doctor told GMA News Online through a phone call.

She also shared that with Zoom meetings, the cost is high but the reward is low.

“If you’re doing something, reward is high, cost is low, hindi tayo mapapagod ... we’d feel alright,” she explained.

However, with Zoom calls, the reward is being able to connect with people but it’s hard to do so via video calls.

“With Zoom it’s hard to connect with people because you’re just looking at a screen. Cost is higher. It’s hard to gauge mga visual cues natin, mga body language. We cannot read eh,” Dr. Go-Chu said.

She added that it’s also hard to focus during Zoom meetings when we tend to multitask.

“That being said, a lot of things are happening in the backdrop of the pandemic,” she said. “Everybody is so uncertain, tired, meron mga unemployment, financial difficulties. You’re dealing with all of this.”

To lessen the risk, Dr. Go-Chu suggested avoiding multitasking and just focusing on the meeting. It’s also better, she said, to schedule breaks in between Zoom calls.

“You can, if possible, if you can do the meeting over the phone,” the doctor suggested. “Baka ’di kailangan. Screen the meetings that you put on Zoom.”

MakatiMed Pyschiatry, shared Dr. Go-Chu, is set to hold a series of free webinars on mental health from Oct. 19 to 23. For those interested, simply visit their Facebook page. – RC, GMA News