It’s time for me to battle the multitasking monster. But how?

While some believe multitasking is a secret to success, neurologists tell us it’s bad for our brain.

Answering emails while attending a Zoom meeting. Using a smartphone while working on a spreadsheet or watching TV. Talking on the phone and baking cookies. Grading papers and watching a Little League game. For many, multitasking has become a way of life.

One at a time

Multitaskers may feel they’re doing two things at once, but neurologists tell us they’re actually forcing their brains to switch rapidly between two tasks, fleetingly attacking each of them one at a time. “This constant switching taxes our brain,” neurologist Dr. Jennifer E. Davis wrote earlier this year. “It essentially tires it out and makes it less efficient. . . . Our brains are not set up to multitask.”

Detrimental health effects of multitasking include increased stress levels, rising blood pressure and heart rate, and symptoms of depression and anxiety, according to Dr. Davis. “Chronically increased blood pressure and stress can have permanent effects on the brain by increasing risk for cerebrovascular disease and cognitive impairment,” she added.

In other words, if Alzheimer’s caregivers give in to multitasking, they’re putting themselves at risk for symptoms much like those of the loved ones they’re serving.

The essence of caregiving

But here’s the thing: Multitasking is the very essence of life with an Alzheimer’s sufferer. At least that’s how I’m seeing it.

There’s seldom a moment I’m not aware of or wondering about Evelyn. Where is she? What is she doing? What does she need?

Where is she? What is she doing? What does she need?

It’s better in the mornings when she’s sleeping late. That’s when I try to write or read or pray. Whenever she chooses to get up, I drop everything to get her pills, offer some breakfast, help her decide whether to get dressed, and figure out what she wants to do next. When she appears earlier than I anticipated, I juggle my schedule or rearrange my day to accommodate her. And I feel guilty to find myself wishing she’d just sleep a little longer.

Sometimes she spends long stretches resting on the couch, and I wonder what I should be doing to get her up and active.

Sometimes she finds something nearby to read—aloud, and repetitively. I ignore it if I can, but if my reading or writing for the day isn’t finished, this is a challenge.

Sometimes she is fidgety and unsettled, and I wonder what she’s up to and listen for the front door to open.

Often we watch TV in the evening, but sometimes she can’t sit still, wandering in and out of the room while I pause the program and wait for her to return. So even when she’s quiet, I find myself glancing in her direction to see how long she’ll stay settled.

Once or twice a week, she’s up two or three or five times after we go to bed. I try to rest while listening for her to leave the bedroom or return. And that is impossible.

Friends who come to give me a break are a godsend. But even then I don’t forget about what may be happening at home; I keep my phone nearby. And I’m almost always trying to cram more into my time away than even those several hours will allow.

A first step

This all feels unhealthy. So I’m deciding I need to combat multitasking however I can.

But how? Frankly, I could use some help with this. So here’s where I’ll ask readers to jump in. Either in comments to this post or in a few paragraphs for a Shared Story, tell us how you have subdued the multitasking monster.

When you write, I’ll do my best to put away my phone and concentrate fully on your response. It’ll be a first step.   

Photo at istockphotos.com, by Inside Creative House.