In this time and condition, we are doing everything online, including learning. The pandemic has put technology to the test to help us with our normal daily activities. But, technology has been proven to have not only positive effects but also negative. It helps us with our daily activities and needs but it also distracts us with other contents that strays us from our work. In this era of new normal, it is imperative for us to know how to maintain a good sense of healthy mental state and be aware of how a healthy mental state looks like.

For students and teachers in this era of new normal, online learning has no longer been an issue as people of all ages have gotten used to using the internet to help study. Everyone as young as kindergarteners to elders uses video conference applications easily to help them meet and gather with other people and share information (school, church, meetings). Before the arrival of the new normal era, people usually spend only up to 4-5 hours on their electronic devices for various reasons as other activities such as school could be done in person. Nowadays it jumped to a staggering 8-9 hours, twice the amount of how it normally is. But due to the reason for its usage, its high-frequency usage is normalized among people from different backgrounds. 

Knowing how much we each spend on our electronic devices (screen time), we must ask ourselves, what is the impact it has brought to each and every one of us personally? Are there more negative or positive impacts in our lives? If we want to know whether it has brought a positive or negative impact on our daily lives, we could easily make a comparison between our internet life and real life or reality. The idealistic scenario is that there is a balance between screen time and real life, there are boundaries set in which we are still able to function without having to mentally depend on an electronic device, that is the example of someone who have a good mental health especially in the new normal era. Mind you, by simply reading this article, you are actually using your screen time, even if you were just checking the time on your mobile device, that is already using your screen time. 

That being said, with our mandatory dependency on technology to help us study, how can we maintain a good mental health during online learning? As simple as it sounds, the best way is to take breaks from your electronic devices. Set a goal of how long you should separate yourself from your electronic device after spending x amount of time on it. Take walks without bringing your mobile phone, spend time with your family, chat with real people instead of focusing on things that exist only in the online world.

Knowing that, the question that we need to ask ourselves is, do I need to seek professional help? We are the ones who know ourselves and it is important for each of us to realize whether or not we need to seek professional help. When it seems like we can no longer handle things by ourselves or we need someone who is in a neutral position to help us, we need to find it in ourselves to have the courage to seek out help. It is not a sign of weakness to seek help, it is also not an embarrassing thing to do.