The Attentional Switching Cost This describes a failure of the Default Mode Network (DMN). When you transition from a high-stress task to a screen, you aren't resting; you are engaging in "Attention Switching." Each switch incurs a metabolic cost in the Prefrontal Cortex, depleting your stores of glucose and oxygen.

Instead of the Vagus Nerve signalling a "Rest and Digest" state to lower your heart rate, the "blue light" and rapid-fire stimuli of the feed keep your Amygdala on high alert. You are essentially trying to recharge a battery while the "flashlight" is still turned on. You end the day "tired" but "wired" because your nervous system never received the signal that the "hunt" was over.

The FieldGuide Application: "The Dark Room Protocol" Action: For the next 60 seconds, place your palms over your eyes to create total darkness.

The Goal: Physically cut the visual input to the Superior Colliculus. Force the brain to acknowledge that the "feed" has stopped so the actual recovery can begin.