The Tech Shock Podcast - Natalie Foos
In this episode, Vicki and Geraldine are joined by Natalie Foos, director of VoiceBox.
Through blogs, think pieces, and poetry, VoiceBox aims to give young people around the globe their say on what affects their lives most. Alongside this, VoiceBox conducts original research into some of the phenomena impacting young people.
The group discuss VoiceBox’s recent report into 'reality shifting' – a form of transcendental meditation involving a ‘transfer’ of one’s consciousness to alternate realities.
With over 2 billion uses of the tag #shifttok on TikTok, the popularity of reality shifting is easily apparent – and the act of reality shifting is something which particularly appeals to younger individuals.
Whilst some alternate realities take the form of recognisable fictional worlds (like the Harry Potter or Star Wars universes), alternate realities can run closer to the ‘shifters’ real life.
But is reality shifting best understood as engrossing in the same way which a good novel might be, or are individuals – young people especially – more prone to neglecting their real lives (or ‘current realities’) in favour of dissociative experiences?
Further, what impact does this trend have on individuals who are struggling with pre-existing mental health issues, and are there truly serious upshots of reality shifting ‘veterans’ advocating a ‘perma shift’ into another reality?
You can listen to this episode via Plink, Spotify, Apple, or Google.