We’re Not Advancing. We’re Evaporating.

I’ve been traveling the world for over 20 years, living abroad, and immersing myself in cultures most people only scroll past. And with each passing year, I see the evolution of humanity more and more clearly. We are not evolving; we are eroding.

I see children who once played barefoot in the dirt, free and alive, now sit slouched over glowing rectangles. While the streets are still bustling, the laughter has dimmed in favor of phone. Even in the poorest places,

where joy and hardship used to co-habitat, technology has arrived. But instead of lifting spirits and creating opportunities, it’s replaced them.

The sacredness of ancient temples now competes with the shutter click of selfies. The awe of a moment you will never get back is drowned out by hashtags and humblebrags. We’re not living life anymore. We’re documenting it for people who either don't really care and won’t remember our names. But here’s the deeper truth: This is not just distraction. It’s emotional numbing masquerading as connection. And this is bleeding into every area of our lives.

Thanks to the advent of technology, we no longer have to face someone to dismiss them. We can send a text and call it closure. We can ghost someone and label it “boundaries.” We feel awfully righteous when we don’t have to see the pain we've inflicted in someone’s eyes.

I've been dismissed by people consciously and unconsciously more times than I can count. Why does this happen? People want to pretend they are protecting their false sense of “peace” or "self-importance" by pushing others away. We’ve become mean, hollow, polished avatars of people who’ve forgotten how to actually feel or truly care how others feel.

We say, “Not now.” Code for: You’re not important enough for me to care. We ghost. We justify. We numb. And we justify it as “self-care.” And to be fair, maybe sometimes it is. I get it. Life is exhausting. But disconnection isn’t rest; it’s the decay of anything meaningful and the dismissal of those we love. And this has consequences.

You want to know the common thread in our modern sickness? Addiction. Depression. Anxiety. Self-harm. Loneliness. The thread is simple. It’s a lack of connection. We suck at it.

We’ve become emotionally stunted, self-righteous, dismissive, and cruel. We throw the word “empathy” around like it’s a trending filter, but we don’t even look people in the eyes anymore when we say hello.

We claim we’re emotionally intelligent. We preach boundaries and self-care. But the truth is, we’ve become emotionally bankrupt, numb, reactive, avoidant, and hollowed out by technology.

We are being coded to crumble by the algorithms that we chase. We think bombs and bullets are dangerous, but silence, screens, and self-centered progress will take us out long before anything more sinister because we will let.

The more brilliant our technology becomes, the less brilliant we are willing to be. And real the tragedy? We're outsourcing the one thing we were never meant to surrender: Our humanity and for what once bound us together: Love, presence, shared purpose, and the sacredness of being fully, vulnerably alive.

If we don't remember soon, we won't just lose each other. We'll lose ourselves.

Dr. Milan LaBrey, Author of The God We’re Building , Soul Operating Strategist | Founder, TAEI