This is most of why I’ve installed any “smart” devices in my house. If I’m up at 4am with anxiety, I can check most things that inspire it for me (are my door locks engaged, can my cameras see anything concerning, is my young kid in bed and breathing, etc.) without getting up. Some of those I can even rectify remotely; for example, I can lock my doors through the app if someone forgot to.
As a result, I’ve developed a new thing about which to worry: what have I forgotten to check?
For example, at the moment the door to my garage - which has one of the smart locks I mentioned - doesn’t always latch properly. Especially when closed by a distracted five-year-old. The lock will usually mark itself “jammed” if it can’t find the proper landing place, but it won’t always. So, until fixing the door, I can’t trust it even if I automate it. (For this one I installed a camera in my garage so that I can at least make sure the garage doors are closed; we live in a safe area so that’s enough to satisfy me for the time being.)
Another issue is that we have - I believe - eight external doors. I don’t want to maintain the batteries for eight external locks (the ones I have use four AA each), so I can’t be certain all of them are locked without checking.
We only use three with any frequency, though, so I installed smart locks on two of them and make sure to check the third and at least glance at the others every night on my way to bed (The dumb one is one I consider fairly protected, as it’s in my back yard, and also it’s immediately below where I sleep, so it doesn’t worry me too much.)
But yeah. Routine and automation are my thing. I’m still working on it in this house, though.
I hope that didn’t sound too judgemental. I can’t imagine the pressure of dealing with that kind of anxiety plus the responsibility of a child. Sometimes we lose focus of what’s in front of us over what’s in our head when it should be the other way around.
toynbee@lemmy.world 3 days ago
This is most of why I’ve installed any “smart” devices in my house. If I’m up at 4am with anxiety, I can check most things that inspire it for me (are my door locks engaged, can my cameras see anything concerning, is my young kid in bed and breathing, etc.) without getting up. Some of those I can even rectify remotely; for example, I can lock my doors through the app if someone forgot to.
As a result, I’ve developed a new thing about which to worry: what have I forgotten to check?
utopiah@lemmy.world 3 days ago
Well you can make rules so that you can automatically rectify things without having to even check.
Then… you can worry about things you haven’t automated properly!
toynbee@lemmy.world 3 days ago
See, that’s exactly right.
For example, at the moment the door to my garage - which has one of the smart locks I mentioned - doesn’t always latch properly. Especially when closed by a distracted five-year-old. The lock will usually mark itself “jammed” if it can’t find the proper landing place, but it won’t always. So, until fixing the door, I can’t trust it even if I automate it. (For this one I installed a camera in my garage so that I can at least make sure the garage doors are closed; we live in a safe area so that’s enough to satisfy me for the time being.)
Another issue is that we have - I believe - eight external doors. I don’t want to maintain the batteries for eight external locks (the ones I have use four AA each), so I can’t be certain all of them are locked without checking.
We only use three with any frequency, though, so I installed smart locks on two of them and make sure to check the third and at least glance at the others every night on my way to bed (The dumb one is one I consider fairly protected, as it’s in my back yard, and also it’s immediately below where I sleep, so it doesn’t worry me too much.)
But yeah. Routine and automation are my thing. I’m still working on it in this house, though.
Thanks!
Venus_Ziegenfalle@feddit.org 3 days ago
Yeah that tends to happen when you nurture unhealthy thoughts
toynbee@lemmy.world 3 days ago
No doubt!
Venus_Ziegenfalle@feddit.org 3 days ago
I hope that didn’t sound too judgemental. I can’t imagine the pressure of dealing with that kind of anxiety plus the responsibility of a child. Sometimes we lose focus of what’s in front of us over what’s in our head when it should be the other way around.