“We need to get you something for Christmas,” Bruce said. Christmas gifts can be difficult here. “I’d like to get you an Oura ring.” He’d seen the slick television ads promoting them for better health, and a close friend has spoken highly about hers.
But I hesitated because it sets a machine between me and my body. Do I want to invite a machine that far into my personal, physical space? The ring gathers data on my sleep, my heart rate, how much I exercise by reading an artery in my index finger.
Somewhere there is a data center that uses electricity and water that allows the ring to speak. Do I want to be part of what might rob a community of their water and electricity? Do I want my health reduced to ones and zeroes, swimming with others’ health data? Will my breathing issues, or heart rate or blood pressure or lack of exercise be used against me one day?
A priest friend said, “Because it’s a gift, you might accept it.”
So I did.
Poor sleep has wrecked my days for years and a CPAP doesn’t do much. Every morning, I look at my sleep stages: an hour of REM, an hour of deep sleep. It tells me I’ve slept well enough. You know how a positive word can help you feel better? That’s how it’s working for me. In the evening, I’m turning off that other machine, my phone, and reading a book. My sleep is not so disturbed.
I’m Katie Andraski and that’s my perspective.
