How to deal with phone addiction. Phone addiction – Nomophobia is a disease of modern society


Mobile phones have not been uncommon for a long time, and today they can be seen in the hands of even small children. According to research, the dependence of adults and children on phones and tablets is becoming more and more widespread every year. Such gadgets have not been around for a long time simple means connections, since in them a person stores photographs, videos, various useful applications etc. Many people are interested in the name of the phone, so this psychological disease has long been classified and it is called nomophobia.

Symptoms of phone addiction in children and adults

Since this problem is considered a disease, there are certain signs by which its presence can be determined:

  1. It is much easier for a person with such a deviation to communicate with people over the phone rather than in real life.
  2. At any opportunity, hands reach for the phone just to look at something, test the waters, etc.
  3. A disease such as phone addiction also manifests itself in the fact that a person constantly carries a phone with him, even when he goes to the shower.
  4. If your phone goes missing or is simply forgotten at home, this causes great discomfort. The person begins to get very nervous and gives up everything just to get the device back.
  5. The user is constantly looking for new programs, games, and accessories for his “friend.” In addition, at any opportunity, a person with addiction can easily exchange his device for a new model.
  6. If there is an addiction, then the patient does not like to give the phone into the hands of other people, especially if someone begins to view the information on it.

How to get rid of phone addiction?

Dealing with this problem is difficult, but if you follow all the rules, you can achieve results. Start turning off your phone, first for an hour, and then gradually increase the time period. At this time it is important to distract yourself with everyone possible ways. An excellent solution is to go to a place where there is no connection, for example, you can go to the mountains or to the forest. Try to meet people in person more, rather than talking to them on the phone. Use the device only when absolutely necessary. For some it is easier to deal with addiction abruptly, but for others a gradual solution is acceptable

The history of the telephone as a means of transmitting sound over a distance goes back more than one century. However, electric telephones appeared not so long ago - at the end of the 19th century. In those days, there was a phenomenon called telephonophobia (fear of the telephone). Nowadays there are only a few people who are afraid of phones, but great amount a person suffers from another disease associated with phones - telephone addiction (dependence on mobile phone).
Most likely, the first telephone addicts appeared at the dawn of the formation of telephone communication, however, this phenomenon has become widespread now that mobile phones have become widespread. Take a look around. You will definitely see a man with a pipe in his hand. Of course, this does not mean that everyone around is a phone addict. Most of us are quite adequate people who need a phone, but, in principle, we are quite happy without it. But where is the line beyond which we stop living in the real world and replace it with the telephone one? How can we determine that we have already crossed it? Suddenly, you are that same phone addict.

Symptoms of mobile addiction

There are at least ten signs that distinguish a person suffering from telephone addiction. They can appear separately or together. I draw the attention of MirSovetov readers that the more of the signs listed below are present, the more complex the case. If you have found at least three symptoms, I recommend that you carefully study the second part of the article.

Prevention

British scientists identify three degrees of mobile phone addiction:
  1. “Unattached” are people who live peacefully with or without a telephone; for them a mobile phone is a means of communication and nothing more.
  2. “Prosthetic patients” are tested in the absence of a telephone, but, in principle, they can do without it.
  3. “Cyborgs” cannot imagine themselves without a phone in their hand; mobile phones have practically grown into them.
To avoid becoming a “cyborg”, you need to learn to control the time spent on your phone. Here are some simple tips on how to do it.
  1. Try to keep one conversation to no more than ten minutes. This time is definitely enough to discuss some problem.
  2. Make it a rule to count the SMS sent and gradually reduce their number. Ideally, you should send less than ten messages per day.
  3. Try to put your mobile phone in a certain place at home and not carry it with you throughout the apartment. If this is still difficult, at least at night leave him alone and do not put him under the pillow. Believe me, if they call you and you don’t hear, the world will not collapse. You can always call back.
  4. You need to convince yourself to leave your phone at home when you go to get the mail, take out the trash, or walk the dog. Nothing will happen to your family during this time, and you will not have an extra reason to make another unnecessary call or send an SMS.
  5. Set a limit on how much you can spend on phone calls. It is convenient to connect to a package tariff with a subscription fee.
  6. Just for fun, put the SIM card in your first phone (if you still have one) or ask someone for a device with a primitive set of games, without a color display, MP3, Internet or camera, and walk around with it for a week or two. Perhaps you will feel something like withdrawal, and you will have a feeling of an information vacuum. Do not give up. This state will help you overcome reading. My advice to MirSovetov readers: buy some interesting book and read it in those situations in which you previously played telephone games, flipped through Internet pages or sent meaningless SMS.
  7. Turn off your phone for a day. This is the most radical, but perhaps the most effective method. See how much free time you have. Try to spend it usefully: read, go to visit, go to the cinema or theater, take a walk with your child. If you can bear it, then everything is still fixable.
In conclusion, I want to say that if none of the tips helped you, do not despair. Go to a psychologist and discuss with him your difficult relationship with your phone. Believe me, admitting the existence of a problem means going halfway to solving it.

In the century digital technologies More and more people are becoming victims of telephone addiction. Smartphones, designed to make the lives of their owners easier, are actually increasingly turning their owners into slaves who experience problems in real life due to its identification with maintaining accounts on social networks. To prevent this infection from affecting you, we have selected several recommendations that will help you control your relationship with your mobile phone and will try to answer the question - how to get rid of phone addiction?

Start using items that your smartphone replaced again

Functional modern smartphones truly huge, which makes life very easy for their owners - now we have it in our pocket multimedia center, able to cope with the most complex tasks from different areas. But this versatility sometimes comes to the detriment of the owner of the phone. When you take out your smartphone just to find out what time it is, you want to immediately check your social networks and find out about latest events on the Internet, watch a long-planned video or while away the time playing a mobile game.

To make this happen less often, we strongly recommend that you return to your everyday life items that supposedly lost their necessity with the advent of mobile devices, such as a clock and an alarm clock. According to recent research, people with wristwatch, spend one and a half times less time with smartphones in their hands. A similar situation has developed with fans of traditional alarm clocks - it is much easier for them to get out of bed without wasting extra time than for those who turn off their mobile alarm clock and immediately rush to find out what was missed during sleep. Minimize the use of your mobile phone in situations where another device can perfectly replace it.

Using silent mode

If you understand that you are now facing a period of prolonged concentrated activity, then switch your smartphone to silent mode, or better yet, turn it off completely. Much easier to log in working condition, when nothing distracts you, and not to the continuous sounds of notifications.

It is worth understanding that the lion's share of information received on the phone in the form of calls, messages in instant messengers and application updates can easily wait and there is no tragedy in the fact that one of your contacts will receive a response to duty calls.
"How are you?" not instantly. You can also organize an emergency communication channel in the form simple phone, which they can call you only in urgent cases, and the phone itself will not have functions that tend to distract you.

Territory without smartphones

A practice that is gaining popularity among people who have already noted their addiction. Agree, it’s not very pleasant when at home during dinner all family members are buried in their smartphones and ignore the stories of loved ones about something important. If this situation is familiar to your family, introduce similar rules. Let a joint lunch be an opportunity for live communication, and the bedroom a place to relax from the flow of information around us.

At first, these rules may cause hostility among family members, but over time, a habit will develop that will give you an already forgotten pleasant feeling of closeness with your family and friends, from which you will no longer be distracted by the next message on your cell phone.

Social Media Hygiene

Today, almost every person, starting from preschool age, has a number of accounts in various social networks and instant messengers. Most of them do not have any functional need, but are simply introduced out of modern fashion or for the sake of idle curiosity, but checking them takes a lot of time. If you feel that you need a VKontakte account, then try not to create several more on other social networks, adding as friends the same people who are already represented on your first page.

Particular attention should be paid to instant messengers - applications responsible for instant communication waste a monstrous amount of time. People often notice that their entire working day was spent in active correspondence, which in fact was neither urgent nor significant in content. Use as few of these services as possible and strictly in doses; the results of your main activities will not take long to arrive. Women are especially guilty of this point.

Don't rush to your smartphone as soon as it shows signs of life

We all have friends who turn to their gadget every couple of minutes to check the reason for its vibration or flickering indicator. Often, nothing important happens on it, but once in their hands, it again begins to devour their time. It’s better to create artificial restrictions for yourself, for example, checking instant messengers almost no more than once an hour, and respond to all messages received at once.

Yes, you will have to spend more time one-time, but the rest of the time you will be free from the influence of smart devices on your activities. By rushing to respond to every message, you will only generate an even greater flow of them from each of your correspondents, and therefore risk falling into a trap. Just as you set aside specific time for brushing your teeth, sleeping, or working, your relationship with your smartphone should be built in the same way; it should not replace rosary beads or other tools that help pass the time and keep your hands busy. Moreover, watching an adult who, like an impatient teenager, grabs his phone at the first notification is simply unpleasant.

I hope that our advice will be effective in your particular case, and you will no longer encounter such a problem as an aimlessly spent day, which you while away viewing information that is not interesting to you and correspondence on completely idle topics with unfamiliar people. But remember that in our digital era, the influence of gadgets on the lives and psyches of people is becoming more and more significant, and therefore high degree addiction can be very serious Negative influence– in such situations it is worth contacting specialists.

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Phone addiction is a disease

Imagine that your phone is silent. It's been an hour or two now. If you feel sincere relief about this, it means that, thank God, you have not yet been affected by the “fashionable” in Lately disease - telephone addiction, or telephonomania.

Independence is, of course, a good thing. But it is never absolute - this is the law of life. And it’s probably even great that each of us is “attached” to something. It is only important to observe the measure so that this attachment does not turn into a painful addiction, that is, dependence.

Scientists identify three main types of addictions:

    chemical (dependence on nicotine, alcohol, drugs);

    biochemical (painful need for food or, conversely, refusal to eat, reaching the point of absurdity);

    non-chemical.

Addictions of the latter type are the most diverse: they include gambling addiction, spending addiction, and love addiction, and Internet addiction, and time addiction, and workaholism, and... The list could take a very long time. Phone addiction- also from this category. Experts argue about how dangerous non-chemical addictions are, and cannot come to a consensus. Some sound the alarm, others believe that such addictions certainly indicate that “cockroaches have wandered into people’s heads,” but this is not fatal - in the literal and figurative sense of the word. Like, you can die from drug addiction, you can die from anorexia, but you can hardly die from spending addiction or time addiction. Nevertheless, non-chemical dependence exists and it is useful to “know it by sight.”

Why do some people tend to make a cult out of the phone? There are several reasons for this.

    Firstly, talking on the phone (as well as exchanging SMS) does not require as much effort from us as face-to-face communication. You can “communicate” in parallel with other things - working at the computer, cooking, traveling in public transport, etc., since there is no need to monitor your gestures and facial expressions. And, most importantly, you don’t need to look your interlocutor in the eyes - which is very difficult for those who do not know how and are afraid to communicate.

    Secondly, An “important” call or SMS is a convenient excuse to avoid solving some problems that for some reason you really don’t want to resolve. Of course, this is an ostrich policy - to run away from troubles, expecting that they might somehow “dissolve themselves,” but many people do just that.

Signs of phone addiction

It is not difficult to recognize a person suffering from telephone addiction.

    He talks on the phone or writes and reads SMS almost constantly (many even go to bed with their phone). Moreover, if you listen to the conversation, it turns out that there was no particular need for the call.

    These people often call a person within range, for example in the next room... This behavior is most often observed in teenagers and very young adults.

    Every minute he takes out his device and looks to see if it has arrived. A new message whether there were any missed calls.

    He changes devices too often and buys new accessories for his “little electronic god” with enviable regularity.

    As soon as such a person finds himself in a situation that is uncomfortable for him, he immediately fences himself off from it using the phone: either he starts dialing someone’s number (writing SMS), or he turns the conversation to a topic that is familiar and pleasant to him - new models of devices with additional functions , new tariff plans etc.

    All telephone addicts carefully study the subscriber's number before accepting a call. If the call is unwanted, they don't connect.

    The loss or malfunction of a favorite phone is perceived by such a person as a universal tragedy. Often in such unpleasant moments, phone-dependent people are unable to work, eat, or sleep. Their temperature may even rise!

    Thirdly, the phone is actively used by people who are not very confident in themselves. Before making a responsible decision, they always call someone for advice (or rather, so as not to take responsibility for the decision).

    Fourthly, people whose lives are not rich in any bright events often suffer from addiction to the phone. We are designed in such a way that the monotonous and measured course of life leads us to a state of despondency. But if, when returning from work, you call your loved ones and say: “I’ve already left the subway, I’m getting on the bus,” the subconscious will record this as a small event, and the stress from a repeating series of events will be a little less.

    There is a fifth reason - one of the most important. It just so happens that regular phone calls serve as a kind of symbol of the need and demand of a person. If they don’t call, it means everyone has forgotten me and abandoned me, no one needs me... Here it’s time to sob deliciously and burst into bitter tears, regretting my “ruined destiny.” But is it worth it? Maybe it’s better to figure out whether everything is really so bad?

Cure for phone addiction

It is clear that not all of us are able to objectively look at our lives, our behavior, and therefore we sometimes pay attention to problematic relationships with the phone only when this miracle of technology begins to “absorb” too much money, say, in the last month you They said half the salary. However, if you still suspect that your love for telephone communication is somewhat exaggerated (or your loved ones or friends have hinted at this more than once), it is better to try to somehow change your outlook on life.

    Try to analyze the reason for your excessive attachment to your phone. If the matter is that normal communication things are not going well for you (causing discomfort) or you are running away from solving pressing problems in this way (avoiding contact with some people), and you feel that you are unable to change the situation on your own, try contacting a psychologist. Today there are many ways to become a sociable and decisive person. So why not use one of them?

    If you don’t have enough bright events in life (and almost every person has a need to regularly experience some out-of-the-ordinary situations), you should think about how to fill your life with them. For example, plan trips to theaters, cinemas and exhibitions in advance. Invite your friends over more often, join a club, etc. It’s easier and more pleasant than creating the illusion of eventfulness.

    Those who perceive a “white-hot” phone as an indicator of their need should think again whether this is so. We are all caught up in the whirlpool of daily affairs and worries. Do you rarely call your friends, relatives and business partners because you have stopped loving them and stopped appreciating them? There just isn't enough time. And the same thing happens to them. Are you bored and want to offer your services? Call yourself and you will see that the attitude towards you has not changed. And if it suddenly changes, then the phone is unlikely to help re-establish live emotional contact.

Telephone mania: from call to call

Anna Krasko

Almost everyone has a mobile phone, from schoolchildren to old women well over 70. They conduct business negotiations, simply communicate, and even raise children over the phone. Almost every one of us, forgetting our mobile phone at home, feels like we have no hands. Psychologists warn that a mobile phone can be as addictive as smoking or gambling.

Psychiatrists have already given a name to the abnormal dependence of mankind on mobile phones - “telephonomania”. The number of mobile phone users is growing every day, and along with it, the number of potential victims of this new mania is also growing.

By the way, income cellular companies continue to grow, which is also an indicator of an increase in the number of people with mobile phones. In January-June 2011, they earned 536 million 640 thousand 500 rubles for the provision of cellular communication services, and for the same period last year - 438,285,600 rubles. This is almost 100 million rubles more!

FROM CALL TO CALL

It turns out that today almost every family has at least one mobile phone, and at most every family member, including children. Many people cannot part with their phone even for a minute.

Today I forgot my cell phone at home - and the day was not a success, says manager Elena, and I felt completely cut off from the world. My cell phone is always with me, I put it nearby even when I'm taking a bath.

You can go to any school to make sure that cell phones are no longer the privilege of adults; almost every student has a cell phone. First- and third-graders are rushing along the corridors, and many have cell phones on colored cords dangling from their necks. And in high school, everyone has a phone, with rare exceptions.

I almost always carry two phones with me and a spare battery for at least one of them,” says eighth-grader Alena. - It’s just important for me to always be in touch. One day I left both mobile phones at home and couldn’t find a place for myself all day because I couldn’t immediately answer calls or SMS.

A constant desire to talk on a mobile phone is a sign of addiction, explains Konstantin YAKUNIN, psychotherapist, candidate of medical sciences, associate professor at SSMA. - This kind of dependence, which we have formed only now, appeared in Latvia 7 years ago. People susceptible to this addiction are dissatisfied with real life. They lack positive emotions, so they need some kind of external doping. For them, this is a kind of escape to another reality, a search for another, better life. While talking on the phone, a person lives a different life. Such pathological dependencies develop against the background of mental illness and character disorders. It is quite possible that such people are simply afraid of live communication and can only communicate by phone.

ONE MOBILE, TWO MOBILE...

Another mania associated with mobile phones is the purchase of new, more expensive and modern phone models. Mobile phone manufacturers specify a service life of at least 3 years for their products. Not every owner has a phone that lasts that long. Go to any communication store or store that sells mobile phones - there are always plenty of people there who want to buy a new phone. And some simply cannot stop and strive to buy every new phone model.

Everyone comes to us more people who have already changed more than one phone,” says Maxim, a sales consultant at one of the Smolensk stores selling cell phones. - As far as I can judge from myself, my friends and most of our customers: they are replacing the old one with new phone approximately once every one to two years. Some people are not satisfied with the quality of the phone, while others are simply tired of it, and usually each subsequent mobile phone is more expensive than the previous one.

It’s impossible to keep up with new mobile products: phone fashion changes like no other. Almost weekly, manufacturing companies announce the release of new models, and even entire model ranges.

We have a couple or two regular customers who are trying to keep track of the appearance of new models,” says Maxim. - One of them, if I’m not mistaken, has already replaced the fifth one in the last year, as far as I can remember, and, in my opinion, is not going to stop. Moreover, in my opinion, the majority do not even use the new functions in the phone they have been chasing for so long.

There are not as many hunters for new products as we might like,” smiles Olga, manager of the Tsifrograd salon. - But still there is such a constant category of clients. True, most often not everyone can afford these new items. Young people first take a long time to choose, finally buy a phone, and after a while they come to us again, see a new, more advanced model and lament that they didn’t wait a bit.

The endless purchase of one cell phone after another, comments Konstantin YAKUNIN, can be compared to disorderly shopping. People suffering from such mania, making disorderly purchases, thus try to reduce their anxiety and relieve depression.

WHAT DOES THIS THREATEN US AND WHAT SHOULD WE DO?

The endless desire to call, send SMS and buy new phone models threatens us not only with emptying our wallets, but also with mental devastation, psychologists say.

Mobile phones are another new toy for people prone to various attractions, says psychotherapist, candidate of medical sciences Konstantin YAKUNIN. - Mobile phone addiction is the same disorder of habits and desires as, for example, gambling addiction, Internet addiction, etc. With this kind of addiction, real values ​​are replaced by virtual ones, and a person begins to live in an unreal world. An addict falls into a trance while talking on the phone or doing random shopping. His body begins to produce endorphins - internal drugs, in this state he gets a buzz. The phone becomes a drug; if a person loses it, withdrawal begins - anxiety and nervousness appear. The telephone has also become a decoration, for both men and women. The endless purchase of one cell phone after another is also a democratic way to stroke your pride and confirm your status. An expensive phone is easier and somewhat cheaper to buy than, for example, an expensive car.

Yes, mobile phones are a very useful invention, but they now contain so many possibilities that are not related to their direct purpose as a communication device: games, pictures, music, the Internet. All these amusements also theoretically tend to provoke addictions, for example, gambling addiction. Do not agree? What about, say, playing on a mobile phone in an online casino? Quite an affordable thing. The number of technical toys is increasing very quickly, so we are doomed to new psychological addictions. And they, in turn, can aggravate existing disorders. But in society they are treated ironically, nothing more. This is a socially acceptable form of addiction because there are no such serious consequences as with drug or alcohol addiction.

Just for the record: How to determine if you are addicted to your phone

Try turning off your phone for at least a day, leaving it at home and forgetting about it. If you don’t feel discomfort and live a day without your favorite phone, then there is no addiction.

Nomophobia, or fear of being left without a mobile phone, is one of the most modern phobias recognized by the medical community. And although nomophobia, like , have not yet received official numbers and disease codes, more and more experts are recognizing that these disorders actually exist and are affecting more and more people. As a result, ways to help those affected by these problems are being developed and implemented. In this material we will understand, what is nomophobia And mobile phone addiction what them characterizes and most often causes, and most importantly - is it possible from them get rid of?

Nomophobia and mobile phone addiction: different sides of the same process

The word “Nomophobia” is a translation from the English Nomophobia, which, in turn, is derived from the combination No mobile phone phobia. Some call dependence on the phone directly nomophobia, but in fact this word only conveys the fear of being left without it. In many cases, addiction to a gadget and fear of not having it at hand are indeed connected, but this is not a necessary condition. In particular, not everyone who has signs of addiction is caused by phobic conditions, just as the fear of being left without a phone does not always indicate addiction. To make this statement clearer, consider how nomophobia and mobile phone addiction manifest themselves.

What is nomophobia expressed in?

Of course, in the case of nomophobia we're talking about not about the simple complaint “Oh, I forgot my phone today.” A person susceptible to it cannot get rid of the desire to find his gadget (if it is lost) or to be near it (if, for example, it is left at home). As a consequence of the fact that all thoughts revolve around the device and the fact that he is somewhere not here, are observed irritability, inability to concentrate, feelings of extreme discomfort, sadness, loss. The same is true if the phone is physically next to its owner, but no signal cellular network and Wi-Fi, because sometimes it’s not the presence of the device itself, but the ability to go out into the “big” world with its help (more on this below).

Of course, if you are used to a phone, then in its absence you may experience the signs listed above, but if they are not too pronounced, this will not make you a nomophobe. Let us remind you that a phobia is an irrational reaction to certain phenomena/events, so nomophobia cannot be called the annoyance that you will have to listen to a teacher in class instead of chatting on a social network, or that your favorite game will not be available at work. For those whose fear of being left without a device has turned into a real disorder, the above manifestations very clearly expressed, and most importantly, they have the classic signs of a phobia - panic, sweating, rapid heartbeat, chills, confusion or confusion etc.

Such a person will not calm down until the precious device is within reach. Also, a condition “worthy” to be called a phobia is when just the thought that the phone won’t be nearby causes real panic. At the same time, as in the case of most other phobias, psychiatrists distinguish several degrees of nomophobia: from weak to strong. And of course, the universal recommendation is also relevant: if you suspect a mild degree, you should not wait until it progresses to a severe degree - it is better to immediately contact a specialist.

People do not always experience such conditions just because they spend time with their phones.
24 hours a day and truly dependent on it. Other situations are also possible: for example, a person is afraid that he will become ill on the street and will not be able to call ambulance, since he will not have a phone at hand. Another option is that a person stores too personal information on his phone, secret information and is afraid that while the gadget is left unattended, this information will fall into the wrong hands. If such fears become too intrusive, they can develop into a phobia. However, it should be noted that the listed options (and others like them) are more likely to be an exception to the rule: when we talk about nomophobia, we often mean irrational fear resulting from dependence on a gadget.

Signs of cell phone addiction

One of the main signs of mobile phone addiction can be formulated as follows: the device accompanies you literally everywhere and you really can’t imagine your life without it. Of course, it is nomophobia (in those cases when they are connected) that speaks most clearly about the presence of addiction. In addition, addicted people usually carefully (too carefully) monitor the charge level, money in the account and other things that can leave them without communication. Some carry with them two phones each– in case one is discharged or fails.

It will also talk about addiction constant desire to check if a new message has been sent(even if installed sound alerts). Such people reach for the device again, and again, and again... Often addicted stay on their phone during “physical” meetings with friends and even in moments of intimacy with a loved one. You do not like leave cellular telephone away from yourself and take it with you, including to the bathroom? You feel not at ease when you have to turn off your phone(for example, on an airplane or a theater)? The last thing you see before you go to sleep and the first thing you see when you wake up– smartphone screen? All these are also not very good signs, indicating that,
Perhaps the gadget takes up a larger share of your life than would be appropriate.

A separate side of this dependence is the desire to invest as much time and money as possible into your smartphone to make it the most expensive, beautiful, cool. Regularly changing devices in order to get a model with the highest possible technical characteristics, buying all the accessories and devices, constantly installing and updating many applications can also be considered a wake-up call. However, it is worth mentioning that we are talking only about those situations when such “tuning” is done precisely for the sake of tuning.

Specific signs (these and others) may vary depending on the purposes for which the smartphone is used and what specific features of it cause a painful attachment to it. We'll talk more about this later. On the other hand, we do not consider addiction “tests” like “Turn off your phone for a day, and if you feel uneasy, then you are addicted” are justified. Many of us are as accustomed to the telephone and the possibilities it provides as we are, for example, to electricity. Turn off the lights in your home for a day and you will also feel uncomfortable, but this does not mean that you are addicted. Dependence is characterized precisely by painful attachment. In such cases, “feeling out of place” is too mild a description. After all, with addiction, it is not the person who actually controls the phone, but the phone is the person and the gadget replaces real life.

What causes nomophobia and mobile phone addiction?

Despite the fact that sometimes nomophobia and phone addiction occur separately from each other, as a rule, they are caused by the same processes. Often the root cause is unresolved personal problems, which a person somehow masks and pushes inside himself through the opportunities provided modern technologies. So, often dependence on the phone or the fear of being left without it is associated with feeling of loneliness or fear of it. A person can have hundreds of friends in in social networks and not a single one for real
close, but this is not noticeable as long as access to virtual relationships with those same hundreds is open. Accordingly, fear/dependence gives rise to the fact that such access may be closed forever or temporarily.

One more problem - inability to communicate and build relationships in the real world and transferring them to the virtual world. Let us remember here that it is common for a person to run away from reality in case of general dissatisfaction with life or any specific part of it (personal, work, etc.), with increased stress, etc. This phenomenon is called escapism, which in one form or another is characteristic of all people, but sometimes it takes on unhealthy forms. Anyway, mobile phone is very handy tool for escapism. Firstly, you can read books, watch movies, play games, work or study on your phone 24 hours a day, etc. In other words, the gadget supports many traditional options for escaping reality.

Secondly, it provides access to where you can create a completely different personality for yourself and live her life, appear in the eyes of other people not as yourself, but as who you want to be. Of course, creating “avatar accounts” on the Internet is accessible not only from a mobile phone, but it is the latter that allows you to return to the desired world at any time of the day or night and from any place. And considering that for a person real life now it flows there, he constantly strives there, to his alter ego, which is why there is a fear of being left without a phone or dependence on it.

For some, the device allows feel important and needed- after all, someone constantly calls and writes to them.
If in reality a person does not receive these feelings, sometimes they are compensated in the virtual plane, and the phone serves as a tool for this. On the other hand, finding themselves without their electronic friend, such people feel empty or disconnected from life. Not the most pleasant feeling, is it? The desire to avoid them gives rise to addiction and nomophobia.

Sometimes the phone helps us successfully procrastinate or hide awkwardness (for example, it’s so convenient to bury ourselves in it if a conversation with a colleague in the elevator doesn’t go well). The modern device gives us feeling of accessibility– no matter where we are, we can find the answer to almost any question on the Internet and buy anything. This gives you self-confidence, as well as the fact that in difficult times you can always get help from your phone. In turn, the deprivation of such safety net sometimes affects a person too clearly.

Other reasons can be identified, but most of them are not related to the phone as such, but to internal personality problems. The gadget, as we said above, acts as a tool that helps create the appearance that everything is in order in the life of an addict.

How to get rid of the fear of being left without a mobile phone and dependence on it?

Of course, the fear of being left without a phone and dependence on it much more often affects young people (however, not only them), including because they use high-tech devices much more actively and are familiar with them almost from birth. However, regardless of age, many do not admit that they have a phobia or addiction, explaining them as convenience, habit, or a consequence of circumstances (for example, work necessity).
There is, of course, convenience, and no one in their right mind would call for giving up phones, the Internet, etc. altogether. However any dependence actually becomes a limitation, and we propose to get rid of not the device, but precisely this limitation.

As mentioned above, dependence on phones and the fear of being without them, as a rule, becomes a consequence of other psychological problems, therefore, First you need to deal with the root cause, including with the help of specialists: consult a psychologist, personal development coach, etc. Otherwise, there is a high chance that, even after getting rid of addiction to the phone, a person will acquire another addiction, which will again mask the problems and create the illusion that everything is in order.

As for the fight directly against telephone addiction, here we can highlight a number of universal tips. Their main task is to help reduce the time spent with the gadget. This, in turn, will make it possible to understand that life without a device is not only possible, but also capable of playing bright colors. At the same time, the path “I throw away my smartphone and continue to live without it” is actually not suitable for everyone. The sudden “loss” of the phone exacerbates addiction and phobias (similar to withdrawal syndrome), which leads to an even greater desire to pick up the gadget and never let go. Some people can overcome this condition, while others give up after a while and run for help.
new model, but now their attempts to get rid of their disorders are associated with even worse emotions, which does not at all contribute to treatment. That is why in most cases a gradual fight against nomophobia and addiction is recommended.

Among the simple but quite effective techniques, we note the following: put your mobile phone far from the bed to avoid the temptation to look at the treasured screen first thing in the morning. Don't take your smartphone into the bathroom(remember at least that most of them are contraindicated in high humidity), after a while, complicate the task and stop taking the phone into the kitchen. Finally, in general give up the habit of carrying it around the apartment with you- Let it lie in one place all the time. At work Do not remove your phone from your bag or jacket for as long as possible. Make it a rule to leave it there when meeting with friends, going to the cinema, etc. Firstly, this way you will show yourself as a cultured person, and secondly, you will take another step towards getting rid of addiction.

Try turning off your phone for half an hour on a weekend. Gradually increase given time. Another variant - turn off notification sound and leave the signal only for calls. This way you won’t miss something really important, but the gadget won’t constantly remind you of itself. Reduce the number of apps that can notify you about something, – leave only those that are really necessary, for example, about work email.

Try don't stay on social networks. They're addictive on their own, and when combined with an increased love for phones, it can be a double whammy.

The universal advice will be finding passions in the “real” world, including those involving interpersonal communication. Invite your friends for a walk or go for a walk in the park yourself. You shouldn’t rush right off the bat and leave without a phone if you know in advance that it will be difficult for you. Better turn off the sound and promise yourself not to take your phone out of your pocket. And of course, try with all your might to keep this word. Even try to get content available on your smartphone in other ways.. For example, read a paper book, look for necessary information on the computer and watch the movie on TV. This will bring some variety and once again show that life is not confined to a mobile phone.

And do not forget that if obsessive fears and thoughts appear, and if you understand that you cannot cope with addiction on your own and it is drawing you deeper and deeper, it is always better to seek help from a specialist.







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