3 Tips for Breaking Your Smartphone Habit

Today’s technology makes everything accessible. We use our smartphones to watch videos, look for information on Google, and respond to our e-mails.

While smartphones simplify our lives, they can also put us at risk for developing a phone addiction. If you spend more time on your phone than you desire, you may wonder: “Am I addicted?”

And now, with the prolonged pandemic, you may have found that your relationship with your phone has gotten even stronger than before. The pandemic has accelerated this trend. And it’s not surprising that the usage of apps such as WhatsApp and Zoom has also seen a tremendous boom since the beginning of the pandemic.

Smartphone addiction is commonly referred to as “nomophobia”, which is a fear of living without your phone. If you’re addicted, you would typically display signs of withdrawal — similar to withdrawal from a drug. They may start feeling anxious and panicky when their phones are not within their reach.

Here is a shocking fact: smartphone addiction can have the same detrimental effect on your brain as cocaine addiction. A research study published in the Journal of Addictive Behavior showed that it has the same effects on the brain as drug addiction.

The MRI scans of 48 participants revealed that 22 people with a smartphone addiction showed a decrease in the grey matter of their brains compared to 26 participants who didn’t have the addiction. Grey matter handles muscle control, speech, sight, hearing, and emotional regulation. Abusing drugs like cocaine can cause a similar effect on the grey matter of your brain.

The researchers stated:

“Given their widespread use and increasing popularity, the present study questions the harmlessness of smartphones, at least in individuals that may be at increased risk for developing smartphone-related addictive behaviors.”

In 2016, Apple reported that iPhone users unlocked their device every 10 minutes or six to ten times per hour. Phone addiction is also detrimental to your health, and it can lead to poor sleep and affect your energy levels.

If you find yourself constantly reaching out for your phone and find this habit is hard to break, I’d like to share three ways you can curb this habit.

Identify How You Use Your Phone

Dr. Ben Carter, the senior lecturer at the Institute of Psychology, Psychiatry, and Neuroscience at King’s College in London, offers tips on how you can cut down on your phone usage.

The most important question you have to ask yourself: “Are you using your phone purposefully?” If you’re using it mostly to scroll through your social media feeds or check new notifications every ten minutes, you may need to cut down on your phone usage.

The question you should ask yourself is: “What am I mostly using my phone for?” If you’re using your phone for work, then there’s no reason you should cut down on the habit as you’re doing something productive.

There is a difference between using your phone for work or using it for passing time. Say you used it to get your work done during the hours of 9–5, don’t count those hours, as you’ve used that time towards work. But look at other areas where you may have a problematic usage of your phone.

Here are some questions that will help you better assess your smartphone usage.

• Are you using your phone mostly for work or other reasons?
• Do you feel an intense desire to use the phone all the time?
• Do you find you use your phone a lot while you’re in bed, despite knowing it’s harmful to your health?

• Do you get anxious when your battery is low?
• Do you think you’d go through withdrawal symptoms if you put your phone away (similar to when an alcoholic person stops drinking alcohol?)

Answers to those questions will help you explore your relationship with your phone further and how it interferes with your life.

Don’t Have the Phone Around 24/7

Do you keep your phone with you 24/7? If so, think about activities you enjoy where you don’t need to have your phone around you. You shouldn’t look at your phone as your security blanket when you’re trying to enjoy your life. For example, you don’t need to have your phone next to you while you’re enjoying your dinner or driving or trying to fall asleep.

Certain activities in your day don’t require you to have your phone with you. So, for example, if you’re taking a nature walk or meditating, there is no reason you should have your phone within close reach — unless, of course, you’re expecting an important call.

Similarly, when you’re enjoying a family dinner or spending time with friends, you don’t want to leave an impression you value your phone more than your social interaction. So, leave your phone aside for a while.

Turn off Your Phone Before Bed

Being exposed to technology while you’re in bed can interfere with your sleep because LED light ejected by electronic devices shuts down melatonin — a hormone that helps you sleep.

There are two things you can do to stay away from this dangerous habit: either to turn off your phone completely before you go to bed or put it away in another room. Putting your phone in another room would be the better option as knowing it’s not within your reach, it won’t be there to tempt you.

Turn Off Your Notifications

Many a time, having a phone addiction equates to being addicted to social media feeds and a constant desire for a dopamine rush.

People are hungry for updates and every time they hear a ring on their phone, it’s a blissful feeling. What we’re seeking here is an instant reward, and the feeling we get tickles our brains.

This is probably the easiest thing you can do — turn off all notifications. If they don’t occur in the first place, your fingers won’t be as itchy to check your phone all the time.

How to Know If You’ve Successfully Curbed Your Habit

So how would you know if you’ve successfully cut down on your smartphone habit? For one, you’ll start enjoying activities you were once doing. If you’re a creative person, for example, you may find a renewed spike in your creativity. You no longer have a craving for it or dependency — you don’t reach for it to get an instant reward. You may also find yourself less anxious and depressed.

Last but not least, your sleep will normalize, and you’ll find yourself with more energy to tackle your day. If you were a night person who typically used your phone after 9 PM — if the phone resulted in poor sleep before — you may find your sleep will improve.

The Bottom Line

Smartphone addiction can damage your health, and it may be as dangerous as drug addiction. It can alter the structure of your brain, cause loss of sleep, and keep you away from accomplishing your tasks. If you find you spend too much time on your phone, following the right steps will help you curb your habit and improve your life.