Are You Nomophobic? 5 Tips To Cure Smartphone Addiction

I noticed something strange when I went out for a walk today. Not that I hadn't seen it before but today was the first time that I really noticed it. Maybe because I went walking a bit later than usual, when it was mid morning.

Most people who were out for a walk like me were busy using their smartphones. Some were talking on their phones either through a headset or directly into the phone's microphone. There were others who seemed to be texting or typing into an app.

Some appeared to have taken a break from walking and were sitting down staring at the smartphone screens - browsing websites perhaps? Those who weren't doing any of the above, were listening to music on, you guessed it, on their smartphones. A couple sat on a bench, the man taking a selfie with his phone.

Smartphones have literally taken over human lives. We are afraid of robots taking over but here we have our lives taken over already by our phones. Whether it is taking a photograph, scheduling tasks or appointments, accessing information and emails over the internet, or hundreds of other uses the smartphone is the go-to device for nearly everything.

You might even be suffering from nomophobia! Here is the definition of nomophobia according to Whatis.com:

Nomophobia is the irrational fear of being without your mobile phone or being unable to use your phone for some reason, such as the absence of a signal or running out of minutes or battery power. A phobia is by definition an irrational fear.

However Wikipedia has a different viewpoint:

Nomophobia is a proposed name for the phobia of being out of cellular phone contact.[1][2] It is, however, arguable that the word "phobia" is misused and that in the majority of cases it is another form of anxiety disorder

Whether it is a phobia or an anxiety disorder is debatable, but the truth is that you would be better off without the stress and anxiety that is associated with it. In this post I will give you 5 tips based on how I reduced my smartphone dependency.

Notifications

In my opinion the biggest distraction is caused by the notifications from apps on the device. Keep only the ones that are urgent - preferably keep all of them off. I have all notifications except text messages turned off and I face few distractions because of it.

Limit Use

Reduce the amount of time that you spend on your phone. Obviously you may need to use the basic function of the smartphone which is to make and receive calls. But you could very well limit the time that you spend chatting, browsing the internet and using apps. I have fixed hours during which I use non-call related apps and the internet.

For example, I use the eSteem app for responding to comments, since I can do it while I am on the move. But for browsing my favorite sites on the internet I use my desktop computer on which I have installed Stayfocusd for limiting my time on those sites.

Uninstall Apps

I used to browse the Playstore and download any app that I fancied. These apps would remain installed on my device and I would tend to fiddle with them every now and then. I purged quite a few of them a few months ago and found myself using my smartphone less than before.

Switch It Off At Night

Let me tell you how I got rid of a bad habit quite easily. I used to wake up during the night to check something or the other on my smartphone. The solution was simple - I switched off the phone before going to bed. No longer do I feel the urge to check my phone at night.

Wear A Watch

Ever since I started wearing a wristwatch again I have reduced my phone usage. Actually it is not a wristwatch but a Fitbit tracker but it serves the function of a watch. Earlier I used to check the time on my smartphone and then check messages or open some app - I couldn't resist the urge.

Hope these tips help you limit your smartphone use!

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