On average we check our device 150 times a day and a vast majority of users admit to being addicted to their smart phones.
No one wants to read that over exposure to your phone can cause all sorts of issues mentally. We have become so married to this little piece of technology that it is starting to affect our moods and even sleep patterns.
I am the biggest culprit. I simply can’t help myself. I check social media constantly in case I miss something, and I find myself checking my phone last thing at night and first thing in the morning. However, I have made some changes recently in this regards and it couldn’t have come sooner.
On average we check our device 150 times a day and a vast majority of users admit to being addicted to their smart phones.
In a piece in the Huffington post recently, a research study by new Baylor University suggested that excessive use of mobile phones can go hand in hand with emotional instability.
346 college students were asked by researchers to complete an online survey measuring smartphone use. The data revealed that those using smartphones more frequently are more prone to moodiness, materialism and temperamental behaviour, and less able to focus on the task in hand, while people with impulsive personalities were more prone to addictive smartphone use.
The research also suggest that phone addiction may be an attempt at mood repair stating that “Incessant checking of emails, sending texts, tweeting, and surfing the web may act as pacifiers for the unstable individual distracting him or herself from the worries of the day and providing solace, albeit temporarily, from such concerns.”
Looking at your phone just before you go to bed, also can affect the standard and health of your sleep patterns. Your brain is trying to slow itself down in order to let it rest and we bombard it with more information, keeping it alert, while the light on the phone can also play havoc with our senses.
Nobody is suggesting that we all stop using our phones, but perhaps try and implement some kind of daily plan that allows you to remove yourself from its grasp for periods of the day. Turn it off after 8pm (regardless of your job as this will consume you mentally).
Sometimes you just have to go on Airplane mode.
Support Our Campaign
We rely on the generosity of the public to fund our work and so far together we have achieved great things! Please do continue to support us so we can provide future generations in Ireland with the resources to recognise and talk about their emotions, and equip them to navigate the ever-changing world around them as they grow
