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Heavy Use of Phone Resulting to Anxiety
- Thread starter sullencab
- Start date
I believe it - 150 years ago the fireplace was the heart of the home. 100 years ago it was the radio. 50 years ago, the television. Now there really IS no center of the home... if there's a sense of "home" at all. Our smartphones have us so absorbed and occupied that many are content to watch the world with our screens, rather than get out there and live in it. In doing so, we've lost our grounding; our sense of community and compassion for others.
I'm considering "off hours" other than sleep, when my phone is no-touch unless I get an emergency call. That gives me time to re-connect with the world and people around me in a meaningful way.
I'm considering "off hours" other than sleep, when my phone is no-touch unless I get an emergency call. That gives me time to re-connect with the world and people around me in a meaningful way.
If it's "upgrading" your phone that links to anxiety, rather than using it (to the exclusion of more human activities) then the obvious suggestion is "stop upgrading it".
The truth is that most phones will do everything most people need already, so most people have no need to upgrade anything like as often as they do. But we live in societies that are organised to create dissatisfaction in order to sell people stuff they don't need, and that can itself create anxiety (indeed that's part of what it's designed to do: to make you feel you are missing out, that what you have is no longer good enough, and if they can to make you feel that that reflects badly on you - anything as long as you buy more stuff). So if upgrading seems to be the issue, I suggest opting out of the upgrade rat race: admit that most phones are much the same, that an upgrade will not make any significant difference to your life, and that you would be better spending both your time and your money on something else. Use the phone as you need (but not obsessively), but don't think about the phone itself.
That may seem odd advice in a phone enthusiast forum, but it's how I try to handle this: I replace my phone when it no longer does the job (which these days usually means the battery is becoming unviable, since even a 4-5 year old phone's processor, RAM etc are fine), and don't even consider it inbetween. I also use a SIM-only contract, so there's no BS about "having an upgrade due" to keep me hooked (plus it's cheaper too).
The truth is that most phones will do everything most people need already, so most people have no need to upgrade anything like as often as they do. But we live in societies that are organised to create dissatisfaction in order to sell people stuff they don't need, and that can itself create anxiety (indeed that's part of what it's designed to do: to make you feel you are missing out, that what you have is no longer good enough, and if they can to make you feel that that reflects badly on you - anything as long as you buy more stuff). So if upgrading seems to be the issue, I suggest opting out of the upgrade rat race: admit that most phones are much the same, that an upgrade will not make any significant difference to your life, and that you would be better spending both your time and your money on something else. Use the phone as you need (but not obsessively), but don't think about the phone itself.
That may seem odd advice in a phone enthusiast forum, but it's how I try to handle this: I replace my phone when it no longer does the job (which these days usually means the battery is becoming unviable, since even a 4-5 year old phone's processor, RAM etc are fine), and don't even consider it inbetween. I also use a SIM-only contract, so there's no BS about "having an upgrade due" to keep me hooked (plus it's cheaper too).
i always try to get the latest and greatest when i can. but does that make me anxious or have anxiety? nope.
i enjoy tech and i enjoy something that is state of the art tech. right now i'm salivating at what either the note 21 or the galaxy fold 3 is going to be like. don't get me wrong, i love my note 10+. i have 0 issues with it. but when the next greatest thing that comes out, it will definitely peak my interest.....so there is no anxiety there about my current phone.
and i think to a degree there is a link to phone usage to mental health. but it depends on the individual. sure phones can do so much now that you really do not need to have a computer. i can see how people can get absorbed into their phones without really being aware of their surroundings. but as long as you set limits or goals as to how long you use your phone or when and where to use it, you should be fine. i can see how phone use can be addicting for some.
i enjoy tech and i enjoy something that is state of the art tech. right now i'm salivating at what either the note 21 or the galaxy fold 3 is going to be like. don't get me wrong, i love my note 10+. i have 0 issues with it. but when the next greatest thing that comes out, it will definitely peak my interest.....so there is no anxiety there about my current phone.
and i think to a degree there is a link to phone usage to mental health. but it depends on the individual. sure phones can do so much now that you really do not need to have a computer. i can see how people can get absorbed into their phones without really being aware of their surroundings. but as long as you set limits or goals as to how long you use your phone or when and where to use it, you should be fine. i can see how phone use can be addicting for some.
Speak for yourself! If someone tells me I can keep one out of phone, tablet and computer the phone goes (though the tablet goes first). And this would be true even if we removed work from the equation.
definitely the tablet will go first, then my laptop........i'll keep my phone thank you very much.
"I know when I die I'm headed to Heaven... wait, there's no roaming charge there, right?"
"I know when I die I'm headed to Heaven... wait, there's no roaming charge there, right?"
My current China Unicom plan, hasn't clobbered me with roaming charges in Russia, Mongolia, Ukraine, Ireland, Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia, the UK, the UAE, Belgium, and Holland, so I presume it will be the same for Heaven.
Xavier Black
Android Expert
So yes there is an addiction in the phone world the same way there is addiction personalities so imagine if a person cannot keep away from crack/cocaine addiction , do you think the same person can keep away from his or her phone in a healthy usage??