Are you constantly on your mobile phone throughout the day? Are you constantly checking for notifications every other second? Well, in this case, you might need to hold back for a while.
What Is Nomophobia?
Nomophobia has been suggested as the enormous non-drug addiction of the 21st Century. It is defined as a condition of severe cell phone addiction and is the phobia or extreme fear of disconnecting from mobile phones. It is suggested a “no mobile phone phobia” as it is a condition of excessive mobile phone usage.
This trend of Nomophobia has developed over the last decade with the arrival of social media and its massive obsession among the masses worldwide. Too much stuff to do online, connecting with people around the world, the development of fascinating computer games, watching movies and shows, and a lot more that has been made possible with phones has birthed these mobile phone addicts. Generally, people with Nomophobia suffer from anxiety, panic attacks, and other problems when disconnected from their mobile devices. This is where the situation worsens and needs to be taken care of.
Losing connectivity from mobile devices takes a tremendous toll on a person’s psychological health and also physical health to quite some extent. Psychological conditions develop, such as anxiety, panic attacks, low self-esteem, fear of missing out, etc., on being disconnected from the virtual world. Similarly, physical conditions such as muscle strains, eye strains, migraines, back and neck pains also develop while keeping up with this virtual world. Thus, it is essential to know a bit about the disorder and how to curb it. Listed below are the five signs you need to consider, indicating that you might have Nomophobia.
7 Signs You May Be Nomophobia
Well, although a lot of psychological conditions are attributed to Nomophobia, sure visible signs that determine you may be prone to the disorder are also too obvious, you should notice. Check out to see if you exhibit any of these signs.
1. One prominent sign of Nomophobia is you’re constantly using your mobile phone.
Extreme mobile phone usage is a prominent sign of Nomophobia. This also comprises “ringxiety”, a condition of constantly checking for new notifications to not miss out on anything. Also, depending on your phone for every task and using it immensely is the factor called mobile phone dependency, so one can not function properly on their own without checking with their phones.
2. You get annoyed and anxious when your phone runs out of battery or network.
This is a common sign and happens mostly to everybody when their phone signals for low battery or out of network. But, nomophobic people freak out when in such cases, frantically look for their chargers and network ranges, or they might disconnect from the updates of the world.
3. Another important sign that you may be Nomophobic, is that you practically cannot live without your phones.
Mobile phone dependency also points out how one freaks out when they cannot connect with their phones. Most people get anxious and panicked in situations where they cannot find their phones. They even keep their phone close by when they’re sleeping. Mobile phones give them a sense of security and being connected with people virtually.
Nomophobic people generally avoid face to face interactions, and they are more comfortable with connections through their phones. With social media, face to face interactions has lost their significance. People who have Nomophobia conveniently chat for hours through their phones but doing so without their phones may make them anxious. Although, they shouldn’t be confused with introverts, who decline entirely any social interactions mostly.
5. Checking your phones first and the last thing of your day may be a sign of Nomophobia.
Mobile phone addiction is common. Even if you are not nomophobic and can live through your day for the most part without using your phones, you still end up catching for work or school updates and surfing the internet or playing games at random, and there’s no denying it. But, the one’s suffering from Nomophobia, even if they’re using the phones for most of the day, might still check their phones the last thing in the night, and the first thing in the morning, because they fear missing out on any updates and notifications.
6. You always have another phone on standby.
At times, people keep a spare phone on standby because just in case, if they lose connectivity or better runs out, they can still be connected with others. This usually happens in extreme cases, but it is a sign commonly seen these days.
If you’re active on all your social media accounts, constantly updating statuses everywhere you do, you should beware and hold back as it is also a big sign that you may be a nomophobic patient. It usually does happen when people upload loads of statuses of everything they do, even as small as the task of drinking a cup of tea.
How to Prevent Nomophobia
Now that the few signs of Nomophobia have been listed, it should also be learned how to prevent the development of this disorder. First and foremost, the most important thing to do is cutting down on your screen time, restricting your use and dependency on the phone, and using it only when necessary—switching to something you can do manually rather than on your phones. People who already exhibit signs and symptoms of Nomophobia are given behavioural therapies and consultation from experts.
Conclusion
Earlier, phones were used just for calling purposes, but now they’ve become an integral and inseparable part of our lives. Every day there are better and upgraded versions of mobiles released into the market. And thus, using phones have become inevitable as it caters to our every other need. But, it should be kept in mind that phones should be used optimally and not overused so that our health is not affected.