Navigation: I can’t even get from my home to the grocery store without the GPS because I don’t recognize locations and can’t create a mental map.
Hydration: I am likely to die of dehydration without my phone reminding me to drink water since I don’t feel thirst.
To do list: I never get anything done if it’s not in my to do list because I keep forgetting otherwise.
Could I find low tech solutions to these problems? Sure, paper maps exist, alarm clocks aren’t phone dependent, and I can write my to do tasks in a planner, but these aren’t as efficient and I’m more likely to get lost, forget to drink, or forget to look at the planner.
I hadn’t thought of that, but it makes sense. I don’t have an addiction to my phone, but I used to about a decade ago. Purging my social media (deleting all accounts) and going cold turkey worked wonders for me.
These days I can use some social media without getting addicted, but the key is to not allowing any social media apps to give notifications. When I used to be addicted, every time I got a Facebook notification, I couldn’t stop myself from opening the app and then I found myself aimlessly scrolling and time has passed. Now I use it when I choose, instead of when someone else chooses for me.
I’m entirely dependent on my phone.
Navigation: I can’t even get from my home to the grocery store without the GPS because I don’t recognize locations and can’t create a mental map.
Hydration: I am likely to die of dehydration without my phone reminding me to drink water since I don’t feel thirst.
To do list: I never get anything done if it’s not in my to do list because I keep forgetting otherwise.
Could I find low tech solutions to these problems? Sure, paper maps exist, alarm clocks aren’t phone dependent, and I can write my to do tasks in a planner, but these aren’t as efficient and I’m more likely to get lost, forget to drink, or forget to look at the planner.
Dependant is not the same thing as addicted.
Do you feel an uncontrollable urge to look at your phone, even when you do something else or when it isn’t appropriate? That would be addiction.
I hadn’t thought of that, but it makes sense. I don’t have an addiction to my phone, but I used to about a decade ago. Purging my social media (deleting all accounts) and going cold turkey worked wonders for me.
These days I can use some social media without getting addicted, but the key is to not allowing any social media apps to give notifications. When I used to be addicted, every time I got a Facebook notification, I couldn’t stop myself from opening the app and then I found myself aimlessly scrolling and time has passed. Now I use it when I choose, instead of when someone else chooses for me.