Nomophobia: The disease of the XXI Century

Twelve missed calls, seven Whatsapp messages and three mentions on Twitter. This is a common situation when we forget our cell phone for one day at home. We carry a mini computer everywhere that is continuosly sending signals and invites us to be connected, located and with many more relationships than we really want/need. We have lost some isolation capacity and sometimes disconnecting may seem scary.

Maybe it happened to you that you left home without your smartphone and felt the necessity to return and get it. If you are one of those who feel anguish when they are run out of battery or those who can not leave their cell phone in theaters, you may suffer”nomophobia”.

What is Nomophobia?

Nomophobia, also called “the disease of the XXI century”, is the irrational fear of being without cell phone. It is a disorder suffered by half of the population. It occurs due to by the irrational dependence on these devices that generates a feeling of anxiety in the user to feel cut off from the outside. According to statistics, users of smartphones consult phones an average of 34 times a day.
Symptoms

• Anxiety
• Tachycardia
• Obsessive thoughts
• Headache and Stomach pain
• Loneliness
• Amputation
• Boredom

Causes

Women and teenagers have a propensity to this disease. Most common causes are:

• Low self-esteem – Reflected in the need to be in continuous contact with others (fear of isolation or loneliness.)
• Excessive perfection – Caused by the thought of losing social events and consequent anxiety for not being present.
• Social anxiety – Also called “FOMO” from the acronym Fear Of Missing Out, is a form of anxiety associated to social networks and it’s reflected in the necessity to be continuously online .

The cell phone is a great source of pleasure, but also a distracting tool. The fact is not to leave the cell phone but use it gradually. It’s important to identify when the use of technology has changed our life into something addictive.

The absence of cell phone will provide huge benefits for you and for people around you in these situations:

1. During meals – It is not nice to have breakfast, lunch or dinner with someone who is staring at a screen. Apart from disrespectful towards others, you are unable to enjoy the food because your brain is in the message.
2. While resting – It’s necessary to put your phone in silent while sleeping. All these keep you from getting a deep and restful sleep.
3. In relations- Ignore the need to be online and to know the latest news. It’s impossible to answer all the expectations that social networks create and pay attention to what people are telling you, enjoy the moment and the person.
4. Working – Put the phone in silent. It will help you to be more efficient and concentrate on the task ahead. Remember that to have a phone does not mean you have to be available all day.
5. Enjoy you hobby – There is nothing more pleasurable than doing what you like best without distraction.
6. With your family – With your partner and with your children. It is important to spend time with people we love and It’s important to separate the professional from the personal life.

We hope this post helps you think about our dependence on technology. Remember to disconnect to reconnect!