Be honest—do you have a cell phone addiction? Here’s a pop quiz to help you know: Is your phone the first thing you reach for in the morning and the last thing you see at night. Do you sleep with it next to your pillow? Do you walk into walls while texting? Do you check your texts in the middle of foreplay? Have you ducked out of your sister’s wedding to take a call? If you answered ‘yes’ to any of the above, there’s a good chance you are addicted to your phone.
There is a word for people like you: Nomophobia. It’s short for ‘no mobile phone phobia’, and the fear of being out of mobile phone contact is on the rise. But take heart, you’re not doomed to roam the earth avoiding dead zones and connecting with the human race only via text or twitter feeds. You can overcome cell phone addiction, lose the zombie-like stare at the bright screen and put the phone down. Like any rehab program, it starts with baby steps. So put the phone down, right there where you can still see it, it’s okay, and begin to heal from your cell phone addiction.
1. Gradual Detachment
Leave your phone at home for an hour or two. Too hard? Leave it in the other room. Set a timer if you must and do something else, such as read a book, watch TV or better yet, converse with a real live person.
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