Letting Go of Your Phone

Problematic phone usage can lead to significant anxiety caused by fear of missing out, external comparisons to others, avoidance of emotional expression and cultivation of non-physical activities. This anxiety further increases the use of the phone as the user once again seeks to cover-up the emotion with emotions related to visual stimulation. You can also lose creativity and become out of touch with your much needed playful activities as well as loved ones.

The phone can be a great Digital Swiss Army knife in today's modern age but it can be a significant hindrance to discovering ourselves and what we truly want. Plus it can cause physical adverse effects like eye strain and neck problems or even a car accident. 

MINDFULNESS ATTITUDE: Letting Go

Letting go of your emotional attachment to your phone can be difficult and you may have a fear of missing out (FOMO) or become bored and feel the need to reach out for it again. Taking small steps can help alleviate this problem. 

I've created a 7 day plan that can allow you to reach the goal of decreasing your phone usage. 

Going without something can allow you to reset and start thinking about your relationship with that object or habit. This is why mindfulness retreats are so important. For instance let's say you go on a long vacation and you learn about a different type of healthy food, and then you start to incorporate that food into your diet and it replaces a non-healthy food item. Some of my patients have told me this occurs with fish once they've actually tasted fresh fish that was seasoned properly.

Exploring why you need to let go of your phone allows your mind to convince itself. As always I highly recommend getting a journal to help reflect on your actions and emotions. Below is a journal prompt that can get you started.

JOURNAL PROMPT

Write down special times that you spent without your phone.