It is becoming easy to be addicted to your phone. It stores so much data and applications that you need on a daily basis. I have met people who never really use their phones, and I always how they can manage it. From my experience, I am constantly on my phone whether it is for work, club work, or if I am really bored in a long line, homework. I’m basically connected to my phone all day by playing music or background noise constantly. It is something that keeps me in contact with people who are far away from me. So how can I do that when I accidentally broke my phone?
I’ve been telling people that I broke my phone because I was prioritizing a cupcake, and that’s actually the truth. I got too used to dropping my phone without anything happening besides maybe a crack on my screen protector. Except for this time, I broke the power button, which can actually cause more issues than you would think. I tried a lot of different methods from the Internet, and you should definitely not turn off your phone (if it is an iPhone) because it will not turn back on.
Therefore, I did not have a phone for a couple of days. Even when I had a backup, I missed a lot of my data because not everything could transfer over. But during the days that I did not have a phone, it was quite an experience. I was unable to do what I usually could do.
I could only text certain friends on my computer, but even then, I needed wi-fi in order to accomplish that. I even ended up missing a couple of zoom meetings. It was strange seeing how much I relied on a device.
But phone addictions feel increasingly common. My phone definitely saved me and many others during the lockdown. I became more reliant on my phone than ever. It holds a lot of information that I need for many things. I access most things there rather than my computer sometimes because it is less bulky. I even use it as an alarm clock at school. However, I am starting to see how something like a phone addiction is affecting how I go about my day.
I felt this weird sense of disconnect from everyone. It becomes more noticeable how the people around are on their phones a lot. I was lucky my number was connected to my computer, so I could communicate with certain people while on wi-fi, but it was not the same. I did pull out my laptop a couple of times in front of my friends’ building to text and let them know I arrived somewhere, which felt awkward.
This experience made me feel a little more free though. It made it easier to ignore all the emails I got every day. I did not feel forced to stay connected. I did everything at my own pace. Part of me wishes that I actually had fun books to read on campus in order to combat some of the boredom that I initially felt. But overall, I felt a little better about how I managed my time. It was so easy to get distracted when my phone was around. However, when I did not have it, I was enjoying my time more. I slept a little better too. So maybe a break from the phone is healthy every now and then. It forces us to find other ways to connect with others and enjoy our time.