Since the beginning of the age of cell phones, we youth have been criticized for constantly being dependent on our phones, and you know what? They’re totally right.
Okay, so they may just be talking about me...
I have a phone problem. I didn't think it was that bad until I read a book called How To Break Up With Your Phone in my COMP 132 class, and I realized how much I hate being separated from my phone. I can't even walk downstairs to the kitchen to get a bottle of water without taking my phone with me.
So how did it get to this point?
I got my first cell phone in eighth grade. It was a slide-up keyboard kind of phone and I only used it to text my mom when I would travel for sports. Then, my freshman year of high school, I conveniently lost my phone in a Peter Piper Pizza (the Chuck E. Cheese of San Antonio). After that, my parents decided to replace it with an iPhone 6s. Now, this wasn't my first Apple product. I had an iPod touch already (and even an iPod Shuffle before that). So I was already familiar with an app layout. I used my iPod Touch to watch YouTube and play games. My only form of social media was Instagram at the time, since my mom never allowed me to have a MySpace or Facebook account.
So I guess it was my introduction to social media that started my phone addiction. Soon after I got my first iPhone, I created my first Twitter account. I considered it a fan account since I didn't use it to follow people I knew and instead followed YouTubers and celebrities I liked. Eventually I also got a Snapchat and now a TikTok (I'm still ashamed).
My addiction doesn't stop at social media. Netflix and Hulu has also consumed my time. I also read books from an app on my phone. Every once in a while I get addicted to a mobile game as well, but I quickly get bored of it and stop playing it.
The only time I don't pull my phone out is at work or classes that explicitly state in their syllabus that phones are not allowed. Meaning, I can't go a whole lecture without pulling my phone out at least once to check Twitter or send a text. When I'm watching a movie with my family, I pull out my phone. When I'm eating, I pull out my phone. When I'm at a party, I pull out my phone.
I will say I don't pull out my phone much when I'm with my boyfriend. Especially when we go on dates. It's never been made a rule by any of us, we've just never felt the inkling to pull it out when we're around each other. We even comment on it because we notice we're not like the other couples we see on Instagram or Snapchat who post their whole date. And I'm not trying to play the "we're not like other couples card." It's just something I've noticed because it's a huge accomplishment for me.
My average screen time per day is 6 hours. That's a quarter of my day that I spend on my phone. I get about 6-7 hours of sleep at night. So technically I spend less than half of my day in "the real world." It's quite alarming, but I have this mentality of "that's just how the world works now."
Is it?
I have a phone problem. I didn't think it was that bad until I read a book called How To Break Up With Your Phone in my COMP 132 class, and I realized how much I hate being separated from my phone. I can't even walk downstairs to the kitchen to get a bottle of water without taking my phone with me.
So how did it get to this point?
I got my first cell phone in eighth grade. It was a slide-up keyboard kind of phone and I only used it to text my mom when I would travel for sports. Then, my freshman year of high school, I conveniently lost my phone in a Peter Piper Pizza (the Chuck E. Cheese of San Antonio). After that, my parents decided to replace it with an iPhone 6s. Now, this wasn't my first Apple product. I had an iPod touch already (and even an iPod Shuffle before that). So I was already familiar with an app layout. I used my iPod Touch to watch YouTube and play games. My only form of social media was Instagram at the time, since my mom never allowed me to have a MySpace or Facebook account.
So I guess it was my introduction to social media that started my phone addiction. Soon after I got my first iPhone, I created my first Twitter account. I considered it a fan account since I didn't use it to follow people I knew and instead followed YouTubers and celebrities I liked. Eventually I also got a Snapchat and now a TikTok (I'm still ashamed).
My addiction doesn't stop at social media. Netflix and Hulu has also consumed my time. I also read books from an app on my phone. Every once in a while I get addicted to a mobile game as well, but I quickly get bored of it and stop playing it.
The only time I don't pull my phone out is at work or classes that explicitly state in their syllabus that phones are not allowed. Meaning, I can't go a whole lecture without pulling my phone out at least once to check Twitter or send a text. When I'm watching a movie with my family, I pull out my phone. When I'm eating, I pull out my phone. When I'm at a party, I pull out my phone.
I will say I don't pull out my phone much when I'm with my boyfriend. Especially when we go on dates. It's never been made a rule by any of us, we've just never felt the inkling to pull it out when we're around each other. We even comment on it because we notice we're not like the other couples we see on Instagram or Snapchat who post their whole date. And I'm not trying to play the "we're not like other couples card." It's just something I've noticed because it's a huge accomplishment for me.
My average screen time per day is 6 hours. That's a quarter of my day that I spend on my phone. I get about 6-7 hours of sleep at night. So technically I spend less than half of my day in "the real world." It's quite alarming, but I have this mentality of "that's just how the world works now."
Is it?
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