Nomophobia: the growing addiction to the cell phone

New technologies make our lives easier, but they also generate addiction.

Due to technological advances, social networks and the presence of the Internet in practically all cell phones, we spend many hours of the day connected to our "smartphone”.

This causes us to feel lost in this world dependent on new technologies when we are out of communication, without a cell phone.

Cell phone addiction: causes and symptoms

Despite the fact that the use of technology can be very useful, as it allows us to be constantly connected with almost every corner of the planet, isolation can lead to a feeling of anxiety that invades us and makes us feel anxiety that invades us and makes us long for the moment when we will be connected again.

The anxious and obsessive symptoms that we present when we are without a cell phone have been recognized by psychologists, and this excessive and irrational fear of being without a smartphone has been baptized as "Nomophobia".Nomophobia". The term comes from the English expression "no-mobile-phone-phobia". We will talk about this syndrome today, not only to focus on the negative aspects of new technologies, but also to try to reflect on the use we make of them.

The first study on Nomophobia

Many experts speak of Nomophobia as the new disease of the 21st century. Studies on this phenomenon began in 2011 in the United Kingdom, with an investigation conducted by the UK Post Office and the YouGo Demoscopic Institute.

The study involved 2,163 subjects, and the data revealed that 53% of cell phone users in the UK feel anxiety when their cell phone battery runs out, they lose their phone or they are out of range. The study also revealed that 58% of men and 48% of women suffer from this disorder.

The study also concluded that the stress levels presented by people with Nomophobia were comparable to that which a person may have the day before their wedding. In addition, 55% of the participants reported "feeling isolated" when they did not have a cell phone.

What a person with Nomophobia is like

There are many people who suffer from dependence on cell phones and are connected 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.Experts believe that the profile of the nomophobic is that of a person who has little self-confidence and low self-esteem, with a lack of social and conflict resolution skills, and who in his or her leisure time only uses the cell phone and seems incapable of enjoying life without it.

In terms of age, this disorder is more common in adolescents adolescents, as they have a greater need to be accepted by others and are more familiar with new technologies.

Symptoms

The symptoms that a person with Nomophobia may present are the following:

• Feelings of anxiety
• Tachycardia
• Obsessive thoughts
• Headache
• Stomach pain

Education is essential to prevent this type of pathologies associated with the use of new technologies.

Nomophobia is another pathology directly associated with the use and development of new technologies. Since the advent of smartphones, more and more people have become exclusively dependent on these devices and more and more users have developed this disorder.

Although adults can also suffer from this disorder, it is children and young people who are more likely to suffer mental health problems as a result of dependence on new technologies, as they spend many hours connected to the Internet and develop a high risk of developing this disorder.They spend many hours online and develop their identity on social networks. They are the "digital natives"; people who have lived from birth surrounded by technologies of this type.

Learning to use technology in moderation

Regarding this, the psychologist Jonathan García-Allen in the article "FOMO Syndrome: feeling that the lives of others are more interesting", comments that "education is essential to prevent this type of pathology and should be done from an early age". According to García-Allen, "The main problem is not the new technologies, but the pathological use of these technologies, which can lead to both addiction and uses that can generate psychological problems".

Therefore, the key is not to prohibit the use of smartphones by children and adolescents, but rather to make them understand the importance of the correct use of these devices and to ensure an education that understands both the positive aspects of the new technologies and the improper and pathological uses.. In this regard, the prevention in the family and at school is the key element.