by Our smartphones have become our lifelines to the world, but they can also be our greatest burden. We feel live news, information and texts from our loved ones and we don’t know how to let go of these strings.
But for a growing number of people, the only way to free themselves from those obligations is to let their phones die – on purpose.
Some people told The Daily Beast that they deliberately refrain from plugging in their iPhones to charge when it’s in the red battery zone, hoping that it will be completely drained, and immediately ready for their duties. and connection with people and the internet.
“This week alone, I’ve let it die twice,” said Los Angeles-based Nikki Dunlap, 31, who started the practice earlier this year and usually lets her phone die. about 2-4 times a week. “I do it because I feel like there’s a bunch around my wrist attached to my phone. Knowing that people have texted or called me, and are waiting for me to respond, gives me so much motivation and joy. I feel obliged to respond as soon as I receive the notice.”
Dunlap said she was so addicted to her phone that she would have it on her all the time, in her own home, and would often get lost for 30 minutes at a time, which would distract her from her other duties. “I also want to be able to think clearly and be unattainable at times,” she said. “Since doing all this, I’m much more productive. I don’t feel anxious 24/7. I have a long way to go but progress is a process.”
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Raghda Abdulrahman, a 24-year-old based in Bahrain, told The Daily Beast that she started the habit a year ago after facing similar problems.
“I usually don’t let it die unless I’m at home and family members can send me anything urgent or anything family related,” she said. “Or if it’s work related I keep my email open on my laptop. The main purpose is to get away from social media.”
Others opted for less drastic measures: instead of disconnecting completely, they experimented with keeping their phones on silent (or in “DND” mode) for most of the day. It often helps with anxious feelings or anxious thoughts that come up when someone important texts them – or, more tragically, when someone doesn’t text.
“I can be overwhelmed with emotion, and embarrassed to admit it’s there especially when I’m interested in someone romantically,” Kaylie Clark, 21, who lives in San Diego, said The Daily Beast. “I’m very anxious waiting for an answer, so it helps to put my phone on DND. It prevents me from [looking] out of that buzz or ad and it helps to think outside the box.”
Clark says she doesn’t let her phone die on purpose, but “if it dies I don’t feel a rush to recharge it.” San Francisco-based Vanessa Soto, 31, said she often lets her phone die in her hand. , a practice she recalled that started during the pandemic, when her phone was her livelihood and she always had the choice to charge it at home.
“When I could theoretically always charge my phone, it seemed like it wasn’t that important that it would ever charge,” Soto told The Daily Beast.. an hour into the drive before I realized it wouldn’t. I had packed a phone charger at all.”
Reset
She and others have reported feeling like an instant weight is lifted off their shoulders when they disconnect from alerts going off on their phones. “I only feel peace when my phone is dead,” she said. “It’s much easier for me to fall asleep if I don’t use my phone after 8pm,” Christo Briceño, 32, also based in San Diego, told the Daily Beast. “DND after 8 pm helped me ‘shut down’ during the work week too.”
Mental health professionals told The Daily Beast that there has been a sharp increase in clients who have said they are more anxious because of their phones. Aura De Los Santos, a clinical psychologist based in New York, listed some of these symptoms she noticed: “People who are very worried about their phones running out of battery; constantly looking at the phone to get a return message ‘feeling anxious, not paying attention to their surroundings; looking at their phone every time they get a notification and feeling motivated to respond quickly; and they may also feel uncomfortable being aware of their own behavior around others.”
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De Los Santos said that letting your phone die is one viable option, but it can cause more stress, something people should be aware of. “It might be good practice for the phone battery to die in some cases without looking out, but at the same time if the person is alone and their phone dies it could be an emergency and they may not be able to communicate with another person. person,” she said.
Instead, she recommends people try to physically keep their phones away from them when they can’t see it, or download apps that force them to limit their screen time.
Kelsey Latimer, a psychologist and registered nurse, told The Daily Beast that letting a person’s phone drain them, or putting them on perpetual DND, is a good starting point. But users need to learn how to simply say “no” to pick up the phone on their own.
“A lot of my clients are surprised to hear that there was a time when cell phones didn’t exist and to some extent, it was easier to connect,” Latimer said. “Limits with the phone and ‘self reset’ can help us find ways to use technology in a way that can help us not have it take over our lives.”
Read more at The Daily Beast.
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