Baskadia

You have not only discovered the negative aspects of the

overuse of devices but you have also found ways that you can

fill your time that will benefit you even more. However, you will

have to use your phone at some point.

You may finally have arrived at a point where you feel you can

successfully control your behaviors, and not one where you

allow your behaviors to command you against your better

judgment. The next and final step is where you begin to

cultivate better phone habits.

There are ways to interact with your phone healthily. You have

to be strict with yourself if you know that you have addictive

tendencies and have a habit of rescinding your word. Make

yourself a promise that you will continue to take phone

addiction seriously, even if you feel you have “mastered” the

problem.

Truly, you will never be able to master addiction. No person

can if they are speaking honestly with themselves. You can only

become conscious of your triggers and become familiar with

ways that will keep you on the right track. This conscious awareness will allow you to notice when you start to slip back

into your old ways and prompt you to find alternate solutions.

Ultimately, this last step is the most important because it will

guide your habits and behaviors long beyond your initial

undertaking of this process. These are the habits you will

employ from your mental tool belt for the rest of your life in

regards to healthy phone use.

Keep yourself on a schedule for when you can and cannot

access your devices. Refer to these periods as you designated

“Phone Time.” During this period, you can do what you like.

Similar to the example of a proper diet, consider this like

portion control. You can still have something you enjoy even if

it is not exactly healthy for you, so long as you have it in small

doses.

During these scheduled periods where you allot time on a

device, you can do whatever you want. This will decrease the

likelihood that you will “binge” and reverse all of the efforts

you originally dedicated to maintaining discipline. If you are a

parent implementing this for your child, they will know when to

expect to use their phone and find themselves craving less and

less time on a device.Also, consider having “no phone zones in your home. The

bedroom is most definitely one of them, or it should be at

least! However, it is encouraged that you have more than one

“no phone zone” to increase the likelihood of success. Make

the dinner table a zone, as well as the living room. It is easier to

not use a phone when you are not allowed to use it in a

specified area.

Turn off notifications from your phone and keep them off. You

should already be aware at this point that notifications are

simply temptations to keep you hooked. This is a quick and

easy way to remove the temptation from your life. Not only

that, but it will declutter your mind as you will not have to sift

through meaningless notifications throughout the day

anymore.

Whatever you do, do not rely on an app to get you to stop using

apps.

This is a very common thing that people try to do, and it is done

in good faith but it is very rarely successful. This is not a

successful technique because first and foremost, you are still

using your phone! In a worst-case scenario, you may even

become addicted to checking your phone usage levels. This will most likely only depress you further and you will just try to

distance yourself by switching to another app.