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#1: 40% of the population is addicted to their smartphones

#2: 80% of 18 to 24-year-olds sleep with their phones right next to them

#3: A study indicated that parents who spend more time with their phones have a greater tendency to shout at their children

#4: An average person checks their phone 110 times/day, while the more addicted check their phones as much as 900 times/day

#5: 7% of individuals state that excessive cell phone use caused them to lose a relationship or job

https://www.addictiontips.net/phone-addiction/phone-addiction-facts/

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1. Technology is everywhere, and it is not going away.
2. Teenagers stare down at their iPhones, or keep their eyes glued to a tablet or laptop, instead of observing the world around them.
3. The fact that teens are so dependent on technology makes sense in our world, but it may also lead to negative consequences.
4. Technology fulfills our natural human need for stimulation, interaction, and changes in environment with great efficiency.
5. Video and computer games, smart phones and tablets, social media and the Internet provide a variety of access points that can promote dependence on technology and negative consequences for youth.
https://www.hazeldenbettyford.org/articles/fcd/teen-technology-addiction

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1️⃣Technology addiction is a disorder that involves the excessive use of any technology.

2️⃣The addict my experience restless, moodiness, and depression that

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1. 40% of the population is addicted to their smartphones
2. Most phone addicts will experience phantom vibrations
3. A study indicated that parents who spend more time with their phones have a greater tendency to shout at their children
4. An average person checks their phone 110 times/day, while the more addicted check their phones as much as 900 times/day
5. 63% of people who use gadgets before their bedtime have stated that they did not get proper sleep during the week

https://www.addictiontips.net/phone-addiction/phone-addiction-facts/

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Technology addiction can be defined as frequent and obsessive technology-related behavior increasingly practiced despite negative consequences to the user of the technology

Technology is everywhere, and it is not going away. Teenagers stare down at their iPhones, or keep their eyes glued to a tablet or laptop, instead of observing the world around them.

Technology fulfills our natural human need for stimulation, interaction, and changes in environment with great efficiency.

The Internet. The Web can be addictive as a multifunctional tool that brings us exceptionally close to an enormous amount of information at unprecedented speeds.

Video and computer games. One hallmark of human psychology is that we want to feel competent, autonomous, and related to other people.

https://www.hazeldenbettyford.org/articles/fcd/teen-technology-addiction

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Sleep disorders can develop as teens stay up late.

Slow internet connection or “unplugging” can cause irritability and anxiety for a teen.

Weight gain and other complications of a poor diet can occur, such as cardiovascular disease.

Academic, athletic, and social performance will suffer.

In-person social skills may begin to waste away due to long periods of time on technology.

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1.  1in 5 people will wake up in the middle of the night to check their Facebook Account.

2. The average person spends as much time on the internet each week as they do at work.

3. An average person sends above 35 hours per say on the internet.

4. Women are most likely than men to consider themselves addicted to the internet.

5. 3 out of every 4 kids could be considered addicted to the internet.

6. 9% of people hide the internet use form their family, friends, and bosses.

https://brandongaille.com/32-interesting-internet-addiction-statistics/

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Most phone addicts will experience phantom vibrations.

80% of 18 to 24-year-olds sleep with their phones right next to them

Most phone addicts forget how living in the real world is like.

1 in 3 mobile owners would rather give up sex than their phones.

Phone addiction is considered a disability.

Read more at https://www.addictiontips.net/phone-addiction/phone-addiction-facts/

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It attributes to literal withdraws when away from you'r device.

It isolates the the user away from a social life

user often gain weight in a result to this

most addicts have symptoms of depression.

https://www.psycom.net/iadcriteria.html

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1 - 40% of people are addicted to their phone
2 - Most phone addicts will experience phantom vibrations (when they think their phone vibrated but it didn't)
3 - An average phone user checks their phone 110 times a day
4 - A phone addict checks their phone 900 times a day
5 - 1 in 3 people would rather give up sex than their phones

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For every 100 hours that you spend talking on the phone, you drastically increase the risk of brain cancer. Do you want to know by how much you're increasing that risk?

I'll get back to that in a minute, but first, let me tell you this: smartphones are addictive.

Most of us will find ourselves looking at our smartphones for most of the day, whether consciously or otherwise.

Sometimes, we may also feel the urge to look at our phones, even though we know that there will not be any notifications to check.

Here are 25 facts about phone addiction that will leave you completely surprised.

1. 40% of the population is addicted to their smartphones

People are increasingly becoming addicted to their smartphones.

According to an article on psychology today, 40% of the American population suffers from this addiction.

Moreover, the 2013 Mobile Consumer Habits estimated that 12% of the users use their phones while they are in the shower.

2. Most people can't even survive one day without their phones

Phones have become a necessity for most of the people.

44% of the people have stated that they become very anxious when they lose their phones and become phoneless for an entire week.

The fear of losing or being without a smartphone, i.e. Nomophobia, actually exists and affects many people.

3. People often take their phones everywhere, even to the bathroom

A study conducted showed that 91% of the Gen-Ys took their phones to the bathroom to use it.

4. Most people will constantly check their phones without reason

People have the tendency to check their phones without any reason, especially when they are addicted.

Most people would simply keep their cell phones in their hands and keep turning the screen on to make sure that they have not missed out on any notification, call, or message.

In some instances, they will keep turning the screen on out of boredom or habit.

5. Most phone addicts will experience phantom vibrations

Phantom vibrations or ringing is a false belief that your phone is ringing or has received a notification, even though it has not.

About 80% of the people have experienced false vibrations and around 30% have heard ringing that simply did not exist.

The more an individual uses their phone, the more likely they are going to experience such phantom vibrations.

6. 80% of 18 to 24-year-olds sleep with their phones right next to them

Sleeping right next to cell phones has become a common trend, especially among younger people.

This shows how intensely people want their phones with them at all times, and when their phone is not with them, they suffer from separation anxiety.

7. Most phone addicts forget how living in the real world is like

Most of the phone addicts completely cut themselves off from real life and thus limit interactions with people and other real life experiences.

They see the world through their phones and interact less.

This prevents them from making their lives a little better or indulging in other activities that might actually be fun and refreshing for them.

8. A study indicated that parents who spend more time with their phones have a greater tendency to shout at their children

Apart from this tendency, parents who are addicted to their phones are also more likely to spend more of their time on it as opposed to spending time with their kids.

They can also become highly moody as a result, since they look for attention from their parents.

9. An average person checks their phone 110 times/day, while the more addicted check their phones as much as 900 times/day

We are slowly and gradually witnessing a trend towards cell phone addiction and this trend will only likely increase in the future.

In some cases, people would turn their phone screens on as a result of boredom or when they have nothing else to do.

10. 1 in 3 mobile owners would rather give up sex than their phones

Some of the people even use cell phones while having sex.

Such statistics are quite surprising considering that people cannot put their phones away for even a second.

11. 95% of people have stated that they text, browse the web, or watch TV in the hour before finally falling asleep

Technology is taking over, and very soon this is all that people will be doing.

Phone use, right before falling asleep has increased drastically, which is not good since the habit can affect sleep patterns.

In most of the cases, the first and the last thing that people will do as soon as they wake up and right before they fall asleep is use their cell phones.

This behavior is not healthy and can lead to many problems, including those related to health.

12. 1 in 4 people will not put their phones on silent before going to bed

These are the people who then have to wake up in the middle of the night whenever they receive a notification or get a call.

They do not want to miss out on a single opportunity to interact with people on their phones.

13. 1 in 2 people say that if they wake up in the middle of the night without any reason, they will check their phones

When these people randomly wake up in the middle of the night, they will most definitely check their phones before falling asleep again.

This urge to check their phone will be without any reason in most of the cases.

People like constant activity on their phone, and sometimes they expect messages or other notifications to be on their phones when they check it.

14. 63% of people who use gadgets before their bedtime have stated that they did not get proper sleep during the week

Any type of technology use right before bedtime can disrupt sleep.

Therefore, it is best to keep phones away when it is time for bed. However, most of the people sleep right next to their cell phones with many of them having the urge to use them before finally falling asleep.

15. Cell phone addiction ruins relationships

Researchers found that constant use of phones can be bad for relationships.

16. Many car accidents are due to cell phones

Many of the car accidents happen as a result of people using their cell phones while driving.

Cell phones are highly distracting, especially when people are addicted to them, and once the attention is towards them instead of the road, there is a huge probability that this diversion of attention will lead to an accident, even a fatal one.

These include the people sitting with the driver and those that are hit in the process.

17. Phone addiction is considered a disability

Most people rely on their cell phones to the extent that it helps them feel normal and remain away from panic.

This is considered to be a disability and people who suffer from such an extreme form of addiction should seek help immediately.

They would normally not be able to live without their cell phones and would suffer from extreme panic in case they ever lost their phones.

18. 72% of people state that there is a very little chance that they will ever move 5 feet away from their phone

Most people like staying close to their handheld devices.

These include smartphones.

If they are more than 5 feet away from them, they will start feeling anxious.

19. Smartphone addiction can result in mental issues such as OCD and depression

An addiction expert has stated that the more connected an individual is with the help of technology, the more likely they will experience a hassle connecting in real life.

Experts have also stated that smartphone withdrawal can result in symptoms such as depression, insomnia, and anxiety.

It creates more cortisone within the body and the brain.

This stress hormone is cardio-toxic and can be very bad for an individual's mental health as well as their personal relationships.

20. 7% of individuals state that excessive cell phone use caused them to lose a relationship or job

This statistic clearly shows how problematic excessive cell phone usage can be in the personal lives of individuals.

21. For every 100 hours that you spend talking on the phone, you increase the risk of brain cancer by as much as 5%

Latest research that was conducted has concluded that the use of mobile phones in the long term can result in an increased risk of glioma.

This is the most common brain tumor type.

This is definitely a warning signal, especially for those people who are addicted to talking on their phones constantly.

22. Phone addiction can lead to a hindrance in social life

Phone addiction can be a major hindrance in the social life of a person.

23. Treatment is now being offered for cell phone addiction

Rehab facilities have now started catering to all those people who have diagnosed themselves with cell phone addiction.

These rehab facilities aim at treating such patients by making sure that they have very limited or no exposure to cell phones while they are there, and providing them with the necessary solutions to limit their exposure once they are out of the rehab facilities.

If going to a rehab facility is not an option for you, you can also check an online phone detox program.

24. Phone addiction makes people live their life through their phones

When people are addicted to their cell phones, they will pay very little attention to the actual life that is happening around them and will give their undivided attention to their cell phone.

Cell phones are like spectacles to such people.

They will live their entire life viewing their world through their cell phones instead of actually experiencing firsthand.

25. Most people are not even aware they are smartphone addicts

Some of the people are not aware that they are addicted to their smartphones, either because they do not pay attention to the warning signs or because they are not aware of such signs at all.

Cell phones are now common worldwide, and there is no living without them.

However, people need to realize that being addicted to them is not a good thing, and can lead to a person being unproductive and suffer from a lot of health related issues.

Not to mention, cell phone usage while driving can also lead to fatal accidents.

Therefore, a person should be careful that they limit the time they spend using their phone, and take a break from them once in a while.

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25 Surprising Facts About Phone Addiction

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For every 100 hours that you spend talking on the phone, you drastically increase the risk of brain cancer. Do you want to know by how much you're increasing that risk? I'll get back to that in a minute, but first, let me tell you this: smartphones are addictive.

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Technology Addiction:
1. It causes a decrease in offline activities.
2. Treatment for technology addiction involves educating teens and young adults about what is happening in their brains and bodies.
3.  Developers of technology like video games and social media are actively trying to create products that tap into our addictive tendencies, talking openly about creating a “compulsion loop.”
4. Social media and the internet leads to fear of missing out and fear of being left out in young people.
5. It causes people to be irritable or annoyed when they have to disconnect from the internet.

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What is Technology Addiction?

Since the emergence of the internet and smartphones, research is showing an increase in the number of people struggling with an addiction to technology.

It's not uncommon for both youth and adults to feel a need to constantly be "plugged in" to social media and the internet, but this often leads to a fear of missing out, and fear of being left out in young people.

Coupled with the neurological changes that take place in the brain while being online, technology addiction can be added to the list of behavioral addictions.

Sandstone Care assesses and treats technology addiction in both its teen and young adult treatment centers.

Technology addiction falls into a category of addiction termed behavioral addictions. Behavioral addictions are widely recognized by mental health and addiction professionals and include other behaviors such as gambling and sex.

A behavioral addiction is characterized by a progressive inability to control, regulate, or limit the behavior. Technology addiction also shares similarities with obsessive-compulsive disorders.

Our modern world is characterized by increasing connectivity and technology use.

However, some teens and young adults cross from normal use into a realm in which their technology use is having a negative impact on school, work, family, and social life.
Technology addiction includes an addiction to video games, social networking, and surfing the web, among other things.

What Is Technology Addiction Called?
Technology addiction is also called digital addiction, internet addiction, or internet use disorder.
Technology addiction is a term used to refer to obsessive behavior related to technology, whether gaming, social media, online shopping, video watching, or anything involving technology.

Screens and technology are all around us in our daily lives. For young people especially, the rise of technology has changed the way we live our lives.

While technology reaps many benefits, it is difficult to ignore the negative impact it can have on one's physical and mental health.

Can Technology Become An Addiction?
Yes, technology use can become an addiction.
While technology has provided society with many benefits and advancements, it also has negative consequences.

Technology use, especially the increasing use of social media, has become a concern among teens and young adults.

Technology addiction can be characterized by compulsive behavior that is difficult or impossible to quit, despite the adverse effects it has on their individual and their well-being.

Signs & Symptoms of Technology Addiction

Here are Craig Knippenberg's nine signs a a teen or young adult might be addicted:

1. It is hard for my child to stop using screen media

2. The amount of time my child wants to use screen media keep increasing

3. My child sneaks using screen media

4. My child needs more intense and novel games and apps to reach the same level of satisfaction

5. When my child has had a bad day, screen media seems to be the only thing that helps him [or] her feel better

6. My child thinks obsessively about their game or phone when not using it

7. My child's screen media use causes problems for the family

8. My child's academics, activities or health are suffering because of electronics

9. My child is becoming more and more isolated

If you believe you or a loved one may be struggling with a technology addiction, it is important to seek professional advice from a healthcare provider or mental health professional.

What Does Internet Addiction Look Like?
A person struggling with internet addiction spends an excessive and increasing amount of time online.
The significant amount of time a person with internet addiction spends on technology commonly causes them to isolate themselves and spend a lot of time alone or in their room.

They often have little interest in things that don't involve the internet or technology. When they are not engaged in internet use, it may be all they think about.

They may also compulsively check their phone, mobile device, or notifications.

Someone with internet addiction may also face negative effects on their mental health and physical health because of their internet use.
They may experience physical symptoms that can include:

Headaches

Neck pain

Poor hygiene

Sleep problems

Weight gain

Eye problems

Although there are common symptoms of internet addiction, it can look very different from person to person.

Effects of Addiction to Technology

How Does Technology Affect Our Life?
Technology has allowed for a lot of improvements and advancements in our lives.
It has helped make jobs easier, resources more accessible, and communication easier, among many other things.

Technology has also led to important advancements in the safety and healthcare industry. Without technology, many of the things we do today wouldn't be possible.

While the many benefits of technology should not be ignored, it is important to acknowledge the negative effects technology has had.
Technology can negatively affect our sleeping habits, communication and relationships, mental health, and physical health. It often distracts us from important things and tasks and decreases the time we spend with face-to-face interaction.
In our daily life, technology use can take up valuable hours. Many people's work and school require them to be on a screen, and then outside of those things, we still have television, smartphones, and online shopping.

Many can say that the rise of technology has also made people more dependent. While technology has made a lot of things more easy and simple, people may find it hard to go without it from time to time.

What Does Too Much Screen Time Do To Your Brain?

On a neurological level, technology addiction operates similarly to chemical addictions, in that expectation followed by reward leads the brain to release dopamine and other feel-good chemicals.

This reward might be winning a level of a video game, or getting "likes" on a picture.

Over time, a person begins to crave this dopamine release and often requires increasing stimulus to get the same effect.

While chemical addictions often have a magnified effect by blocking the re-uptake of these feel-good chemicals so that they stay in the brain longer and more powerfully, researchers are finding that the inconsistent rewards often associated with behavioral addictions like gambling and video games also increase the flood of dopamine.

(i.e., taking a hit of marijuana will consistently yield a "reward" in the brain, while a person doesn't know when they will beat a video game level or get a "like." This not-knowing increases the intensity of the physiological response to reward.)
According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, too much screen time can cause changes to the brain and affect brain development.
The cortex, specifically, is an area of the brain that processes information. The ABCD study revealed that kids who used screens for more than 7 hours a day had a thinner cortex than those who used screens less.

Too much screen time has also been associated with a higher risk of developing mental health disorders, such as depression or anxiety.

What Is The Cause And Effect Of Technology Addiction?
A variety of factors may contribute to the development of technology addiction. These may include:

Environmental factors

Underlying mental health disorders such as anxiety or depression

Genetics

Often those who receive treatment for technology addiction will often be treated for underlying mental health conditions that may contribute to obsessive technology use.

How Does Internet Addiction Affect Mental Health?
Technology use, specifically social media use and screen time among children and teens, can lead to mental health problems and worsen already present mental health disorders.
Studies suggest that social media use can be associated with problems such as depression, anxiety, low self-esteem, and affected concentration.

Technology use among young children and teens can also impact their future relationships and their emotional development.

Excess amounts of screen time use among young people also usually mean less time for human interaction. A person with internet addiction often isolates themselves and spends a lot of time alone or in their room.

Some people may turn to electronics as a way to cope with mental health conditions. They may use it as an "escape" or as a way to feel better. However, doing so in excessive ways can quickly become unhealthy and make matters worse for a person's physical and mental health.

What Negative Effects Has Technology Had On Education?
While technology has advanced many aspects of education, many acknowledge that there are negative effects technology has had on education. Some of these negative effects can include:

Increased distractions and decreased attention span

Decreased social skills and interaction

Higher costs

Made it easier to cheat

Technology can also create a learning curve, making it harder for some students and teachers to learn and navigate as opposed to more traditional ways of educating.

As technology use becomes more common in schools, it is important to consider to pros and cons of it and make sure to monitor screen time among students.

Teens & Technology Addiction

More research needs to be done on the long-term effects of technology addiction on adolescents' development.

However, we do know that adolescents' brains are developing into their mid-20s, pruning away "pathways" in the brain that are unused, and strengthening the "pathways" that are used frequently. This means that our habits in adolescence actually change our brains.

Based on what we know about other addictions, wiring the brain strongly for the expectation and reward of technology likely sets teens up to be more susceptible to these compulsive loops later in life.

Additionally, adolescence is an important time to build social skills and form identity. Substituting online for real-life interaction, complete with body language and subtle cues, may impact teens' social and emotional development.

9 Tips To Managing Gaming For Teens

Here are nine practical strategies you can use with your child reduce gaming addiction:

If you enjoy playing video games and want to share this with your child, play only a couple of games with your kids at a time, and then turn the game off. There are many ways to bond with your children, and with healthy limits, gaming can become one of them.

Limit the amount of time your child/teen can play to 30-45 minutes per day (if you allow electronics during the week) and perhaps two separate 45-minute sessions on weekends. Recent research has shown that a daily one-hour limit helps increase children's sociability. That time limit includes gaming in your own home as well as at a friend's house.

Instead of implementing a time limit with Fortnite, consider having a two or three game limit. (This takes into account the fact that any child/teen would be horribly embarrassed to leave their friends in the middle of the game.) For other games, have a set time limit.

Implement rules for when the game can be played. Gaming time should only take place after homework is complete and should end at least 45 minutes to an hour before bedtime. Research has shown active screens stimulate the brain and can inhibit the release of Melatonin-which is necessary for sleep.

Consider taking a total break from the game if your son or daughter is caught sneaking it, continually fights about turning it off, or is becoming overly frustrated or emotional while playing or is irritable afterwards.

Have a limit on how much money can be spent on Battle Passes. After all, what child/teen doesn't want to be part of the latest fashion trend?

Create a gaming area in a family area.

Be very strict with your time limits for first person shooter games.

For on-line gaming, talk to your child about only playing with friends they know in real life.

12 Tips for Managing Smart Phones

Simple ways to help your teen look up from their phone:

1. Wait until 8th! This organization encourages parents to pledge to wait till 8th grade to give their child a smart phone.

2. Be good role models with your smart phone usage.

3. Start with a flip phone and have a "no-delete" rule for texting. Only parents should delete.

4. Phones must be turned over when requested by parents.

5. Create smart phone "free zones" and times in the house. No phones at the dinner table.

6. Keep school free of mobile devices. The temptation to hide a phone under a table in order to sneak a game in can be overwhelming for the developing brain

7. Talk to and do research with your kids about various apps. Help them be aware of various dangers (i.e.: bullying, predators, challenge games, pornography) and the potential social drama's inherent in social media usage. Discuss how others might perceive messaging.

8. Talk to you child about use of privacy settings (vs. public) when utilizing apps.

9. For older teens, teach and role model turning the apps to "no notifications" during family time and during homework.

10. Block specific times of twenty minutes to check social media.

11. Don't save, send or forward pornographic material.

12. Discuss consequences ahead of time for misuse and how responsible usage equals increased freedoms

6 Tips To Manage Technology At Night

Sleep is vital for teens and young adults. Sometimes, technology can impact their sleep cycles and increase technology addiction. Use the 6 ways to help your child get a good night's rest.

Start with daily limits on electronic usage outside of required homework.

Follow the advice of no screen time 30 - 45 minutes prior to bedtime.

Utilize nighttime settings on devices (f.lux).

No electronics in your child's bedroom after "lights out".

Use an alarm clock to wake up in the morning instead of a smart phone as devices should already be checked in to the charging station.

Most importantly, have a consistent bedtime and practice pre-bedtime rituals, which help soothe your child/teen emotionally and promote a good night's sleep for their overworked frontal cortex.

Technology Addiction Treatment

Technology addiction falls into the category of compulsive behavior that it is difficult or impossible to simply abstain from, like food or sex addictions.

Thus, treatment for technology addiction involves educating teens and young adults about what is happening in their brains and bodies, recognizing the consequences of their compulsion, helping them to set limits and interrupt the compulsive cycle, and find alternatives.

Sandstone Care integrates treatment of technology addiction into its programs by treating is as a cooccurring mental health disorder. As referenced, technology addiction is often present with other disorders including anxiety, depression, trauma, or substance use.

So taking a holistic and comprehensive treatment approach is important in order to help achieve sustainable recovery.
Some of the treatment modalities that Sandstone Care uses include:

How Can We Stop Technology Addiction?
Aside from treatment, some ways to break a technology addiction can include:

Stop using technology at night time

Start with small things, such as shutting off your phone during dinner

Turning off notifications

Setting time limits for technology use

Parents with worries about their kids and technology addiction may wonder if there are ways to prevent it. Some ways to prevent technology addiction can include:

Limiting technology use and screen time

Schedule times to use technology and other times to engage in other activities

Have conversations with your children early on about technology and how to use it in moderation

Dedicate times that are "tech-free" throughout the day, such as dinner time, night time, and morning time

What Is The Best Technology Addiction Treatment?
Psychotherapy, or talk therapy, is the most common treatment approach used for technology addiction.
This can include cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), dialectical behavioral therapy (DBT), individual therapy, and group therapy.

Other treatment approaches for technology addiction treatment may also include Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) and Motivational Interviewing (MI).
Treatment for technology also commonly involves support groups. Support groups can be helpful in building a strong support network and having people to relate to and learn from who may have shared similar experiences.
Psychotherapy can help individuals understand the connection between thoughts, feelings, and behaviors and help them understand how negative thought processes can lead to destructive behaviors.

Family therapy can also be helpful for young people with technology addiction. Through family therapy, each member can learn how to better understand and support one another and learn healthy ways to cope with difficult feelings and situations.

Individuals who may be struggling with a technology addiction often begin to isolate themselves. It is not uncommon for those with a technology addiction to also have a mental health disorder as well.

Some treatment centers may not treat technology addiction specifically but can help treat mental disorders that may be associated with obsessive technology use and addiction.

It is important to find a treatment program that works best for your specific needs. What works for some may not work for others. Especially for teens and young adults, it is important to find a center that offers age-specific, individualized treatment.

Recovery From Technology Addiction is Possible

Recovery from technology addiction is possible, and we are here to help! Not sure if your loved one has a video game, screen, or internet addiction? Wondering if you might have a problem?

While Sandstone Care is unable to treat standalone technology addiction, in most cases, technology addiction appears in conjunction with other mental health disorders.

Sandstone Care assesses and treats technology addiction at our adolescent and young adult treatment centers.

Using a variety of different treatment modalities, our clinicians at both Cascade Canyon Teen Residential and our Day Treatment programs help guide clients as they begin to recognize and overcome their technology addiction.

Individual therapy, group process, cognitive behavioral therapy and dialectical behavioral therapy are all tools that aid in this process.

Is Internet Addiction A Disorder?

What Are The Pros And Cons Of Technology?

Is Technology Helpful Or Harmful?

What Are The Disadvantages Of Technology?

How Technology Affects Your Life As A Student?

Does Technology Distract Us Too Much?

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Technology Addiction - Teen & Young Adult | Sandstone Care

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Since the emergence of the internet and smartphones, research is showing an increase in the number of people struggling with an addiction to technology. It's not uncommon for both youth and adults to feel a need to constantly be "plugged in" to social media and the internet, but this often leads to a fear of missing out, and fear of being left out in young people.

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1. It makes it harder to multitask
2.When you go to look up something you take shorter breaths or hold your breath entirely
3.People crash into things from walking and texting or driving and texting which can get you hurt
4.Being on the phone before bed and browsing the internet before sleeping overloads the brain’s ‘working memory,’
5.The things on social media on your phone is things you seem to remember and actual memories get replaced.
Destiny Carpenter

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I've written before that our collective smartphone addiction arose because we are like the proverbial frog in the boiling water: we did not notice or respond to how bad our addiction to screens was getting because it creeped up on us so slowly.

To shake it off, we need a shock to the system. The best way to do this is to take digital detox: a day or two to without technology. This is important to do because it has two keystone benefits that will power all future steps towards digital balance. First, when the digital layer is temporarily stripped off of our life, we begin to remember that pre-addiction self who is happier, healthier and more authentic. It is that memory of our screen-less self that will inspire us to continue to return to disconnection even after our detox is over.

Second, we can only fully see the effects of our digital delirium when we step away from it. It is like the joke about the fish asking the other fish what water is: when we are so immersed in technology, we forget that it is there and think that the disturbing symptoms of it are the incurable facts of life. But when we detox, we see just how reversible they, in fact, are.

We sometimes need a step before the detox: a kick in the pants to remind us why we need to take a detox in the first place. In service of that initial step, here are ten shocking facts about our technological frenzy that I hope can inspire you to try a digital detox out:

1. Your smartphone is spoiling key moments in your life: Half of us report that texting, "habit-checking," and scanning social media on our phones has ruined a special time with a loved one. Almost nine in ten Americans say they took out their phone during their immediately previous conversation.

2. The mere presence of your smartphone is diminishing conversations: Researchers have shown that we are so aware that our phones can interrupt any special moment that when a phone is on the table during a meal - even if it is faced down! - we feel less connection with the people we are with: our talk becomes more trivial; our trust, less deep. It makes sense: why dive into the here and now when the far and later can pull you away at any moment?

3. Your phone is making you less good to people: A recent study showed that when people used cell phones, they were less likely to be good to people: less likely to volunteer, less likely to exert effort to help each other out. The connection between phones and negativity is so ingrained, in fact, that the pattern holds even when people do not even use cell phones: just thinking about cell phones or drawing pictures of phones has a similar effect.

4. Multitasking on your phone is making you bad at work: Multitasking creates what scientists call a "response selection bottleneck" in our brain. When our focus on a task is interrupted by the need to attend to another task at the same time, blood literally rushes to another part of the brain (for the curious, "Brodmann area 10") to make a decision of what task to perform next, before rushing back to actually perform the task - a task which, of course, will be interrupted again shortly. So when we are doing emails while engaging in a meeting, we are actually doing three tasks poorly: doing emails, engaging in the meeting, and deciding whether we should be doing emails or engaging in the meeting. This is making your tired and unproductive at the office.

5. Filling breaks with social media feeds is hurting your memory: When scientists at the University of California, San Francisco made rats have new experiences, like standing on a new table, they could see new neurons being created in the rats' brains. When the scientists then gave those rats downtime from any new experience, they could see the new neurons move to the hippocampus, the brain's "gateway for memory." Their conclusion: downtime from new experiences is when memory is stored. This is concerning, because constant digital distraction ensures that we never have downtime. We used to have tiny blocks of downtime all the time: in the grocery checkout line, on the subway, in the bathroom. But these "micro-moments" - moments when small memories could be formed - are now being filled by social media feeds and cell phone games. We may think we are taking a break while scrolling Instagram or playing 2048, but we might as well be the rats being forced to have some new experience rather than being freed to store an old experience. Perhaps it is not a surprise then that a recent poll showed that millennials - the most technologically connected generation - are forgetting their keys at a higher rate than boomers: indeed, we are having more senior moments than seniors, themselves.

6. Your smartphone is causing "screen apnea": At Stanford's Calming Technology Lab, researchers found that searching the web causes us to take shorter breaths - or even hold our breath entirely - and thus restrict oxygen to our brains. Linda Stone - the guru from before who coined the term "continuous partial attention" - calls this "screen apnea" and explains that it comes from the same "flight-or-fight response" that early humans experienced. We are literally processing overstuffed inboxes in the same way we would have processed warding off hungry tigers.

7. Your smartphone is hurting your sleep: When UCLA Chancellor Gene Block was asked to discuss the health impacts of technological overload, he said the most dramatic impact comes in the reduction in sleep caused by smartphone use. Indeed, a quarter of people surveyed in 2012 report that they do not sleep as well as they used to because they are constantly connected to technology. According to a recent study in Pediatrics, children who slept near a small screen and who had more screen time reported less sufficient sleep. Four out of five of teenagers who are reporting sleep and exhaustion problems are using electronic devices in bed. Much of this can be accounted for by the bright lights of nighttime cell phones reducing levels of melatonin, the brain chemical that regulates sleep. But it is not just the light though: according to sleep expert Nerina Ramlakhan, browsing the internet before sleep overloads the brain's 'working memory,' leading to "noisy, thought-filled sleep."

8. Your smartphone is stressing you out (and it's having physical effects): University of Michigan Psychologist David Meyer's research shows that multitasking contributes to the release of stress hormones and adrenaline. When the multitasking never stops, long-term risks arise from their release, including higher rates of diabetes, heart disease and depression. Social media specifically is driving us nuts: 42% of constant social media checkers report that online conversations about politics and culture are stressing them out. Even not being on our phone is hurting us: heart rate, blood pressure, and anxiety spikes when our phones ring but we choose not to answer them.

9. Unchecked infomania is worse for productivity than smoking pot: The constant buzz of emails, texts, and Slack messages at the office is leading to what business guru Linda Stone calls "continuous partial attention." CPA is metastasized multitasking: the tech-enabled and near-constant scanning for opportunities among "contacts, events, activities in an effort to miss nothing." This "unchecked infomania" is awful for getting things done at a high level. In fact, British researchers, funded by Hewlett-Packard and conducted by the University of London's Institute of Psychiatry, found that the amount of IQ points dropped due to email and phone distractions at work is twice the amount dropped due smoking pot before work. Think about that:it is better for your productivity today to turn off your phone and light up a joint than to just keep your phone on.

10. You are going to literally crash into something: 22 percent of adults who have admitted to crashing into something while texting.

I hope one of these stuck with you - and you are now scheduling an upcoming digital detox.

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10 shocking facts to shake your smartphone addiction

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I've written before that our collective smartphone addiction arose because we are like the proverbial frog in the boiling water: we did not notice or respond to how bad our addiction to screens was getting because it creeped up on us so slowly. To shake it off, we need a shock to the system.