The 12 Effects Of Nomophobia On Mental Health And Relationships
The need to constantly use the mobile phone to carry out more and more activities makes us think that without this device our lives would be more complicated when it comes to successfully carrying out various tasks of daily life.
That is why for the majority of the population the widespread use of mobile phones represents a social and technological advance, although for others it can become a true ordeal and a situation of slavery with respect to said technology. In some cases, a dynamic arises that leads us to feel bad if we no longer have access to a smartphone, or to constantly check what its screen shows us.
This fear of being left without a mobile phone is called “nomophobia” and especially affects adolescents and young people in general, who are in an age range more prone to using devices connected to the Internet. In today’s article we will present the main effects of nomophobia in people affected by this alteration.
Surely more than once you have wondered what your life and that of those around you would be like without a mobile phone and without all the electronic devices that you use daily in your life.
The truth is that there are some people who harbor an irrational fear of running out of battery in their cell phone or of not being able to operate their mobile devices and being disconnected from the digital world, an alteration that affects more people every year. Let’s see what its ramifications are in this summary of the effects of nomophobia.
Anxiety is one of the first effects that nomophobia has on people who suffer from it and can be defined as a feeling of emotional discomfort, anguish, agitation or fear of the possible consequences of running out of battery in the mobile phone.
This anxiety normally increases progressively as the person sees how their battery level is getting lower, a fact that is accompanied by increasingly intense anxiety symptoms in the person, as well as discomfort and impact on their mental health.
2. Obsession with having the cell phone on
The obsession with having the cell phone on and being operational 24 hours a day is another of the most frequent effects of nomophobia, which can be considered another alteration of mental health and give rise to psychological problems such as Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder.
This obsession is observed in various symptoms: constantly looking at your cell phone to see if there are new messages or notifications; Be aware of whether there is battery in the device and do not turn off the cell phone at any time of the day.
3. Alteration of sleeping habits
A person who suffers from nomophobia can becoming obsessed with being on your phone to the point of not getting enough sleep at night with the aim of not missing anything that happens in the virtual world or in communication with your contacts.
Both lack of sleep and alteration in nighttime sleeping habits can have a truly negative effect on a person’s mental health and also on their physical health and intellectual performance.
4. Alteration of other habits
People with nomophobia too They can change certain daily habits in order not to run out of battery or to keep the mobile phone operational at all times.
This means that they can start going only to places where they know they will be able to charge their cell phone or where they know one hundred percent that there will be coverage, as well as avoiding those that do not have it.
5. Inability to disconnect from mobile
Another classic effect of nomophobia is the inability to disconnect from the mobile phone for even a minute a day, since people with this problem have the need to be connected and available 24 hours a day.
This also happens during the summer holidays, a period of the year in which nomophobia becomes very visible, since while everyone is resting, these people are still connected and watching their cell phones.
6. Social isolation
Although people with nomophobia have the goal of being connected to their mobile phones all day long, the truth is that this alteration ends up causing progressive social isolation and isolation from the real world.
This happens because the person in question can lock himself in his room and stay connected to his cell phone for long hours, even at night and without paying attention to the people he lives with on a daily basis.
7. Alteration of social relationships
This social isolation in turn causes relationships with the environment to be progressively affected due to the lack of social and emotional responsibilities in which the person is more or less consciously involved.
The relationships that are affected in cases of nomophobia can be friendship relationships, family relationships, relationships with co-workers and also romantic relationships.
8. Physical symptoms
The physical symptoms of the stress produced by nomophobia can be varied and depend on the physical and physiological characteristics of each person, experienced every time they have a low battery or are unable to operate their cell phone.
Some of the most common are excessive sweating, tachycardia, agitation, headaches, muscle or stomach pains self-harm and also gastrointestinal problems.
9. Professional or academic impact
It is evident that a constant obsession with the mobile phone and a change in daily behavior and sleeping habits end up affecting the person’s academic and work or professional performance in the long run.
In cases of nomophobia, the mobile phone and virtual interactions become the center of the person’s life, even neglecting daily obligations and responsibilities both in the academic and work spheres.
10. Other psychological alterations
Other psychological disorders that can develop from a case of nomophobia are panic attacks, anxiety disorders of all kinds, obsessive thoughts, stress, low self-esteem and life anguish.
These alterations in the person’s mental health usually increase the person’s need to interact with their mobile device with the aim of reducing said psychological discomfort.
11. Spending extra money to buy telephone items
It is also common for the person with nomophobia to begin to spend excessively on chargers or mobile phones, reaching the point of carrying one or more chargers and more than one mobile phone.
This phenomenon is, once again, a consequence of the obsession with having a mobile phone operational at all times.
12. Alterations in the family environment
As indicated, family relationships are also altered in cases of nomophobia, due to the frustration of not being able to communicate normally with the person who has developed nomophobia.
This type of family problems and the development of new negative interaction dynamics are an unequivocal sign that a nomophobia problem exists and that it is necessary to treat it as soon as possible in psychotherapy.
