What is nomophobia? It is one of the newest phobias on the block, and it pertains to people who are literally fearful and anxious about the prospect of being without their cell phone. I think in this day and age some people can’t even remember a time when they didn’t have their entire life in their pocket, and the thought of being without that total, complete kind of connection and communication can actually put real fear in their hearts! Do you think you might be somebody who could be described as having nomophobia? Here are seven sure signs you have nomophobia!
You constantly find yourself doing ‘the check’, that little body routine where you pat all possible pockets frantically trying to work out where you might have left your phone, only to realize that it is probably still right there in your hand!
You dream about a wide range of different things, but one aspect is always present, and that is that you have your phone with you in the dreams just like you have it with you in real life. Even worse, you can sometimes have anxiety dreams about not being able to get in contact with people, and this only serves to make you more attached to your phone in the daytime!
You start to actually freak out when you don’t have your phone around you. There is almost a physical feeling of pain and longing when you aren’t able to whip it out and have a quick scroll through your notifications. It’s just as vital to you as oxygen!
You find that you can’t go to sleep at night unless you know that your phone is right there by your bedside. You absolutely cannot relate to those kinds of people who are happy to leave it charging downstairs in the kitchen, or even worse, people who actually turn it off overnight!
People find it hard to hold conversations with you because you can’t help looking down at your phone every 45 seconds to see if something new is happening. Even worse, if you have actually received a text, then they might as well be talking to a mirror for all the response you will be able to give.
No matter how far you are out of the house before you realize you have left your phone behind, you will go back to get it. I’m talking the front door of work, I’m talking at the restaurant of your date, maybe even during the trailers for a film at the cinema!
You find it impossible to follow the rules in places like cinemas and theatres that ask you to refrain from using your phone for the duration. Those rules are for people who don’t know how to use their phone stealthily, right? Not you, you’re a pro. Wrong! You’re just an addicted rule breaker!