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Anxiety? Throw away your smartphone!


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2 weeks ago I switched from a smartphone to an old school "dumb phone" that just calls and texts, so no internet, email, or small screen scrolling. The quality of my sleep has improved dramatically and I would say that my anxiety has decreased by half, and this is the only thing I have changed. I wanted to pass this along in case it could help anyone else. 

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Thank you @Hippopotsamus - this is very interesting. From what I know screen time can have a detrimental effect on sleep, especially 2 hours before sleep. And I personally believe that it can cause POTS symptoms due to overstimulation. 

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Indeed, thank you for sharing this info.

Personally I find my smart phone to have far more positives than negatives, (such as social outlets, keeping me in contact with friends around the globe), but I definitely find minimising use of it near bedtime to be beneficial. Helps sleep! 

I also find that not reading the news helps. There's also apps which can filter out the sad news stories, so you just see the positive ones. That has helped my mental health. 

People need to prioritise their health and do what's right for them, so I am glad this has helped you. 

 

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You can download an app called " blue light filter" that changes the light on your phone at night and supposedly helps with this. You can turn it on and off as you please. I don't know if the science is legit or not. Never really researched into it. I think some phones have that mode built in. But I don't pay $1000 for a smartphone like so many people somehow do. I'm definitely addicted to my phone. My problem is I can't sit still. I have to be playing a game or on the internet or something. It seems to help me but maybe it's not. I don't know.

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I had a blackberry for work way back when before there was even an iPhone.  I hated it - felt like a slave to it.  So I have never really been into my phone --   I can go hours without looking at it, if needed. Overall I think it is a huge convenience.

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I find joy using the phone. I use apps to take me to museums, quiet dining, travel. Best is dinner reservation apps so you don't have to stand waiting and faint before they hand you a menu. I use the phone to transmit music to my headphones that I wear when I go anywhere public and it knocks down on the sensory overload. And, to get out of the house, I do digital photography. I love my phone. I hate my outlook account, though.

 

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@Derek1987 - Thanks for the suggestion for the "blue light app"!  Just downloaded it on my phone and going to download it on my daughter's phone.  She currently cannot use her phone, and hasn't been able to for the past year.  It causes very bad vertigo.  It has something to do with the screen, not even the motion of it.  Hope this works!

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2 hours ago, DizzyGirls said:

@Derek1987 - Thanks for the suggestion for the "blue light app"!  Just downloaded it on my phone and going to download it on my daughter's phone.  She currently cannot use her phone, and hasn't been able to for the past year.  It causes very bad vertigo.  It has something to do with the screen, not even the motion of it.  Hope this works!

Cool. Let me know how it works.

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On 6/28/2019 at 10:07 PM, Hippopotsamus said:

2 weeks ago I switched from a smartphone to an old school "dumb phone" that just calls and texts, so no internet, email, or small screen scrolling. The quality of my sleep has improved dramatically and I would say that my anxiety has decreased by half, and this is the only thing I have changed. I wanted to pass this along in case it could help anyone else. 

This made me smile because my phone is actually 11 years old, and I call it the smartest phone in the world because it does everything I want it to and nothing I don't, all for £10 or less a month which is optional to pay. It is cute, pink, shiny & still has buttons! My husband says I need to move on because they have stopped making these & one day I will be lost if it breaks, but I am quite sure it will see me out & have no plans to replace it!

B xxx

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