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Signs You’re Spending Too Much Time Staring At Your Screen
1. You fall asleep scrolling through your phone
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Taking your phone to bed can be a dangerous habit… it is difficult not to end up scrolling through endless posts and videos until your eyes start to get tired. This can be a really negative habit and lead to spending way too much time staring at the screen before bed.
2. The first thing you do in the morning is reach for your phone
Image Source: AmendoThis is probably the biggest red-flag for an addiction to your screen…you wake up in the morning and the first thing you reach for is your phone. It doesn’t help that most of us use our phones as an alarm, which can make it easy to slip into the habit of using it first thing in the morning.
3. You panic if you can’t use your phone
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Do you have a complete melt-down if you realise you’ve left your phone at home? Or if it's about to die and you haven’t got access to a charger? This could be a sign you are too dependent on your phone and probably spending too much time staring at your screen.
4. Increased tension in your body
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Too much screen time can keep our bodies in an alert and awake state, which increases the volume of cortisol released. This hormone, which is responsible for making us feel stressed, can also increase the tension in our body making it difficult to relax.
5. You can’t switch off
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Do you constantly feel overloaded and struggle to bring your mind to a restful state? This could be a sign of too much screen time. Constantly scrolling can cause the brains electrical activity to go into overload, making us feel on edge and unable to switch off mentally.
6. Your self-esteem has decreased
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Spending too much time using our phones and laptops means we’re probably spending too much time on social media, and this can be damaging for our self-esteem. It is difficult not to feel inadequate next to unrealistic representations of both body images and glamorous lifestyles.
7. Your vision has become blurry
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If you’ve noticed that your vision has become blurry, particularly after spending time on your phone or laptop, it could be a sign you need to reduce your screen time. People blink 66% less when they are looking at a screen, which can cause temporary blurred vision.
8. You have become less productive in your spare time
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It can be easy to procrastinate by just picking up your mobile phone or laptop and finding yourself entertained for hours on end. However, this can lead to lower levels of productivity and you might find yourself never getting round to doing those tasks.
9. You struggle to get to sleep
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Spending too much time staring at your screen late at night could be the reason you’re not getting much sleep. Blue light exposure during nighttime hours suppresses melatonin production which is the hormone responsible for regulating our sleep pattern.
10. You get more headaches
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Too much screen time can cause chronic headaches, especially if you spend a substantial part of the day staring at a bright screen. Regular breaks are advised to avoid having an impact on your physical health, so watch out for the warning signs!
11. You’ve become anti-social
Image Source: BreakingNewsAre you finding yourself going out and socialising less often than you used to, finding excuses to avoid outings and spending time with others? This could be related to spending too much time on screens meaning we are becoming less interactive with others.
12. You’re drifting from your friends and family
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As we mentioned before, spending too much time staring at your screen can reduce our level of social interaction. This can have a snowball effect by putting a negative strain on relationships with friends and family, as we are too interested in what is going on in the virtual world.
13. You have brain fog
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Do you suffer with a constant brain fog that you struggle to shift, no matter how much caffeine you drink? This could be related to spending too much time staring at screens, which is a problem people often experience when they spend 8+ hours a day on screens for their job.
14. You’re always comparing yourself to others
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Another toxic trait associated with using social media is comparing yourself to other people when you see how they portray their lives online. Spending too much time staring at the screen can trigger these feelings, which can make you feel worse about yourself.
15. Your attention span is getting worse
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This one might surprise you, but there is emerging evidence that too much screen time can reduce your attention span over time. So if you have noticed that you are struggling to focus, it could be a sign you’re spending too long on your phone.
16. You can’t remember the last time you read a book
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One of the most controversial things about the digital world is our constant reliance on screens to fill our time which means we neglect other hobbies. If you can’t remember the last time you read a whole book, you might be able to relate to this!
17. You get sucked into hours of scrolling on social media
Image Source: StylistSocial media can be a dangerous rabbit hole…one minute you are watching a 30 second video your friend sent you on Tik-Tok and before you know it, 3 hours have passed! If this is a habit you can relate to, you could be spending too much time staring at your screen.
18. Your memory is getting worse
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If you’ve noticed that your memory is getting worse, it could be a sign that you are spending too long staring at your screen. It could be difficulty creating a new memory or recalling information at a later time from your long-term memory.
19. Your energy levels have got worse
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If you have noticed a decrease in your energy levels, this could be related to how much time you’re spending staring at the screen. It could be another knock on effect of doing less physical activity and struggling to sleep, meaning your energy levels flag throughout the day.
20. You’ve become addicted to internet shopping
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Online shopping has completely changed how we purchase the things we need, ranging from ordering our food shopping to buying a new house. We now have constant access to browse the market, which can lead to people becoming addicted to scrolling the web and spending money at the click of a button!
21. You have permanent vision damage
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Although other factors can be the cause of vision damage, there is an increasing evidence base that shows an association between screen time and myopia. It is important to monitor how long we are spending staring at screens, making sure we protect our eyes.
22. Your social interaction skills are getting worse
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Have you noticed that you now struggle to socially interact with others? Well, this could be due to the rise of the digital era which means we now communicate a lot more via online messaging and spend less time physically interacting with other people.
23. Your eyes feel irritated
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If you have noticed that your eyes have been feeling irritated, it could be a sign you are spending too long staring at screens. This can cause your eyes to burn, become dry, red or watery. So, if you’ve notice any of the symptoms, this could be why!
24. You’ve gained weight
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This one might shock you, but increased levels of screen time can be linked to weight gain. This is related to having a more sedentary lifestyle by sitting and staring at the screen, but other impacts like poor sleep and low energy levels can trigger junk food cravings.
25. You have more aches and pains
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Another possible sign that you are spending too much time staring at the screen is constant aches and pains. This could be linked to not doing enough physical activity as you are spending too much time sitting down in one position, so make sure you keep moving!
26. You don’t do much physical activity
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Spending more time sat staring at the screen will inevitably mean you are spending more time sat down and less time moving your body. Daily movement can be important for our overall physical and mental health, which could be impacted if our screen time is too high.
27. You’ve noticed an increase in unhealthy habits
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One of the most dangerous things about more screen time is more exposure to adverts and digital marketing material. This could encourage us to engage in unhealthy habits or purchase things we don’t need, so make sure you are keeping tabs on what your online activity!
28. You’ve stopped your hobbies
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If you’ve noticed that you no longer participate in hobbies you used to fill your time with, which may include sports or a creative activity. This could be due to increased screen time which is taking over this generation. Whenever we feel bored, we now have a habit to turn to the screen.
29. You feel anxious or depressed
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If you have noticed a change in your mental health, this could be linked to your screen time. There is emerging evidence that too much time staring at the screen can increase the risk of anxiety and depression, which is something that needs to be further investigated.
30. You feel addicted to the screen
Image Source: Times of India
There is a reason you feel so addicted to the screen…dopamine is a hormone involved in the pleasure and reward circuit in the brain. This is activated when we engage in online activities, meaning every time we get a reaction or message our body is flooded with feeling good.
