Smart Phone Addiction – curb the colour and cut the craving!

Some of us are not naturally ‘attached’ to our smart phones. To the annoyance of our partners, adult kids, grandkids, and colleagues, we barely register they’ve been trying to contact us (often resorting to using several different apps to do so!). When they finally phone, and sound exasperated, we just don’t understand why they’re so frustrated. Then there are those of us who can’t bear to let our phones out of our sight; who carry them from room to room, respond immediately to messages, and have to photograph and share our every waking moment.

Either way, if that’s what you want, it’s your choice. The problem, though, comes when we actually wish we were less attentive to our mobile phone, yet can’t seem to step away from them. In other words, we’re talking ‘phone addiction’  – something we thought was an adolescent-only problem. Signs of phone addiction are many – but you can check out your unwanted behaviour for yourself with a few simple questions.

Are you, for instance, putting your screen time ahead of a relationship with a significant other (curbing their conversations so you can catch up on social media or the news, for example). Are you choosing the screen over an invitation to go out with a friend (yes, it does happen!). Are you heading to bed because you’re tired, but then spending an hour or more looking at the screen? The acid test comes when you don’t want this kind of behaviour but simply can’t put a stop to it.

If you are concerned about your phone usage, and want to change your behaviour, there’s one relatively simple trick you can try, and although it’s not difficult to achieve, it’s also not well advertised. The trick, is to switch your full-colour phone screen to old fashioned greyscale. If you were born in the 60s, you’ll no doubt already be groaning (after all, it’s not difficult to remember what the first TV shows looked like – all bland black, white and grey). Yet it’s the very tediousness that comes with a lack of colour which may save you from yourself!

Switching your phone from colour to greyscale is specific to phones themselves, but a quick Google search will talk you through what to do with your own make and model. As for what you can hope for by making the switch, everyone is an individual, and results will vary. Common reactions are the little red notification icons popping up with monotonous regularity, no longer hit you full force – which means you may be less likely to respond to them so readily. Then there’s the simple monotony of looking at photos in black and white – a turn-off if ever there was one. As for posting your own photos – the incentive just isn’t there when the colour has gone! Shopping’s not so much fun in black and white – and neither are games! As for movies – do you really want to go back to the 60s?

Some phone over-users confine themselves to greyscale for a set number of hours a day (or night), and use colour as a treat. Others turn to greyscale when life gets stressful, as the lack of bright colour can feel calming. The best news (for the phone addict) is some users find they actually lose interest in their phones for all but essential tasks.

Of course, as with all addictions, it does take some considerable determination on the part of the user to make the change. Instead of going cold-turkey (and ditching the phone altogether – which, for some, may not be a smart or a safe move), going grey may help wean you off your mobile device. If you’re ready for the challenge, why not give it a go – and if you have trouble making the switch, ask a younger acquaintance to handle the technical side for you (you may find you never want to turn on the colour, again)!