If you’re feeling down, it’s best to keep your phone in your pocket. Using your phone when you’re feeling depressed can worsen those feelings.
According to the study, depressed people regularly rely on mobile phones to alleviate their negative moods and can deepen the problem instead of solving it. Reliance on mobile devices is referred to as PUMP, or problematic use of mobile phone. Even if they are using their phone to communicate with others, the activity can degrade into more troubling purposes that isolate the user from social interaction.
The solution is getting out more. Communicating with others in person can weaken the reliance on smartphones and the depression spiral. “Engaging in more face-to-face interaction can work as an antidote to the development of problematic mobile phone use.
If you decide to use your phone when you’re feeling down, make sure it’s to dial up a friend who will get you out of the house.
