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Unveiling the Surprising Ways Your Phone is Impacting Your Daily Life
- Derek Arsenault (CSEP-CPT, PN1)
- 11 minutes ago
- 8 min read
It always scares me when I read books from nearly a decade ago, warning us about the effects of using our devices so compulsively; Yet here we are, over half way through 2026, still acting dumbfounded as to why aspects of our health are not where we want them to be. 2027 will mark TWO DECADES since the smartphone was rolled out and as our phones get smarter, we are certainly not acting smart in regards to our ignorance of our phone use and it's negative effects on our deep health.
Books such as "Deep Work" and "Digital Minimalism" by Cal Newport, and "The Ripple Effect" by Dr Greg Wells are just three examples of information that's been around to remind us about the detrimental effects of HOW we use our devices. That's the important part here; No one is saying let's go back to BEFORE smartphones (though I wouldn't argue it either) but rather lets WAKE UP to the reality of HOW we're using this technology so that it HELPS US instead of continues to HARM US.
I saw this FANTASTIC graphic online this week that says:
Cellfish (adj.)
People who just focus on their phones when they're hanging out with you.
Brilliant!!
You totally CAN be addicted to your phone
No one is going to stop you from staring at your phone constantly, ignoring the people and conversations around you, and impacting your health. That's the beauty of being a modern human; we have choices.
The issue arises when we act surprised at the negative effects of choosing your phone over REAL LIFE. That's the part we need to stop being so ignorant about. We've had enough years and time for science to catch up to PROVE that HOW we use our devices is detrimental to our deep health. Let's break this down by looking at how it's impacting ALL 6-dimensions of deep health.
Physical Health
The use of our devices is causing modern humans to move LESS. I mean we can grocery shop from our couch, in our underwear, with our phone. Talk about the "Jetson's" coming to life eh? All of this convenience however is taking AWAY movement from our day in so many ways in favour of staring at our screens.
Our posture and therefore, joint health is being negatively impacted. WAY back in 2008, just one year after the smartphone was released, a chiropractor in Florida coined the phrase "text neck" due to the head forward, rounded shouldered posture people were spending much of their time in. In 2026, this is more common than ever!
We could honestly talk about the physical health impact forever from joint health, muscle health, cardiovascular health, sleep quality and quantity, eye health etc all being negatively impacted by the time we spend on our devices (the average person spending 4-5hrs per day on their phone!).
Mental & Emotional Health
I'm going to put these two together for the sake of this post. This has built up over the years and decades, in particular as social media made it's way onto our devices and became the "norm" in modern society. What frustrates me as a Health & Wellness professional is that alot of what you see in this regard focuses on kids. However, the problem is across the board. I know adults in their 60s and 70s who have a severe addiction to their devices. It's NOT just the younger generation in 2026.
People (of all ages) are suffering mentally from online bullying but also from spending so much time in the digital world, that they begin to believe the "fairy tale lives" people post and share on their social feeds. It's causing people of all ages to feel like they're "falling behind", "they'll never be healthy like 'that person online'" or that they've "missed out on so much in their life" compared to people online. The portrayal of a completely positive, struggle free, care free life online has caused a shift in how people perceive their reality, which is causing anxiety, stress, depression etc. Spending time online, on our phones in these social spaces is giving us a false sense of what life is. Life is messy. Life is NOT perfect every day. There are struggles and there are great times. Compulsive social media use is one example of where this reality is skewed and we feel left behind because "everyone else's life looks so perfect".
Screen / phone addiction also creates an increased risk of creating less memorable experiences. You see it everywhere! On TV, you'll see people who have paid hundreds, even thousands of dollars to go to a professional sports event, meanwhile they're on their device. That multitasking may feel like you're "there", but science has proven that the memory won't stick because you're not present in the moment and taking in that experience fully. We're literally missing out on REAL life experiences today, when we are not cognisent of our compulsive phone use. No one remembers the "best Instagram post" they saw even from a week ago. Yet, you'll remember a night out with friends or family, or a family trip that happened 10-years ago! Because there's meaning and human experience attached; You see, touch, taste, and/or feel the experience in a way that a screen cannot give you.
Spiritual / Existential Health
This aspect of our deep health has to do with our sense of belonging and purpose. Smartphone / screen addiction makes this very hard to strengthen in one's health. When so much time is spent in an online world, it means there is less time in the REAL world; getting involved in teams, groups and events, volunteering, experiencing that sense of fun, kindness, encouragement and accomplishment with REAL people and REAL LIFE HUMAN CONNECTION.
I'll argue here as well, that it can even cause more struggle and confrontation regarding one's choice of religion and/or way of living. When we spend so much time in a world-wide connected digital space, your chance of running into confrontation and negativity surrounding your beliefs, philosophies and/or spiritual practices are much higher than when you spend the majority of your time with real people. In the REAL, non-digital world where we interact face to face with other humans, you're going to get less people provoking arguments or throwing their beliefs at you because it's not so easy in person, as it is behind a screen from your own home thousands of miles apart from someone. You're also going to spend time with like minded people most likely, such as your church or community group where your beliefs will be supported and strengthened rather than debated more often than not. Over time, this type of things weighs heavily on people and negatively impacts their deep health.
Environmental Health
Here's one we don't often think about - How our phone impacts this aspect of our deep human health. You'll see people outside today, but they're not often playing, gardening, etc... They're head is down on their phone. Yes, it's great they're getting some fresh air and sunshine, without question but if this is the only time they're spending outdoors it's going to catch up to them in negative ways.
The human brain connects more deeply and sparks greater creativy, deeper thought, more efficient problem solving when we immerse ourselves in nature. Nature is 3-dimensional, it doesn't have "straight lines", you can feel it, taste it, see it, hear it... A screen provides minimal connection in our human senses. Nature provides ever changing layers and levels which promotes a variety of movement for our body. We reduce our time spent in nature, when our "nature time" is sitting staring at our device with poor posture.
We can also (easily) argue today that our addiction to our devices has us so distracted, that we're not AWARE of our surroundings anymore. How often have you seen someone walk into traffic without looking because they're on their phone,? Or walk into a bench, lamp post or other person because their head is down and in their screen while going from A to B? How often do you pass someone driving by who is looking down into their lap today (so scary!)?
All of this brings up another point of our environmental health, which is the safety we feel in our community / surroundings. I don't know about you, but the safety I feel on the roads today is DRASTICALLY lower than any point in my lifetime, because of the amount of distracted driving that happens today! Even when someone isn't on their phone WHILE driving, if that person spends the bulk of their time compulsively addicted to their device, they have trained their brain to be distracted - never being present, but rather always thinking "what's next?" or "I wonder if this happened on this app/site?" which causes them to be LESS PRESENT while out and about, and therefore reducing the safety of those around them and themselves.
Social Health
This is taking a major hit, and for this we can look to how it's impacting the youth as an example. Older generations can recognize the very real inability for many younger folks to be able to socialize in person with any sort of comfort and flow. They can be awkward, they can be distracted... but in their defense, their socializing as they grew up was on a screen, social media and/or gaming from their own home both with strangers around the world and/or friends at their own homes.
For ALL generations things like anxiousness, selfish behaviour and rudeness have dramatically risen over the past couple decades as our compulsive use of our devices and the digital world has gone up. For many, the line between REAL human behaviour and manners is blurred by the online "free for all" type world where you seemingly can say or do whatever you want, rarely with consequence.
Personally, I've seen the impact of compulsive phone use and it's impact in family and friend relationships. People who cherish togetherness, conversations that flow and memorable experiences tend to spend less time with those who may be "there" physically but who are distracted on their device most of the time. It's negatively impacted the deep relationships and deep conversations people can have with one another, which puts a huge strain on their social health. I've had clients, past and present, who come in for a 45min session and who get distracted by their phone for upwards of 10-15min of that session or more sometimes (whether it's for messages, phone calls, music, websites etc). We've all had people stop a conversation mid-sentence because they're staring at their wrist reading an incoming text message from someone who's not even present. We've all been around when someone in a public space is having a private conversation on their speakerphone, so everyone can hear the entire conversation. This happens regularly, all over the place and it's become a "norm" that is drastically impacting our social connections and health. This is NOT a "youth problem" either. This is a HUMAN problem today at ALL AGES.
None of this is meant to blame the individual. It is meant to inform and maybe even give a little "smack to the face" as a wake up call to our reality. This technology came in SO QUICKLY into regular everyday lives, that we were NEVER taught how to control it and how it can negatively impact our health.
We CAN begin to blame however, when we IGNORE the PROOF; Not just from science and research but from our own body in HOW WE FEEL (inside and out), HOW MEANINGFUL and EXCITING OUR LIFE FEELS and how often we COMPLAIN ABOUT OUR HEALTH. When all of this is in place, but we DON'T try to learn how to manage our time spent on our devices - THAT falls on us as individuals I feel.
You can find great information ALL OVER to help you better understand the negative impacts of COMPULSIVE use of our devices. Here's a couple to get you started:
This is also the case for getting support and help in this regard from a professional. Health and Wellness Coaches (like me) can not only help you better understand HOW you're using your phone/devices is negatively impacting your health, but also provide strategies to shift that practice into helping you make your phone a TOOL in your days, rather than your entire lifestyle.
Shifting your habits and relationship with your phone promotes more energy, less brain fog, greater focus and attention, better sleep, feeling less physical tension, reduced stress and anxiety etc...
Connect for a FREE 10-min Discovery Call to chat about how Health & Wellness Coaching can help with this!
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