How much time do you spend on your cell phone?
According to a recent survey by reviews.org, you're likely on your phone for hours a day.
The survey finds Gen Xers spend almost 5 hours a day, while boomers spend more than 3 hours of their day on their phones.
This can have implications for our brains, our health and our relationships.
Scripps News speaks with clinical psychologist Dr. Shahrzad Jalali about the potential dangers of doomscrolling.
"When you're exposed to a constant stream of alarming content, whether it's war, distress of political chaos, our nervous system does not just observe it, it experiences it," Jalali says. "So it cannot differentiate between reading the news or actually going to the phenomenon itself. And if our nervous system never gets a chance to calm down from this state, it can lead to emotional numbness, sleep issues, burnout and climate fatigue."
"Doomscrolling hijacks our brain's dopamine system. So the same thing happens as if we are involved in any other addiction, even if the content is negative, our rain starts chasing that unpredictability, thinking maybe the next will help us feel better, or understand better, or get more informed. The classic dopamine seeking behavior. So if you don't stop it, it can actually turn into an addiction for sure," Jalali says.
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"We have to differentiate between reading the news and observing it in our body," Jalali says. "So some things to watch out for: If you feel a baseline of tension, even when nothing is happening around you, or you're checking headlines first thing in the morning and last thing at night before you go to bed. And you feel detached from joy our connection when looking at your phone. So the best way to do it is to actually be mindful of what's happening and responding to your body accordingly."
Watch the full interview in the video above.
