Talk to Amanda | Could your mobile be causing relationship problems?
Could your mobile be causing relationship problems? Reasons why mobile phones can cause issues in your personal relationships and how to solve them.
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16 Dec Could your mobile be causing relationship problems?

Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, WhatsApp, Instagram, BuzzFeed…the list goes on and on when it comes to addictive social networking and instant messaging opportunities that are an increasingly important part of our daily lives. There’s no doubt that the ability to get instant access to an incredible amount of information through our mobile is a great thing. Similarly, the ability to send messages to friends or loved ones for zero cost, no matter where they are in the world, is an amazing tool that we now take for granted.

But it also makes you wonder what all this is doing to how we communicate with those closest to us, whether that be friends or partners. It’s all too easy to send a flippant message by text that can be misinterpreted or taken the wrong way. Often people try and resolve conflict or disagreement over e-mail or instant message – a format which removes the closeness, emotional connection or trust of a face-to-face or even phone conversation.

Similarly, it can be easy to get caught up spending so much time on your mobile or online that you stop having more meaningful contact with those closest to you. In fact, a recent study revealed that 62% of women felt that technology interfered with time spent with their partner. Likewise family meals can end up with everyone flicking through their mobile messages rather than speaking to each other!

There are many ways this can affect us in our daily lives. Perhaps these might ring a bell…?

  • Your partner spends more time on their phone or tablet than they do asking you about your day
  • You received an upsetting e-mail at work containing something which the person wouldn’t necessarily say to you in person
  • You had a disagreement with a friend who started an argument over text message
  • You posted something on Facebook which you later regretted

 

When it comes to conflict or emotions, it isn’t always easy to talk about the issues which are troubling us, especially if they are deep-rooted or longstanding.

Therapy can certainly help with this but here are some tips for next time you have a situation like the ones above:

  1. Don’t react instantly when someone messages you something unpleasant. Pause, think and reflect on the best way to approach the issue
  2. When dealing with delicate situations try and have a face-to-face conversation
  3. Set aside some ‘mobile free time’ in the evening and leave the phone/tablet/computer in another room
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