Our position: This summer, LT students should take steps toward breaking phone addictions to live a life more rooted in the present.

Sporting the lovely “text neck,” consider yourself a proud member of the “Scroll Now, Live Never” Smartphone Addiction Club–no time back guarantee! 

Almost every smartphone owner knows the feeling; you open it up to answer a text, then get an Instagram notification. Then your friend sends you a Snap, you want to know what the weather is like in Hawaii…before you know it, it’s been an hour. A new 2026 study from Review.org found 46% of Americans consider themselves addicted to their phones, and on average, check their phones 186 times a day. As summer approaches, the desire to fall victim to the doom scroll heightens, and this summer, it’s time to take back control. 

Feeling panicky when your phone is out of reach, finding it difficult to control the amount of time on it, we all know the classic symptoms of phone addiction. It’s why so many of us show up to school sleep deprived from staying up late on TikTok, and then complain that it’s the school’s fault for not having a later start time. No surprise then that 49% of Americans sleep with their phone at night and 84% check it within 10 minutes of waking, according to the same 2026 study. 

One of the simplest ways to solve this problem is to place your phone far from your bed or in another room to reduce temptation. This shift, along with going phone-free 15 minutes after you wake, will help you start the day less overstimulated, more well-rested, and productive. 

The 2026 study confirms that 56% of us use our phones while eating dinner, and 41% use or look at their device while on a date (yikes, that’s harsh). It seems more and more of us, either due to the implications of COVID or smarter algorithms, have lost the value of in-person connection. Remember the days when you used to bike to Tates with your friends, and now we sit five feet away, sending reels without ever looking up from our phones. Learn to put down the tech and engage in a meaningful conversation at dinner, get out of the basement, and spend time outside with friends—you’ll form closer relationships quicker than any 30-second video can. 

Ever really stopped to think about your daily phone habits and realize, huh, that’s weird. Using your phone while watching TV or in the bathroom (for everyone’s sake, please don’t); this desire to be on your device in such situations can stem from FOMO—the Fear of Missing Out. Summer is the time to teach yourself to embrace the now, to learn to focus on living your own life fully rather than stressing over what others are doing. Watching Sally’s Insta story isn’t going to be something you remember 10 years from now; instead, you will wish that you got off the couch and made some memories while you still could. Play pickleball poorly, split a box of Crave cookies with friends—just live. 

No matter how long you bury your head in your phone, the issues and emotions you had before will still be there when you put it back down. Using tech as an escape from reality is not a healthy coping mechanism—it’s a decline in mental health. Scrolling hours on end in isolation results in loneliness, depression, and brain rot as the consumption of low-value content lacks cognitive challenge. While the algorithm may make you laugh, exercise and face-to-face interactions are what bring joy. Also, do yourself the favor of doing homework before the five-hour scroll, or else college is going to be the worst four years of your life.  

Moral of the story: learn to live a life without a phone glued to your hand. Each day, make small steps to reduce screen time and break free from the addiction. Summer of ‘26 will be one for living, not sitting. 

Staff Vote: 16-7