Your Phone Is Stealing Your Life—Here’s How to Take It Back

It’s time to set boundaries, reclaim your focus, and break up with screen addiction—for good.

It’s not you—it’s your phone.

At first, it was exciting. Endless entertainment, instant connection, the thrill of a new notification. But over time, the relationship turned toxic. Your phone interrupts your conversations, keeps you up at night, and demands your attention every waking moment. And what do you get in return? A vague sense of anxiety, wasted hours, and a growing distance from real life.

Maybe it’s time for a breakup.

Journalist and author

Catherine Price

has studied the science behind our digital addiction, and in the newly revised How to Break Up with Your Phone, she lays out a step-by-step, 30-day plan to reclaim your time, attention, and happiness. In honor of the book's release and her "Phone Breakup February" challenge, here are some key tips to get you started:

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1. Define what you want.

The top reason that most people’s attempts to cut back on screen time fail is that they jump straight to “hacks” and “tricks” without first identifying why they’re trying to change their phone habits or what they want to be doing with their time. They set an arbitrary goal (my daily screen time must be one hour or less!) and attempt to achieve it by relying on willpower.

Relying on your willpower is a reliably bad way to change a habit. Eventually, it will run out, and you will end up back where you started, with the bonus of feeling like you failed. The point is not to restrict screen time arbitrarily; it’s to reconnect with your life.