Smartphones changed how you live. You wake up and check your phone before you look outside the window. You scroll before you talk to anyone. It feels normal and harmless. Yet your mind and relationships pay a big price every day.

Mobile use gives quick entertainment. It gives escape from stress. It gives a sense of connection. But too much screen time steals the same things it promises. It takes away your focus. It takes away your real connections. It makes your life smaller while the screen looks bigger.
Youth in Jammu and Kashmir face more risk. Many educated young people cannot find stable work. There are not enough industries or private companies that provide jobs. This creates boredom and frustration. To avoid negative thoughts, you pick the phone. You scroll to relax. You scroll to forget. What was five minutes becomes two hours. You do not notice. You only feel tired later.
There is a science behind this habit. When you scroll and see something new, your brain releases dopamine. This is a chemical that gives a quick feeling of pleasure. It tells your brain that you did something rewarding. You feel a tiny moment of happiness. You want to repeat it. So, you open your phone again and again to get that reward. Social media apps know this. They design features like likes, comments, reels, and notifications to trigger dopamine. It becomes a loop. You feel bored, you open the phone, dopamine hits, and the loop continues.
But dopamine has a side effect. When you depend on it for happiness, normal activities feel boring. Studying, reading, talking, praying, practicing skills all becom harder. You lose patience. You want fast pleasure. Your brain becomes restless.
This habit affects how your brain works. You get used to fast information. Short videos. Quick posts. You cannot focus. You jump from one thing to another. You struggle to think deeply. You feel stressed when the phone is not with you.
Your mental health suffers. You compare your life with others. You see happy photos and achievements. You start to feel you are behind. You forget that social media hides real problems. You see others’ best moments and your full life including stress. This hurts your self-esteem and confidence.
Scrolling also increases anxiety. Your mind stays active all the time. You fear missing updates. You check again and again. It becomes hard to relax.
At night the problem increases. Your brain needs a hormone called melatonin to fall asleep. Melatonin protects your sleep cycle. Mobile screens give off blue light. This blue light stops your brain from releasing melatonin. You feel awake even when your body is tired. You scroll more. You lose sleep. You wake up tired. Poor sleep makes anxiety, stress, and depression even worse.
Relationships also weaken. You sit with family but your eyes stay on the screen. You talk less. You listen less. People feel ignored. You look available but you are not present. Trust and closeness start to disappear.
Even in conversations, you check messages. It shows the phone is more important. Slowly relationships lose depth. There is less care. There is less time together. Loneliness rises even with people around you.
In Kashmir health problems are rising because of lack of physical activity. Youth and children spend long hours indoors. They scroll. They play games. They stop going outside. Weight increases. Muscles weaken. Eyes hurt. Neck and back pain becomes common. This reduces confidence and energy.
Winter makes it worse. Cold weather and snow keep people inside. Outdoor walks reduce. Sports stop. Boredom rises. Phones become the only activity. Vitamin D drops because of less sunlight. Mood becomes low. Depression increases. Social isolation becomes stronger.
Children learn from adults. If parents stay on phones, children think it is normal. They speak less. They go outside less. Their creativity drops. Their learning slows down. They become angry or sad easily. Online bullying and negative comments affect their confidence.
But you can change your habits. You can control your screen time before it controls you.
You can start with simple daily steps. Turn off notifications that do not matter. Keep the phone away while studying and eating. Do not use your phone in bed. Fix daily screen limits and follow them. Go for a walk every day even in cold weather. Talk to family members. Spend time outside. Pick a hobby like reading, sports, music or photography. These activities improve your brain and mood.
When you feel bored, do not unlock the phone immediately. Take a deep breath. Drink water. Look around. Help someone at home. Write your goals. Do something that adds meaning to your life.
Social media is not always bad. It is powerful if used wisely. You can learn skills online like video editing, graphic designing, language learning, and content writing. You can share your talent. You can promote local crafts, dry fruits, tourism and culture. You can earn money from your phone if you work with purpose. You can turn entertainment time into growth time.
The Government of Jammu and Kashmir(UT) is creating opportunities for youth. There are business schemes, loans and training support. Young people can start their own work in IT, agriculture, education and services. Many success stories are already growing here. You can be one of them.
Your phone should help your growth. It should support your future. It should not steal your time and peace. Your relationships deserve attention. Your brain deserves rest. Your health deserves movement.
Look up from the screen and see life around you. Talk. Laugh. Play. Work hard. The world outside the phone is beautiful. You can build a better future when you use technology with control and purpose.
You have talent. You have dreams. Do not let scrolling take them away.

Email:--------------------syedahmad713@gmail.com