Makkah newspaper

WE have heard about the signs of drug addiction that doctors and specialists can easily identify. When we notice such signs in a person, we take him or her to specialized clinics for treatment before the addiction takes them to dangerous levels.

Similarly we can identify a number of signs to reach the conclusion that a person is addicted to cell phones. Such addicts deserve advice and guidance to overcome the condition. Let’s discuss some signs of mobile phone addiction, which has become rampant in our society.

First, a person may claim that he is not very much concerned with cell phone but in reality he carries it with him always even during meetings or while receiving guests. This means he is an addict, even if he keeps the phone upside down on the table. Its presence on the table itself shows the man's concern for the device. Moreover, he has come to an important meeting carrying his cell phone.

Second, when you activate certain apps, you will naturally open them several times a day. This is another indication of addiction and you need quick treatment. We advise you to close the apps to avoid distraction and running out of battery without any good reason.

Third, do you feel like going out naked when you forget your cell phone at home or in the car? If yes, it’s an indication that you are a cell phone addict and you need treatment.

Fourth, if you think of taking the phone to the toilet fearing you would miss something important, you certainly are an addict and if you actually take it with you to the toilet then yours is a hopeless case.

Fifth, if the excessive use of cell phone while driving was about to cause a road accident, you should know that you are definitely a cell phone addict and if you have caused any accident you should be taken to deaddiction clinics to ensure the safety of yourself and others.

Sixth, if you have more friends in the virtual world than in the actual world you are an addict. If you spend the whole weekend surfing social media messages on your phone without finding time to meet your friends in the neighborhood you are an addict and need quick treatment.

Seventh, if you have slept with the cell phone in your hands many times in a month, you are definitely an addict and you should change your approach to the cell phone.

Eighth, if the first thing you search after getting up from sleep is your mobile and you are unable to read messages because you cannot open your eyes properly, and this happens several times in a month, you are an addict who requires treatment. May Allah save your wife and children.

Ninth, if you have collided with a person face on in the corridors of a government office or lost balance while getting down the steps or you were about to hit a glass barrier that you did not notice while surfing your phone, you have reached the dangerous level of addiction.

Tenth, if any three of the points mentioned above have occurred in your life, you are really a cell phone addict and you are in danger. If five of them have occurred in your life you are in the most dangerous zone and if you have experienced nine of them it is high time you change your ways to avoid the danger and its painful consequences, which will be circulated by phone addicts through social media.

I have a single-point solution to end this addiction. Stop using cell phones!