BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — If you woke up Thursday morning and were having issues with your cell phone, you weren't alone.
AT&T acknowledged a widespread service outage across the country impacting tens of thousands of customers who were unable to call, text, or access the internet.
The good news is that service to the large majority of those impacted has reportedly been restored.
READ MORE: FCC's Homeland Security Bureau investigating massive AT&T cell outage
Still, the outage led to a conversation in our 7 News morning editorial meeting on Thursday about how attached we are to our cell phones.
So 7 News Anchor Jeff Russo reached out to Melinda DuBois, Executive Director of Mental Health Advocates of WNY for some insight.
Melinda DuBois: "It's a definite test for us to recognize the fact that we have an incredible reliance on our phones to function, work, and communicate with our loved ones. It can be really terrifying when we don't have access to our phones all of a sudden. I think one of the most important things to recognize when this happened is if you are feeling feelings of anxiety, stress, panic, and frustration, all of those feelings are very normal. The first thing is to recognize those feelings you may have as they are occurring."
Jeff Russo: How much is "too much" when it comes to cell phone use and screen time use?
Melinda DuBois: "I think it's a really good question because phones can be used for so many things, and they also can be rather addictive, we know that. So constantly being on your phones, constantly using phones for everything you do in life, it's a slippery slope, you want to be able to take breaks from your phone usage."
Jeff Russo: What signs would you say point to the fact that you are using your phone too much?
Melinda DuBois: "I think a really good sign is to just pay attention to how many times you pick up your phone during the day, and how many times you put the phone down and don't pay attention. So if you pick up your phone any time there is a quiet moment in your life, you are standing in line, your TV show ends, or you finish a book, if you are constantly picking up your phone to check and see what's happening you are relying too much on your phone. It's just a fact. "
Jeff Russo: What are some tips that you can give people who think they may be too reliant on that phone to pull away for a bit?
Melinda DuBois: "There are really nice apps right now, and tools you have on your phone, that you can use, and a lot of people use, to put that phone down. You can set an app so that you are only allowed to be on social media for an hour each day, and then it shuts down. You can have reminders on your phone that say, ok, here's a break time, put your phone down. So you can use your phone as a way to help you limit your phone usage and I think those are really important tools to use."
Mental Health Advocates of WNY is a team of experienced advocates who support mental health and well-being in our community through programs and support.
If you would like to contact Mental Health Advocates you can do so by calling 716-885-1242 or by visiting the organization's website at MHAWNY.org
