I feel like my girlfriend is more into social media and her phone than me. She even looks at it when we’re around family or out on a date night. What do you think I could say to her, or do, to take her attention off of her phone without making her mad?
Sincerely,
Anonymous
Dear Anonymous,
Believe it or not, this occurrence is more typical than you think. With the rise of technology, phones have increasingly become tools we use as social crutches, entertainment tools, and an outlet to relax. In any relationship, communication is key, so I would advise to talk this out with your significant other.
At first, it does not necessarily have to be a serious conversation; try suggesting a technology-free date and see how it goes. If you or your partner can’t abandon your technology all together for the night, try suggesting that you both put your phones on silent.
If you participate in this exercise with your girlfriend, she may be more receptive to the idea. After doing this try having a sit down later about how much you enjoyed being phone free for a couple of hours, and use it as a time to bring up your feelings.
There will be times both of you have to use your phones, or take a call during an important event, but the goal is to make that a rare occurrence. Once you start practicing both leaving your phones out of the equation, it will become second nature.
Good Luck,
Chloe
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