Smartphone stress: Are you a victim of 'always on' culture?

LONDON. KAZINFORM You get anxious if there's no wi-fi in the hotel or mobile phone signal up the mountain.You fret if your phone is getting low on power, and you secretly worry things will go wrong at work if you're not there.

These are the typical signs of "always on" stress induced by smartphone addiction, BBC News reports. For some people, portable connected devices have liberated them from the constraints of the nine-to-five. Flexible working has given them more autonomy over their working lives and enabled them to spend more time with their friends and families. For many others though, smartphones have become tyrants in our pockets, never allowing us to switch off, relax and recharge our batteries. And a number of commentators are becoming increasingly concerned about the syndrome. Work/life balance Pittsburgh-based developer Kevin Holesh was so worried about how much he was ignoring his family and friends in favour of his iPhone he developed an app - Moment - to monitor his usage. The app enables users to see how much time they're spending on the device and set up warnings if self-imposed usage limits are breached. "Moment's goal is to promote balance in your life," his website explains. "Some time on your phone, some time off of it enjoying your loving family and friends around you." And some employers are acknowledging that getting the work-life balance right isn't so easy. We need help. For example, German car maker Daimler recently introduced an email auto-delete option for its holidaying employees, in recognition that they may not have the willpower to switch off from work.