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I am OVER my phone. Or rather, I guess I\u2019m over my phone\u00a0addiction. And I really hate to admit it\u2026 and I\u2019d love to pretend like I\u2019m not, but I absolutely am addicted to my phone. I\u2019m sure people have it worse, but that doesn\u2019t change the fact that I am addicted to mine to whatever degree. My phone is a critical part of my life\u2013 it\u2019s essential for my job, of course, and I obviously need (and want) it just as an adult in society.<\/p>\n
I\u00a0enjoy scrolling on TikTok (to an extent) and I like Instagram (to an extent). I love my NY Times Games and Puzzles that I do every morning. I use my phone for the baby monitor and for the security cameras around our house and to control the garage door opener and Apple Pay so I don\u2019t have to bring my wallet everywhere. I\u2019m not anti-smartphone.<\/p>\n
However\u2026 I need better boundaries and the phone and these damn apps are designed to keep you scrolling for just one more video. The notification pop ups when your favorite writer publishes another newsletter. Your manager dings your Slack. Your spouse reminds you to grab milk on the way home. The school sends notifications about which playground they\u2019ll be at during pick up.<\/p>\n
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One of my fave podcasters started talking about \u201cbricking her phone.\u201d<\/a> I\u2019ve seen the ads everywhere for Brick<\/a>\u2013 a little square magnet that allegedly blocks you out of your phone. But it felt a little gimmicky and I also didn\u2019t fully understand how it worked. She kept raving about it though, week after week, and then I had a moment where I truly wanted to run my phone over and I ordered one. Actually I ordered two and it\u2019s been one of the best investments I\u2019ve made for my mental health.<\/p>\n Is it going to cure my phone addiction? Probably not. But it\u2019s making me so much more intentional about my phone use. The first day that I used it, I am mortified to admit that I lasted under 30 seconds before I tried to open Instagram.\u00a0While I was walking up the stairs. It was a habit I didn\u2019t even realize I had. I was going to scroll Instagram while WALKING UP THE STAIRS. I don\u2019t care that Instagram and answering DMs and keeping up with comments is part of my job. Checking an app for a quick dopamine hit while walking up STAIRS is insanity. I knew immediately when the app popped up and said \u201cgo back to living\u201d that this was going to be beneficial.<\/p>\n Pin it<\/p>\n WHAT\u00a0IS THE BRICK?<\/p>\n The Brick <\/a>is a little device that physically blocks you from distracting apps (of\u00a0your choosing)\u00a0on your phone.<\/p>\n HOW DOES IT WORK?<\/p>\n I don\u2019t know the exact ~tech~ behind it, but basically you select what apps you want to block and then you tap your phone to the Brick device and you\u2019re blocked out of the apps. The only way to open the apps again is to physically tap your phone to the device again to \u201cunbrick.\u201d<\/p>\n WHAT DOES IT BLOCK?<\/p>\n I had a misconception that the Brick<\/a> locked you out of everything on your phone, which I didn\u2019t really understand the point. (Why not just put your phone in a drawer at that point.) But it actually allows you to pick and choose what apps you block and when. You kind of create these \u201crecipes\u201d of different groups of apps. So you could have a group of apps you want to block while you\u2019re at work and another grouping while you\u2019re playing with your kids and another group to block when you\u2019re sleeping. I love how you can tailor the app and the Brick to best benefit me.<\/p>\n HOW MANY DO YOU HAVE?<\/p>\n I bought two. I had one in my cart and then it gave a pop up about how two is better than one and I did realize that maybe having a back up for work emergencies wasn\u2019t the worst idea. So my main Brick is on our refrigerator and then I have another one buried in my glove box in my car. Because the only way to open a blocked app is by physically touching a Brick device, I am keeping that one in my car in case my phone is bricked and I\u00a0have to do something for work. I\u2019ve had it for a couple of months and have only used it to actually Brick my phone while I was out and about running errands\u2013 I\u2019ve never needed it for emergencies!<\/p>\n I think it\u2019s worth mentioning something I discovered once I bought one\u2013 anyone can use it! So if you have friends over and they have the Brick app, they can use your Brick to brick their phone. You and your roommates or spouse can share one. A teacher could get one for a classroom. Your office could set them up for employees to use if they want, etc. It\u2019s nice that anyone can tap it!<\/p>\n WELL CAN\u2019T I JUST ADD TIME LIMITS ON MY PHONE?<\/p>\n Yes. If that works for you, great. But if you\u2019re finding yourself overriding the limits, maybe it\u2019s not actually working for you. Also, you might be okay with 30 minutes of TikTok scrolling a day, but you could still use those minutes inappropriately (like pulling up the app while you\u2019re playing with your kids). The Brick adds an additional layer of intentionality. There\u2019s no override. It\u2019s\u00a0locked.<\/p>\n I have seen videos on TikTok about how you can basically make your own brick with RFID stickers<\/a>\u2026 so if you\u2019re trying to be thrifty, that could be an option.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Brick-Device.jpg\"\/)
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