By Gouri Shankar Mamidi
Hyderabad: In a quiet home on a Sunday morning, a father scrolls through headlines, a mother checks her social feed, and a child taps away at a game. No loud arguments. No urgent drama. Just silence - and a sense that something vital has been replaced.
The mobile phone, once a symbol of progress and convenience, is now silently reshaping how we think, feel, and relate. It’s connecting us more to data, but distancing us from people. Over time, this digital dependency what some now call “mobile-holism” is quietly morphing into a public mental health issue. And yet, ironically, it is Artificial Intelligence (AI)—the child of the digital age that may offer the most powerful tools to help us reclaim balance.
The Rise of a Hidden Epidemic
Just like alcoholism or substance addiction, mobile overuse shows clear psychological patterns: craving, loss of control, and continued use despite harm. It’s socially acceptable, even applauded, when we’re always ‘available’ online. But what we don’t see is the quiet toll: fragmented attention spans, restlessness, shallow sleep, digital fatigue, and emotional isolation.
According to the latest statistics from the World Health Organization (WHO), more than one billion people worldwide are affected by mental health or substance use disorders. Depression alone affects over 280 million people globally. During the COVID-19 pandemic, there was a 25% increase in the prevalence of anxiety and depression worldwide.
One of the biggest challenges is the shortage of trained therapists. WHO has highlighted a significant gap between the number of people needing mental health services and the availability of trained professionals, especially in low- and middle-income countries.
Global research, including studies from Harvard, MIT, and the World Health Organization, confirms that prolonged screen exposure alters our brain’s chemistry, particularly affecting emotional regulation, decision-making, and sleep cycles. A 2023 Lancet Psychiatry study likened mobile overuse to early-stage behavioural addiction.
And it’s not just teenagers. People of all ages—from officegoers to homemakers—now instinctively reach for their phones, often driven by habit, not necessity.
The Unseen Cost: Fraying Human Connection
This addiction is creating silent casualties in relationships. Physical presence is no longer emotional presence. Children grow up with distracted parents. Couples sit across each other but interact more with their screens than with each other. Real conversations are being replaced by emojis, and attention is the new scarcity.
Even our internal world is changing. A mind conditioned for constant stimulation finds it hard to rest. Stillness, once spiritual, now feels uncomfortable.
Can the Problem Be the Solution? Enter AI
Yes, AI is often blamed for feeding this addiction—with apps designed to be sticky, scrolls infinite, and alerts irresistible. But there’s another side. Across the globe, AI researchers, therapists, and developers are turning this technology inward to help us heal.
In India, the AI-driven chatbot Wysa, developed with clinical psychologists, is helping millions cope with stress, anxiety, and loneliness. Globally, Woebot (developed at Stanford) and Youper use Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) principles to offer mental wellness conversations, mood tracking, and emotional regulation.
Clinical Trials and Validation:
To be credible, AI mental health tools have been tested in controlled clinical studies. A landmark study on Woebot showed a significant reduction in anxiety and depression symptoms over just two weeks of use. Researchers have validated that AI can detect emotional cues, flag risks such as suicidal ideation, and recommend professional help when necessary. These apps provide vital support in times of emotional crisis. Their core advantages include:
- Anonymity & Privacy: Users can open up without fear of stigma.
- 24/7 Access: Always available, regardless of time or place.
- Early Detection: NLP and sentiment analysis can detect suicidal thoughts and escalate alerts.
- Bridging the Gap: For those not yet ready to seek therapy, these tools offer a first step.
These AI tools do not pretend to be human. But they offer something many humans struggle to give uninterrupted, non-judgmental listening.
Fighting Screen Addiction With the Same Screen
Can a smartphone help us reduce screen addiction? Surprisingly, yes.
Apps like Forest, StayFree, OFFTIME, and Space use AI to track usage, nudge users to take breaks, and gamify phone-free moments. Some apps “grow a tree” each time you stay off your phone if you break the focus, the tree dies. It’s symbolic, yes but effective.
Even Apple and Google have responded by integrating AI-powered dashboards into phones, showing weekly screen reports and sending reminders to unplug.
In families, apps like Bark, Qustodio, and FamiSafe use AI to monitor children’s online behaviour, detect risky interactions, and encourage healthier habits without surveillance-heavy confrontation.
Backed by Science, Supported by Society
Institutes like IIT Bombay, MIT Media Lab, and Oxford Internet Institute are now focusing on early detection of digital burnout through voice analysis, facial emotion detection, and behaviour patterns. Some smartwatches are being trained to monitor stress in real time and recommend breaks before burnout begins.
In India, NGOs like AASRA, iCall (by TISS), and Snehi are exploring AI triage tools to escalate urgent mental health cases and refer individuals to professional therapists more efficiently.
Corporates are also piloting digital wellness campaigns, where AI nudges remind employees to take screen breaks and log off after work hours.
What We Must Do as a Nation
Awareness must precede adoption. India must treat mobile addiction like a public health issue.
Schools and colleges must include digital detox awareness in curriculum.
Workplaces must promote mindful tech use.
Governments and CSR initiatives must fund AI wellness tools and make them available in regional languages.
Media and newspapers must continue raising awareness with stories, helplines, and resources.
Not a War on Technology—But a New Partnership
The future does not require rejecting technology. It asks us to redefine our relationship with it. We must aim for mindful digital engagement—where AI becomes our ally in well-being, not a thief of time.
Let us raise a generation where children know what a tree feels like, not just what it looks like on YouTube. Let us return to relationships that thrive beyond emojis, to minds that can rest without swipes, and to lives lived in full presence. The goal is not to reject technology, but to use it wisely. AI can guide us back to balance. It’s time to prioritize emotional presence over digital attention and rediscover what it means to truly connect.
(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are those of the writer. The facts and opinions expressed here do not reflect the views of ETV Bharat)
