"I have a confession to make: I limit my kids’ screen time, but I’m a parent who’s addicted to my phone. In 2019, it was reported that about 40 percent of teenagers believe their parents spend too much time on their mobile devices. In 2025, the average American spends five hours and 16 minutes per day looking at their phone. As a parent, I’ve heard so much about the negative effects of screen time on kids—sleep and mood problems, behavioral issues, impaired academic performance, and more—but what about adults? My child has been fighting for my attention and was competing against my cell phone. This sad realization had me anxiously (and timidly) setting my phone down. I decided to commit to connecting my mobile phone to a landline for a week, and I wish I had done it sooner.
While my cell phone allows me to be available at all times, I’ve been feeling less present, especially as a parent. I miss the simpler times when it wasn’t even a part of me. From what led me to put my phone up to how I connected it to a landline to the personal benefits I noticed after a week, read how I used my phone as a landline and what came out of it.
What’s a landline phone?
Landline phones, or traditional phones, connect calls using physical wires—not a wireless or cellular network. Landline phones have been around since the 1800s and require you to use them while at their primary location, like a home or business.
The relationship with my mobile phone
I grew up in the ‘90s and the early 2000s, where one of my favorite pastimes was eavesdropping on my older sister’s conversations with her friends on our landline phone. Reading emails on a desktop computer and waiting to check voicemails when you got home from work or school were the main forms of communication. It was the era of picking up the phone and saying, “Hi, Mrs. X, is Patty home?” And if I needed anything from my parents while they were at work, well, I called their job.
Text messages on my Samsung flip phone required me (my parents) to pay per text message, so I didn’t do it often. Let’s just say my parents weren’t happy when I sent 15 text messages to a boy I liked in the eighth grade. Those simpler times without a smartphone were freeing.
Now, my cell phone goes everywhere with me
As an adult, wherever I go, my phone goes with me. Admittedly, without it, I feel naked. And it’s not just the physical aspect of comfort my phone gives me. I use my phone as a crutch for my anxiety. When I’m in social situations where I feel anxious, don’t know what to do, or want a form of escape, I pull my phone out and mindlessly scroll through social media (even if it’s for less than 10 seconds). The worst part? Sometimes, I don’t even realize when I’m doing it.
What led me to put my phone down
While I’ve known that I use my phone to cancel out my anxiousness, what really forced me to set it down was when I noticed it was seeping into the relationships with my kids. For example—a common occurrence—my son repeatedly saying to my husband, “Dad. Dad. Dad! Look at me!” It’s completely normal for my son to want someone’s attention right away, but it was the fact that my husband had no idea my son was right in his face. These moments have me nudging my husband to engage. But to watch it continuously happen with him made me realize I do it, too. I do it a lot. I have so many core memories with my kids, but to think that my kids will remember most of their childhood with their mom’s face buried in a screen left me feeling sad.
Buying a landline phone
So, I made the decision to buy a “vintage” landline phone—one that looked exactly like the coiled-up wire and cream-colored phone I grew up with.
If you’re wondering, ‘Why so extreme?’ I’ve tried silencing my phone to still find myself obsessively checking it. And quite frankly, I just knew I wouldn’t have the willpower to not look at it if I didn’t have a physical barrier separating me from my phone. Having the visual representation of a landline phone meant I could still make calls, but it prohibited me from looking at my social accounts or anything else. The act of swiping to answer a call on my cell is like an invitation for me to open other apps like Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook. Next thing I know, I’m lost in it. I didn’t want to do that anymore.
“The act of swiping to answer a call on my cell is like an invitation for me to open other apps like Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook. Next thing I know, I’m lost in it.”
As far as deleting my social media apps, not only is it a part of my job, but there are also accounts I like to follow and find inspo from. This form of a digital detox is more about learning to limit my screen time, being present, and being OK with a phone not being tethered to me 24/7.
How I connected my mobile phone to a landline
I wasn’t quite ready to purchase a separate line for a landline phone. In fact, my home doesn’t even have a phone jack to plug one into. Nowadays, traditional copper landlines are being phased out with more wireless forms of communication. So, besides purchasing a phone, I ended up buying a phone adapter where I could connect my cell phone to the landline phone. This allowed me to keep my phone number, and as dramatic as it sounds, it made it feel like my mobile phone was ‘one with the landline.’
My guidelines for using my landline phone
Talking about willpower, I also set guidelines for myself. Other than working for a media company, I knew I would fall into a gray area when I wasn’t home and had to use my cell phone. Essentially, I wanted to treat the landline like my parents would have back in the day. My parents couldn’t answer the phone or tend to voicemails until they got home, so I wanted to emulate that as much as I could.
Rules for using the landline when I was at home
- Only answer phone calls before work and after work
- Check voicemails and text messages after work
- Can only answer calls from kids’ school/daycare, husband, and grandparents during work hours
- Can look at social media accounts during work hours only for work purposes
- Allowed to look at social media for no longer than 30 minutes after work
- Cell phone must be plugged into adapter while at home
Rules for using my mobile phone when I was not connected to the landline
- Do not look at social media
- Unless it’s an emergency, don’t make phone calls, answer phone calls, or look at text messages until you get home
- Can use GPS to get directions
What happened when I used a landline phone
My goal was to get rid of my phone-separation anxiety, and I wanted to be more present with my kids. However, I was floored by all the additional benefits that came out of this experience.
I sat with my thoughts
Not having the ability to ‘hide’ behind my phone forced me to sit with myself when I was anxious. Reflecting on what was making me anxious rather than pulling out my phone to escape made me feel more calm.
I was in a better mood
I didn’t realize I was starting every morning and ending every day looking at my mobile device. Doom scrolling and the constant whiplash of sad-to-happy-to-depressing social media content no longer had me on an emotional rollercoaster. When I was ready to seek out the news, I did so on my own with one news outlet at a time. The social media hangover no longer carried into my day, and I felt more refreshed.
“Doom scrolling and the constant whiplash of sad-to-happy-to-depressing social media content no longer had me on an emotional rollercoaster.”
I felt more present with my kids
Instead of wanting to plant myself on the couch with my phone, I actively interacted more with my kids, and I know they felt it, too. We’ve visited our local parks, played outdoors, and played together more than ever. And I’m not scrolling on my phone on a park bench either.
I noticed fewer behavioral issues with my son
We utilize an emotions chart at home, and I guide my son as much as I can to “use his words” when he’s frustrated. But I can’t blame him when he throws a tantrum because I’ve failed to acknowledge him while I’m on my phone. When I was off of it, I noticed he ‘acted out’ less.
I was more productive
I love my morning routine, but I loved it even more with the time that I had to be productive. As a matter of fact, my husband and I finished a few home projects in one weekend that had fallen off the back burner over the past year.
I called my friends and had more meaningful conversations
The instant wave of nostalgia came back every time friends and family called. Picture this: me running to the phone before the person could hang up. If you’ve never done this before, it’s a great game. Plus, I gained extra steps doing this. It’s not just that. I found myself having more meaningful conversations when I was on the phone talking to a friend in one sitting. I don’t get the same connection when my only form of communication is texting. Using a landline was nostalgic for others, too. One friend said, “It’s like calling your childhood friend’s house, but their mom answers. You have to ask if they’re available first.”
I didn’t need to respond to texts or be digitally available all the time
I’m learning that digital boundaries are important. Text messaging makes it so easy to be available nonstop. Having a phone on me at all times made it hard for me not to respond right away. Not having my phone on my person automatically set that boundary.
Will I continue using my mobile phone as a landline?
By turning my mobile phone into a landline, I felt like I was better connected with myself, my family, and my friends. Being in the moment and out of the digital world 24/7 felt freeing again. I can’t pinpoint how long I’ve been addicted to my cell phone. So, I’ll be honest when I say the urge to want it at times hasn’t completely gone away. However, I can proudly say that I’m more aware of when I do want to mindlessly scroll. Now, I can tell myself, “I don’t need it.” I intended for this experiment to last over a week, but it’s been almost three weeks now. The landline is still in use.
Patty Schepel, Editorial Assistant
As the editorial assistant, Patty works with The Everymom’s team on pitches, creating original articles, updating existing content, photo sourcing, writing shopping product descriptions, inputting freelance articles, and more. When she’s not working, you can find her spending time with her family, training for half marathons—she ran one 16 weeks pregnant—traveling, cooking, reading a rom-com, and keeping her sourdough starter, Rose, alive.