Health

Feeling Pain Under Your Left Breast? Here’s What Your Body’s Trying to Tell You

Explore the top causes of pain under your left breast, from heart and lung conditions to muscle injuries and breast health concerns.

alt
Photo: Getty Images/Boyloso
Published Oct 22, 2024

Written by 

Marygrace Taylor

Pain under your left breast can send up some red flags, especially because chest pain in general is related to so many health conditions. Figuring out what you’re dealing with can take some detective work—it could be related to an injury, your gut health, your heart, or even your breasts themselves.

Experts in This Article

David Cutler

board-certified family medicine physician at Providence Saint John’s Health Center Santa Monica, California

Whether it’s a dull, constant ache or a sharp pain in the left breast that comes and goes, discomfort in this area “has a wide variety of causes,” says David Cutler, MD, a board-certified family physician at Providence Saint John’s Medical Center in Santa Monica, California. “This vast array of diagnoses range from minor issues to more serious medical problems.”

In other words? It’s tough to self-diagnose pain in your chest region, and if it’s severe or long-lasting, it’s safer to get checked out by a doctor. Here are some of the possible culprits and how to manage your symptoms.

8 causes of pain under your left breast

1. An injury

If you’ve fallen or had a recent blow to your rib area, that could be to blame. “Overuse or injury to the muscles in the chest wall, such as from lifting, stretching, or poor posture, can lead to localized pain,” Dr. Cutler says.

More severe injuries can lead to a broken or fractured rib, which can cause pain when you take a deep breath, press on the area, or bend or twist.

How to treat it: Mild chest muscle injuries will usually get better on their own with time and rest. While you heal, ice or hot packs and NSAID pain relievers (think: ibuprofen) can help you feel more comfortable.

See your doctor if you think you have a broken rib. Most rib fractures are treated with rest, ice, and over-the-counter (OTC) pain relievers. But your doctor also may recommend physical therapy or breathing exercises to help your lungs continue to move normally, per the Mayo Clinic.

2. Costochondritis

Sharp, aching pain that hits on the left side of your breastbone and gets worse when you breathe deeply or cough could be costochondritis—a condition marked by inflammation of the cartilage that connects the ribs to the breastbone, says Dr. Cutler. It doesn’t have a clear cause, but it may be tied to severe coughing and most often affects people over 40, notes the Mayo Clinic.

advertisement

How to treat it: You should seek emergency medical attention for severe chest pain to rule out serious or life-threatening causes, like a heart attack, the Mayo Clinic recommends. If your care team determines that you have costochondritis, they may recommend taking pain relievers to manage the discomfort until the inflammation calms down (which should happen within a few weeks).

3. GI conditions

Sometimes an issue brewing in your gut can cause pain to radiate upwards under your breast or even into your chest, Dr. Cutler notes. Here are the most common conditions:

Acid reflux or GERD

“Stomach acid backing up into the esophagus can cause burning pain under the breast,” Dr. Cutler says. Acid reflux can happen occasionally from eating rich or fatty foods, spicy foods, chocolate, caffeine, alcohol, or a lot of onions or garlic, especially if you lie down afterwards, per the Cleveland Clinic. When acid reflux happens regularly (more than twice a week), doctors call it gastroesophageal reflux disease or GERD.

How to treat it: An OTC antacid like Tums or Rolaids can soothe an occasional case of reflux by coating your stomach to decrease acid-related discomfort. Your doctor might recommend a more powerful acid suppressant, like a proton pump inhibitor, if you have GERD.

Gastritis

Gastritis, or inflammation of the stomach lining, can cause stomach pain that radiates up to the left side under the breast, Dr. Cutler says. The condition often stems from an infection from the bacteria H. pylori, but heavy alcohol intake, stress, or overuse of NSAID pain medications can also be a trigger, notes the Mayo Clinic. Along with a burning stomach, gastritis can also cause a gnawing sensation in your stomach, nausea, vomiting, or feeling uncomfortably full after you eat.

advertisement

How to treat it: You and your doctor will need to figure out what’s causing your gastritis before you can treat it. H. pylori infections require antibiotics, but gastritis caused by other things can often be managed with OTC or prescription acid blockers, per the Mayo Clinic.

Hiatal hernia

Hiatal hernias happen when the upper part of the stomach bulges through the large muscle separating the chest and abdomen. “That can potentially cause discomfort or pain under the left breast,” Dr. Cutler says, along with heartburn, unusual fullness after eating, trouble swallowing, or shortness of breath. It’s common in adults over 50, especially those who have obesity, the Mayo Clinic notes.

How to treat it: Hiatal hernias don’t always require treatment, but your doctor may recommend heartburn meds if your hernia is giving you reflux. If that’s not doing enough to manage the problem, you may need surgery to repair the hernia, per the Mayo Clinic.

4. Breast conditions

If you have pain under or around your left (or right) breast, the issue could be breast-related specifically, especially if you’re currently breast- or chestfeeding. Here are some potential issues:

Mastitis

Mastitis, aka inflammation of the breast tissue, most often affects breast- or chestfeeding people, because it’s typically caused by an infection from a clogged milk duct. It can make the affected breast (left or right) hot, red, swollen, and painful while causing flu-like symptoms like fever, chills, and body aches, per Johns Hopkins Medicine.

How to treat it: Talk to your doctor if you think you have mastitis. They may prescribe antibiotics to fight off the infection. Gentle breast massages and ice packs can make you more comfortable. Try to keep up your regular feeding or pumping routine, too, because draining your breast regularly will help prevent the infection from getting worse, Johns Hopkins Medicine notes.

advertisement

Fibrocystic breasts

Hormone fluctuations that happen throughout your menstrual cycle, especially between ages 30 and 50, can give your breasts a lumpy or ropelike texture, often just before your period. Sometimes they can cause pain or tenderness, too. Usually both breasts are affected (as opposed to just the left one), per the Mayo Clinic.

How to treat it: Fibrocystic breasts aren’t harmful and they don’t increase your risk for breast cancer. But it’s a good idea to let your doctor know about any lumps or changes to your breast tissue, so they can rule out serious causes. Large, painful fibroids can be removed surgically; if they only cause mild symptoms, you can manage the discomfort with OTC pain relievers, hormonal birth control, and wearing a supportive bra, the Mayo Clinic notes.

Breast cancer

In rare instances, breast pain could be a sign of breast cancer. Other possible markers include a lump in your breast or armpit, thickening or swelling around your breast, skin that’s dimpled or irritated, red or flaky skin around the nipple, nipple discharge, or changes to the shape or size of your breast, per the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

How to treat it: See your doctor right away if you think you have any of the above symptoms. Your doctor can order an ultrasound or biopsy, and if needed, recommend the best course of treatment. Getting annual mammograms starting at age 40 (or younger if you have a family history) can help catch breast cancer early, per the American Cancer Society.

5. Nerve conditions

Sometimes an issue with certain nerves can lead to pain in your chest or breast, says Dr. Cutler.

Thoracic neuralgia

Thoracic neuralgia (sometimes called intercostal neuralgia) happens when you have a pinched nerve in your spine that causes pain to radiate into the front of your chest, Dr. Cutler says. The pain can be sharp, stabbing, radiating, or burning, and be accompanied by numbness or tingling. It often happens after an injury or trauma to the back, chest, or rib area, per the National Library of Medicine.

advertisement

How to treat it: Thoracic neuralgia treatment depends on the underlying cause. Sometimes the pain can be managed with physical therapy, pain medications, or corticosteroids; other times, nerve blocks, or even surgical procedures are a better fit, the National Library of Medicine notes.

Shingles

If you’ve had chickenpox, the virus could reemerge as shingles when you get older, particularly after age 50. Shingles causes the nerves under your skin to get inflamed, leading to pain, burning, and tingling, per the National Library of Medicine. The inflammation and pain usually affects a person’s face, but “if the virus affects the nerves in the chest area, it can cause a painful, burning sensation under the breast,” Dr. Cutler says.

How to treat it: Let your doctor know if you think you have shingles. There’s no cure, but antiviral medications can help you get better faster, especially if you take them within three days of your symptoms starting, the National Library of Medicine notes.

6. Lung conditions

Pain under your left breast could actually be stemming from your lungs. Here are some conditions to consider:

Lung infections

Infections like pneumonia or bronchitis can cause sharp or stabbing chest pain that gets worse when you breathe deeply. Other symptoms, which can range from mild to severe, may include a cough with greenish or blood-tinged mucus, fever or chills, shortness of breath, fatigue, and sharp or stabbing chest pain that gets worse when you breathe deeply, says the American Lung Association.

advertisement

How to treat it: See your doctor if you think you have a lung infection. Some infections, like bacterial pneumonia, may need antibiotics. Others, like viral pneumonia and bronchitis, may clear up on their own with rest and fluids. But in some cases, your doctor might also opt to prescribe an antiviral medication.

Pleurisy

Pleurisy is an inflammation of the lung lining that can be caused by an infection or autoimmune disease. It’s typically marked by sharp, stabbing chest pain that comes from one specific place, that worsens when you breathe or cough. The pain can be so strong that you might find yourself trying to breathe carefully to minimize your discomfort, per the Mayo Clinic.

How to treat it: Pleurisy treatment depends on the underlying cause. Some infections will require antibiotics, but in other cases, your doctor may recommend pain relievers or corticosteroids to ease your discomfort. If fluid is building up in your lungs, you may need to have it drained.

7. Heart conditions

Breast or chest pain, especially pain on the left side, could be a sign that something is going on with your heart, Dr. Cutler says. If you’re having severe or unrelenting chest pain, you should seek medical attention ASAP.

Angina

Angina is a type of chest pain that happens when blood flow to the heart is temporarily reduced. Symptoms often feel like a heart attack—including pain that radiates under the left side of your breast, Dr. Cutler says. Like a heart attack, angina can develop from heart disease. The difference is that symptoms of angina can come and go, and can often be relieved with the right tools, per the Mayo Clinic.

advertisement

How to treat it: Rest or medications like nitroglycerin can often ease angina pain in the short term, while lifestyle changes or medication to lower blood pressure or cholesterol can help resolve the problem. For sudden angina that won’t go away, call 911 and get to the nearest emergency room, as it could be a sign of a heart attack.

Heart infection

Cardiovascular infections like pericarditis or endocarditis happen when parts of the heart become inflamed. They’re often caused by viral infections like bacteria or pneumonia. You might feel a sharp or stabbing pain around or under your breasts or upper abdomen that gets worse when you lie down, breathe deeply, or cough.

How to treat it: Seek medical attention if you have signs of a heart infection. Depending on the infection and its cause, you may need to take high doses of anti-inflammatory medications to reduce inflammation around your heart or take antibiotics or antifungals to clear the infection, note the National Institutes of Health.

Heart attack

Heart attacks happen when a blood clot in an artery blocks the flow of blood to the heart. “They can cause intense chest pain that radiates to the left side, arm, neck, or jaw,” Dr. Cutler says. You might also get chest pressure, tightness or fatigue, a cold sweat, dizziness, nausea, or shortness of breath, according to the Mayo Clinic.

How to treat it: A heart attack is an emergency that requires immediate medical attention. If you or someone you know is having possible symptoms, call 911 immediately.

Diagnosing pain under your left breast

Figuring out the cause of pain under your left breast will depend on the other symptoms you’re having. “A physical examination for signs of heart, lung, or chest wall disease is very important,” to rule out serious heart or lung problems, Dr. Cutler says. Once those are accounted for, your doctor may order other tests like an EKG, chest X-ray, CT scan, or blood tests.

advertisement

From there, they can figure out the best treatment to relieve your pain.

When to see a doctor

Pain under your left breast isn’t always cause for concern. Sometimes, the problem will clear up on its own (like in the case of a mild injury). But in other cases, the discomfort could be a sign of a serious problem, says Dr. Cutler. Make sure to reach out to your doctor about rib cage pain if:

  • The pain happened after trauma or an injury
  • The pain is severe and hasn’t gotten better after 24 to 48 hours
  • The pain is accompanied by other concerning symptoms like shortness of breath, dizziness, or nausea

Sign Up for Our Daily Newsletter

Get all the latest in wellness, trends, food, fitness, beauty, and more delivered right to your inbox.

HealthHealth Conditions

‘It’s Amazing How It’s All Connected.’ Here’s How Trauma Can Affect Your Pelvic Floor

Trauma and your pelvic floor are connected. Here's how trauma affects your pelvic floor, according to health experts.

alt
Photo: Stocksy/Marija Savic
Published Feb 2, 2025

Written by 

Heather Mayer Irvine

Content warning: This story contains references to suicide and physical and emotional trauma, which may be upsetting or triggering for some readers.

Experts in This Article

Alexandra T. Milspaw

an international consultant and educator for chronic pelvic and sexual pain

Lauren Garges

a women’s clinical specialist and the director of the pelvic health rehab program at St. Lukes University Health Network

advertisement

The only thing that stopped Zoe* from taking her own life was the love she had for her two children. But the indescribable chronic pain she was experiencing was all-encompassing. And none of her doctors—nearly a dozen—knew what was wrong. Worse, perhaps, they wrote her off, condescended her, passed her around from physician to physician. “They washed their hands of me,” Zoe, now 48, tells Well+Good.

After a year of medication and doctor visits and dismissed cries for help, for what was first suspected (never confirmed) to be a urinary tract infection that morphed into excruciating pelvic pain, Zoe found herself speaking with a pelvic floor physical therapist. She was diagnosed with a hypertonic—tight, overactive—pelvic floor. Now, the healing and treatment could begin.

What is the pelvic floor?

The pelvic floor is made of important muscles and tissues that hold pelvic organs, including the bladder, bowel, and uterus. Lauren Garges, PT, DPT, a women’s clinical specialist and the director of the pelvic health rehab program at St. Lukes University Health Network, likens the pelvic floor to a hammock of muscles. And, like the muscles in your neck, legs, or back, they can be too weak or too tight. But when a person experiences trauma, acute or over an extended period of time, it can lead to pelvic floor dysfunction, explains Garges.

Pelvic floor dysfunction is an umbrella term that refers to a host of issues, including urinary incontinence, pain during intercourse, constipation, and urinary frequency and urgency, Garges says. If left untreated, pelvic floor dysfunction can lead to chronic conditions, including back and hip pain. It can be hard to diagnose at this point because the root of the problem, in the pelvic floor, presents itself in the hip and back.

How trauma can affect the pelvic floor

Not only does the pelvic floor hold numerous organs, but it’s also where the vagal nerves are rooted. These nerves are part of the autonomic nervous system, which controls digestion, heart rate, and immune system, explains Alexandra T. Milspaw, PhD, an international consultant and educator for chronic pelvic and sexual pain.

The human fight-or-flight response to stress is linked to the autonomic nervous system, which means it’s impossible for a person to experience fight-or-flight without the pelvic floor tightening, Milspaw says.

Garges, who frequently refers her physical therapy clients to mental health professionals, says that trauma is incredibly individualized and subjective. Giving birth, for example, falls into the realm of trauma.

“Birth trauma would be the physical things that need to heal—torn muscles, stitches, nerve damage,” Garges says. “Some people recover quickly, in three to six months, but for others, it can persist for much longer, and that’s when you should see someone who can treat it.” Birth trauma can also be emotional, if, say, a woman’s healthcare team didn’t listen to her wishes, or the labor and delivery were traumatic.

advertisement

Garges also treats patients who have suffered from sexual assault or abuse, and she describes vaginismus, a type of dysfunction, as a protective mechanism—the body is literally closing itself off. (This can happen after other forms of trauma, too.)

But not all trauma, Garges explains, has to be physical for the pelvic floor to experience distress. “Emotional trauma presents physically in the body, tightness in the muscles,” she says, reiterating that the pelvic floor is made up of muscles. Someone who’s stressed or anxious might have tension in their shoulders and neck, others in their pelvic floor muscles.

Physical tension and stress create a cycle of inflammation that isn’t typically visible on imaging or through bloodwork, Milspaw says, which can make diagnosing these complaints and concerns incredibly challenging. “Anxiety or stress or a head injury can lead to a tight pelvic floor, which can cause [gastrointestinal] upset, which creates inflammation, which can be felt in the brain, and then we’re trapped in this cycle until we can turn off the switch at both ends at the same time,” Milspaw explains.

Eventually, Zoe started working with a pelvic floor physical therapist, who told her, “Your brain has learned this pattern [of pain],” Zoe recalls. “It goes far beyond the acute symptoms, which have resolved. Now your neurons are remembering this pain pattern.”

So in addition to pelvic floor physical therapy, which includes manual therapy, exercises, and breathing techniques, Zoe started seeing Milspaw for counseling. She says although she was surprised at the connection between mental health and pelvic floor dysfunction, “ultimately it made sense. If your nervous system is in constant fight-or-flight mode, it’s bound to have physical effects.”

What happens if trauma goes unchecked

The body is designed to protect itself, sometimes at all costs. This became apparent to Dianna B., 55, when she found herself begrudgingly speaking to a therapist at the request of her husband who was seeing a sex therapist. The couple, who had four children, had stopped having sex when Dianna was 43 and her sister was diagnosed with breast cancer.

On top of that, Dianna had a traumatic second birth, one that required 75 internal stitches. For years, she experienced unidentified pain near her where her stitches had been and bathroom accidents—bowel movement and incontinence. She was sure she had an anal fissure (tests showed she didn’t). “I sat there crossing my arms, saying, ‘I don’t have a mental health issue. I have a physical issue,” Dianna recalls.

Eventually, Dianna started to open up. She recalled being held down by her legs when she was 10 years old while doctors took bone marrow from her hips to give to her older sister who had leukemia. “She was going to die unless she got a bone marrow transplant,” Dianna tells Well+Good. “I was her donor.”

These repressed memories, Dianna says, came flooding back during therapy, and she started to see the correlation: She held trauma in her legs from her childhood and was retraumatized during her second delivery as an adult. “It’s amazing how it’s all connected.”

Milspaw, who has been working with Dianna for years, explains that if a person experiences intense stress, anxiety, or depression for a period of just 10 days, the hardware of the brain starts to change. For example, a 2021 study1 published in Translational Psychiatry, found that trauma exposure during childhood could contribute to structural changes in the developing brain. “It can shrink and deteriorate,” Milspaw says. “This hardware is specifically related to emotional regulation, memory, executive function, and communication.”

advertisement

Milspaw says this trauma is cumulative, that “the body keeps score.” She explains that people assume if there is pelvic or sexual pain, it has to be related to sex-related trauma, but that’s just not true. “People forget the nervous system is one whole system,” she says. “The pelvis is the center of the wheel.”

“People forget the nervous system is one whole system. The pelvis is the center of the wheel.” —Alexandra T. Milspaw, PhD

What to do if you have trauma that’s affected your pelvic floor

Once people know where to turn, trauma to your pelvic floor is treatable. But there are more than a few barriers to treatment, Milspaw says. “People don’t want to touch pelvic pain with a 10-foot pole,” she says. “There is a lot going on in the pelvis, and no one wants to be responsible for it.” The example she gives is the reality Zoe faced: See a gynecologist who sends you to a urologist, who passes you to a gastroenterologist, who kicks you back to a urologist.

Part of this problem, Milspaw says, is that most healthcare professionals are not trained in pelvic health. Another part of the problem is the taboo around sexual health and pelvic pain. People, especially women, do not want to discuss their concerns—Zoe and Dianna are examples of how even when they did try to seek help, they were treated like petulant children with no obvious illness or problem. “The shame piece is huge,” Milspaw says. “You can’t talk about how your vagina hurts as easily as you can talk about how your head hurts.”

Some women think what they’re experiencing is normal because they don’t know anything else. Milspaw gives an example of a high school girl who had incredibly heavy periods—soaking through five pads an hour. She was told, “It’s your period. Get over it.”

Savannah T., 25, suspected what she was experiencing was not normal. She was diagnosed with endometriosis in her late teens and has been through a pharmacy full of medications to manage her symptoms, including debilitating pain. Savannah, a nurse, slipped into a deep depression in 2021 because of her worsening health and working in the COVID-19 intensive care unit. She had to take a leave of absence.

She searched for a pelvic floor physical therapist—something not many people know to do. “My pelvic floor physical therapist educated me on what the floor is and what it does. She validated all of the symptoms I was having,” Savannah tells Well+Good.

Pelvic floor physical therapists provide treatment that can be a mix of exercises, stretches, breathing techniques, and manual tissue release. “When it comes to manual therapy, we have to be mindful of that trauma and maintain an alliance with the patient,” Garges says, noting that a physical therapist will follow a patient’s lead, and hands-on work might not happen for weeks or months.

Garges will prescribe yoga stretches that focus on the lower back to relieve tension, and pelvic exercises like lunges, squats, and hip work. Garges and Milspaw guide their patients through breathing techniques as well.

Milspaw teaches her clients a variety of tools, including emotional freedom techniques—a type of tapping that can assist with anxiety relief—bilateral stimulation music2 to help balance brain activity between the two hemispheres, and pendulation, which can help regulate the nervous system by alternating, or pendulating, between feelings of safety and discomfort.

advertisement

Once Milspaw establishes balance and a feeling of safety in her clients, then more traditional forms of therapy, including talk therapy, she says, are more effective.

Savannah didn’t realize how much her depression, stress, and anxiety connected straight to her pelvic floor. Whenever she had feelings of distress, they could be directly correlated to an increase in her pelvic symptoms. “With the combination of pelvic floor physical therapy and working with Dr. Milspaw, I’ve seen a huge difference,” Savannah says. She still takes medications for her endometriosis, but she knows what her life looks like without her physical and mental therapies. It’s dark.

There are brighter days ahead for Savannah, Zoe, and Dianna. They encourage others to advocate for themselves, even if a doctor—or doctors—is dismissive. They knew something wasn’t right and wouldn’t quit until someone took them seriously. “It’s been a journey,” Zoe says. “I’ve learned a lot about myself. I’ve rebuilt myself from the ground up, from the floor up.”

Dianna, who resented her husband for insisting she see a therapist because they weren’t having sex, now says it was the best gift he could have given her. They’re not quite on the same page yet, but Dianna says there’s hope. “That’s what I’m striving for.”

*Names have been changed, where indicated, to protect privacy.

  1. Jeong, H.J., Durham, E.L., Moore, T.M. et al. The association between latent trauma and brain structure in children. Transl Psychiatry 11, 240 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41398-021-01357-z

    ↩︎

  2. Amano T, Toichi M. The Role of Alternating Bilateral Stimulation in Establishing Positive Cognition in EMDR Therapy: A Multi-Channel Near-Infrared Spectroscopy Study. PLoS One. 2016 Oct 12;11(10):e0162735. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0162735. PMID: 27732592; PMCID: PMC5061320.

    ↩︎

Sign Up for Our Daily Newsletter

Get all the latest in wellness, trends, food, fitness, beauty, and more delivered right to your inbox.

HealthMental Health

Phone-Free February Calls for Breaking Up With Your Screen—Here’s Why You Should Try the Trend

Phone-Free February encourages you to spend less time on your phone. Here are the benefits of less screen time and tips to stay off it. %

alt
Photo: Stocksy / Tanya Yatsenko
Published Jan 31, 2025

Written by 

Korin Miller

Our editors independently select these products. Making a purchase through our links may earn Well+Good a commission

If you’ve ever left the house without your phone, you know how naked it can make you feel in those moments before you race back to reclaim your screen. But you’re not the only one experiencing phone dependency: One survey found that we spend up to 40 hours a week on our phones, and 40 percent of adults say they’re online almost constantly, per the Pew Research Center. Does that number surprise you? Then you may be one of those people wondering if it’s a good idea to spend less time on your phone. Enter Phone-Free February.

Experts in This Article

Aaron Brinen

assistant professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Vanderbilt University Medical Center

Jaime Zuckerman

a licensed clinical psychologist based in Pennsylvania

John Mayer

clinical psychologist and author of Family Fit: Find Your Balance in Life

Thea Gallagher

clinical psychologist and co-host of the Mind In View podcast

advertisement

This nonprofit campaign encourages people to use their screens less for 28 days, with the ultimate goal of interacting more with the real world. Doing Phone-Free February doesn’t mean you have to completely ditch your phone—that would be impossible for most people with jobs, anyway. But it encourages being on screens less. Here’s what the challenge involves, plus why psychologists say this trend is actually worth considering.

What is Phone-Free February, anyway? 

Phone-Free February is a campaign that was co-created by the Global Solidarity Foundation, a nonprofit organization that focuses on social issues like climate justice, smartphone usage, and sustainability. Phone-Free February kicks off on February 1 and lasts for the entire month.

The overarching goal is to “promote healthier smartphone use by challenging you to go without your phone for the month of February,” according to the Phone-Free February website. Participants can choose from two levels: PhoneFlex, which challenges followers to use their phones less and be mindful about their usage, and Phone-Free, which involves putting your phone in a box for a month. (FYI, the creators of Phone-Free February admit on the challenge’s website that this second category is “radical” and “advanced.”)

If you want to do Phone-Free February the way the challenge was intended, you’ll need to sign up for a level online. But technically, you can just try to spend the month of February being more mindful about your phone usage.

Benefits of reducing your screen time

There is a lot of data to show that our phone usage isn’t exactly healthy. That said, lowering your screen time can offer some useful benefits.

Lowers risk of health conditions

Research shows that excessive screen time is linked with a higher risk of obesity, mental health concerns like anxiety and depression, and sleep complications. And unfortunately, obesity, mental health conditions, and sleep issues can all be related. “If you’re on your phone and scrolling, you usually don’t realize that you’re mindlessly snacking,” says Jaime Zuckerman, PhD, a licensed clinical psychologist based in Pennsylvania.

advertisement

Eating more than your body needs can raise your risk of obesity, obesity can then cause sleep disorders like sleep apnea, and not getting enough sleep can worsen your mental health. See the cycle? Cutting back on your screen usage can lower your risk of these health conditions and improve your overall quality of life. “Less screen time could improve your weight and, ultimately, your health,” Dr. Zuckerman adds.

Increases self-awareness

Less time for the phone = more time for you. “A big pro is that you can allow yourself to be with your thoughts when you’re not on your phone,” says Thea Gallagher, PsyD, a clinical assistant professor at NYU Langone Health and a cohost of the Mind in View podcast. “That can be powerful, and you can get to know yourself, building self-awareness of your thoughts, feelings, creative urges, dreams, and imagination.”

Improves relationships

Could your phone affect your relationships? Turns out, yes. Going screenless may also improve your relationships, says psychologist John Mayer, Ph.D., author of Family Fit: Find Your Balance in Life. “I have seen so many relationships being poisoned by one or both partners spending inordinate amounts of time on their phone and not engaging in conversation and activities with their partner,” he says. Without the excess phone usage, you may get some time back to spend with your loved ones and see them beyond the screen.

Boosts mental health

Limiting screen time also means you’re likely to be on social media less—and that can give your mental health a boost, Dr. Zuckerman says.“It reduces the self-comparison that people tend to do on social media and can improve your self-image,” she explains.

Aaron P. Brinen, PsyD, assistant professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, agrees that a lot of phone use is tied to social media. “Many of the things we are doing are algorithm-based,” he says. “Essentially it’s a digital slot machine. Just like any type of behavior on a reinforcement schedule, it’s good to step away. If you’re in Vegas, there’s value in stepping away from the gambling tables. ”When you can make intentional time to take a break, Brinen says you’ll likely notice that your anxiety goes down.

Allows you to become more present

Overall, Dr. Gallagher says that spending less time on your phone allows you to be more present in everyday life. “Phones have a tendency to pull us out of the moment,” she says. “When you remove that, you’re allowing yourself to focus on the people in your life and what’s happening around you.”

advertisement

How to spend less time on your phone

Experts say there are a few things you can do to make it easier to spend less time on your phone. Consider these tips:

  • Curb your app use: Disabling push notifications for apps you don’t need, like social media platforms, can go a long way. You can even delete the apps if you have trouble controlling your use, Dr. Gallagher says. “There are timers and reminders on the phones—you can use them,” Dr. Brinen adds. (He points out that he has a timer on his phone for YouTube and has found it to help limit his use.) Apps that limit screen time are also something you can try if the feature isn’t already embedded in your phone.
  • Designate screen-free times during the day: Dr. Gallagher suggests setting aside time when your phone is put away, like from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. (You can also hide your apps from your phone during certain times of the day, Dr. Brinen explains.) The best time frame to choose is ultimately what fits best with your work and home life schedule. If you’re a heavy phone user, Dr. Gallagher suggests going slow. “Start with 20 minutes, then 30 minutes, and note how you feel before and after,” she says. “It can give you an opportunity to see that those breaks are possible and beneficial.”
  • Put your phone to “bed” for the night: Many people use their phone as an alarm, but you don’t have to go this route. Instead, consider investing in an analog alarm clock and putting your phone away in another room for the night at a designated time, like an hour or half hour before you plan to go to sleep. If you’re worried about getting a call about a family emergency, you can put your phone on “do not disturb” but allow certain contacts to still get through.
  • Don’t feel the need to respond immediately: “A lot of us feel like we have to respond right away if somebody texts us,” Dr. Gallagher explains. “But you don’t have to do that.” Instead, she suggests setting a new precedent with yourself where you only respond to texts within a certain window of time or simply don’t feel pressure to get back to people right away. “People should not feel like they need to be constantly contactable,” she says.

What to do when you’re not on your phone

Have the health benefits of reducing screen time convinced you to try the challenge? We’re rooting for you! But, going without a phone (for short or long periods of time) can still be challenging in this day of age. If you’re seeking ideas of what to do with the newly-founded time in your schedule, look no further. Here’s what our experts recommend to maximize your screenless time:

  • Focus on things you enjoy: If you have certain hobbies in place already, Dr. Zuckerman recommends focusing on them more. But she also stresses that you don’t need to spend time doing something during your screenless time because you feel obligated to do it. “If exercising isn’t something you enjoy, don’t do it during that time,” she says. “You have to make sure these are things you enjoy.”
  • Try to spend time outside: Research has linked outdoor time to better mental health, but Dr. Zuckerman says it’s important to get out in a way that feels natural to you. “You don’t need to go on a hike,” she says. “You can just sit on a bench during a lunch break or take a quick walk outside.”
  • Have conversations with other people: It sounds simple, but Dr. Gallagher explains that you’ll be surprised at how much better conversations flow when you’re not distracted by your phone. Dr. Mayer agrees. “Talk to your partner, your kids. Let’s get back to good conversations,” he adds.
  • Start reading: It’s not for everyone, but Dr. Gallagher points out that reading a good book can be a nice substitution for time you would have otherwise spent scrolling. Don’t love books? Try a magazine, comic book, or poetry. Reading shouldn’t be a chore, so find something that actually piques your interest.
  • Spend time with your thoughts: You don’t have to be doing something, physically or mentally, at all hours of the day, Dr. Gallagher says. Taking time to sit, think, and reflect can help you become more mindful and maybe even learn a few things about yourself along the way.

The bottom line

Phone-Free February challenges you to be more mindful about your phone usage. If you feel like you’re probably picking up your phone too often or doomscrolling even though you didn’t even want to, you’re not alone. But, here’s your chance to be more proactive about your habits.

advertisement

Doing your best to cut down on your screen time can help boost your mental and physical health, and even improve your relationships with loved ones. Just be honest with yourself about when you need to use your phone, and when you don’t, and take things from there. It’s not always easy to give up the devices in our technology-driven world, but be kind to yourself and don’t judge too hard if you still need to be on your phone from time to time. When in doubt, remember what Dr. Gallagher says:  “Have compassion for yourself.”

Sign Up for Our Daily Newsletter

Get all the latest in wellness, trends, food, fitness, beauty, and more delivered right to your inbox.

All Stories

Lifestyle
Sex

How to Squirt During Sex

A step-by-step expert guide to the sexual phenomenon.

by Gabrielle Kassel
on Feb 5
Female hands holding half of fresh fig and touching with finger.
Beauty

Skin Clique is Bringing Medical Skincare Treatments to Your Doorstep Nationwide

The future of aesthetic treatments is anywhere you are.

by Siena Gagliano
on Feb 5
Woman getting injectables from an expert
Lifestyle

Your Daily Horoscope for February 6, 2025

What can you expect today? Discover your zodiac sign's daily horoscope from Well+Good's expert astrologer Stefanie Iris Weiss.

by Stefanie Iris Weiss
on Feb 5
alt
Food
Nutrition

‘I’m a Food Safety Expert, and This Is the Exact Temperature Your Fridge Needs to Be to Prevent Nasty Bacteria From Growing’

Foods in the fridge need to be stored in cold temperatures to avoid bacterial growth. Find out the best fridge temperature.

by Tiffany Ayuda
on Feb 5
woman in yellow shirt opening up fridge in kitchen and checking the expiration date on a bottle
Lifestyle

How We Picked Our Winners for the 2025 Health Tech Awards

We laid out exactly how we chose products to test and the criteria we used to thoroughly vet each item during this process.

by Amy Marturana Winderl
on Feb 4
alt