A 

• Analogue: Anything that is physical or not digital. In digital wellness, it refers to using “real-world” tools like paper notebooks or physical clocks to disconnect from screens.
  
  
• Analogue Hobbies: Leisure activities that do not require a screen or internet connection, such as gardening, painting, or reading physical books. These help provide a mental break from digital noise.
  
  

• Analog Buffers: Using physical objects to replace digital ones to reduce temptation (e.g., using a paper notebook instead of a notes app, or a physical alarm clock instead of your phone). 
  
  
• App Blocker: A software tool that allows you to temporarily restrict access to distracting apps or websites, helping you stay focused on a specific task.
  
  

• Attention Residue: The “mental lag” that happens when you switch tasks. Even if you only check an email for 30 seconds, a part of your brain stays stuck on that task for up to 20 minutes, making it harder to focus on what you’re doing now. 
  
  
  

B — C 

• Bedtime Revenge Procrastination: When you stay up late scrolling or watching videos because you feel you didn’t have enough control over your time during the day. It is a way of “claiming back” personal time at the expense of sleep.
  
  
• Behavioural Interruption: A planned “break” in an automatic habit. It’s a moment that forces you to stop and think about what you’re doing, rather than just acting on an urge. 
  
  
• CBT (Cognitive Behavioural Therapy): A type of talk therapy that helps people identify and change negative thought patterns and behaviours. In digital wellness, it is often used to break addictive scrolling cycles.
  
  

• Choice Point: A specific moment in your day where you have to decide between two paths—one that leads to a healthy habit (like reading) and one that leads to a digital loop (like checking your phone). 
  
  

• Circadian Rhythm: Your body’s internal 24-hour clock. Digital wellness focuses on how “blue light” from screens at night can confuse this clock and interfere with your sleep. 
  
  

• Cognitive Load: The amount of mental effort being used in your working memory. A high “load” (like having 50 tabs open) leads to brain fog and decision fatigue. 
  
  

• Continuous Partial Attention: Being “sort of” present in everything but fully present in nothing—like watching a movie while scrolling through your phone. 
  
  
  

D 

• Digital Detox: A dedicated period where you intentionally stay away from all digital devices to “reset” your nervous system and reconnect with the physical world. 
  
  

• Digital Eye Strain: Physical discomfort, such as headaches or dry eyes, caused by looking at screens for long, uninterrupted periods. 
  
  

• Dopamine Loop: A “craving cycle” created by notifications. Your brain gets a tiny hit of pleasure from a “like” or a notification, which makes you keep scrolling to find the next one.
   

• Doomscrolling: Continuously scrolling through bad news on social media, even though it makes you feel anxious, sad, or overwhelmed. 
  
  
• Dumb Phones: Basic mobile phones with limited functionality (no apps or internet). They are used to reduce digital distractions and return to simple communication.
  
  
  

E — F 

• Eudaimonic Well-being: A type of happiness that comes from finding meaning and reaching your potential, rather than just seeking quick hits of pleasure from social media. 
  
  
• Focus Timer App: An application that uses timed intervals (like the Pomodoro technique) to help you work in concentrated bursts followed by short, screen-free breaks.
  
  

• FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out): The anxious feeling that others are having a better time or know something you don’t, usually triggered by seeing curated posts on social media. 
  
  

• Friction (Intentional): Making a bad habit slightly harder to do. For example, putting your phone in another room creates “friction” that makes you less likely to check it aimlessly. 
  
  
  

G — I 

• Gray-scaling/Greyscale: Changing your phone’s display to black and white. This makes the screen less visually stimulating and reduces the addictive “pull” of colourful icons. 
  
  

• Habit Stacking: Attaching a new, healthy habit to an existing one. (e.g., “After I put my phone on the charger at night, I will write one sentence in my physical journal”). 
  
  

• Implementation Intentions: A “plan B” for your brain. It’s an “If-Then” statement used to change behaviour (e.g., “If I feel the urge to scroll, then I will take three deep breaths”). 
  
  

• Infinite Scroll: A design feature that refreshes content as you scroll so you never hit a “finish line,” making it harder for your brain to find a natural stopping point. 
  
  
  

J — P 

• JOMO (Joy Of Missing Out): The healthy opposite of FOMO—feeling content and present in your own life without needing to know what everyone else is doing online. 
  
  

• Mindless Scrolling: The act of aimlessly flicking through social media feeds without a specific purpose or goal, often losing track of time in the process.
  
  
• Minimalist Phone: A philosophy or specific app interface that strips away colourful icons and notifications, leaving only the most essential tools to reduce the urge to check your phone.
  
  

• Neuroplasticity: The brain’s ability to “rewire” itself. By changing your tech habits, you can physically change how your brain focuses and relaxes. 
  
  

• PERMA Model: A framework for “flourishing” that includes Positive Emotion, Engagement, Relationships, Meaning, and Achievement. 
  
  

• Phantom Vibration Syndrome: The sensation that your phone is vibrating in your pocket or bag when it actually isn’t; a sign of being hyper-alert to digital signals. 
  
  
• Phone Addiction: The obsessive use of a smartphone to the point where it interferes with daily life, relationships, and mental health.
  
  

• Phubbing (Phone Snubbing): Ignoring the person you are physically with in favour of looking at your phone. 
  
  
• Presence: The state of being fully “in the moment” without being distracted by digital notifications or the urge to document the experience for others online. 
  
  
  

S — Z 

• Sensory Grounding: Using your physical senses (sight, sound, touch) to pull your attention out of the “digital world” and back into your body. 
  
  

• Tech Burnout: A state of emotional and physical exhaustion caused by being “always on” and constantly reachable through digital devices. 
  
  

• Tech-Life Balance: The state where a person uses technology to enhance their life without letting it take over their time, relationships, or mental health. 
  
  

• Technostress: The specific type of stress or anxiety caused by an inability to cope with or manage digital technologies in a healthy way. 
  
  

• Time Well Spent: A movement in tech design that focuses on creating apps that respect a user’s time and attention rather than trying to capture as much of it as possible. 
  
  

• Unplugged Whitespace: Scheduled blocks of time with zero digital input—no podcasts, music, or scrolling—giving your brain room to wander, daydream, and rest. 
  
  
• Variable Reward Loop: A psychological trick used in apps where the “rewards” (likes, notifications, or new content) appear at unpredictable times, making the habit much harder to break.