It happens at restaurants, while driving, at bed time, during school and while life is passing by. It is an addiction that has taken over adolescent lives. Texting has become a primary focus of teens.

“I hate when I leave my phone at home,” junior Heidi Klassen said. “I need it. I use my phone for everything.”

Any action can become a habit or addiction, and texting can get to that extreme. That extreme is illustrated by an article in the Ergonomic Times which has made a list  of ways teens can save their hands while texting. Such advice as “If texting starts to hurt your hands, stop. Use the other hand, or call instead. Vary the hand you use. Vary the digits you use. Don’t text for more than a few minutes without a break…” highlights the advice in this article addressed to teens who text to the extreme. The advice even includes a list of thumb exercises.

“There is no reason to have to exercise your thumbs,” junior Chastin Jackson said. “If you have to stretch your thumbs before texting, you’re too fragile or too old to be texting.”

Jackson, who sends about 700 text messages daily, said she is obsessed with texting.

“I text all the time,” Jackson said. “I text in every class period because I get bored and don’t want to listen to the teacher talk.”

Jackson said she finds ways to hide her cellphone during school.

“I put it behind a folder, in my jacket, or just do it when the teacher isn’t watching me,” Jackson said.

Junior Karly Pitcox, however, does not try to hide her cell phone during class.

“I really don’t try to hide it,” Pitcox said. “Teachers look for that. I try not to make it obvious.”

Pitcox said she would rather take 15 minutes out of the day to go get her phone than go a whole day of school without it.

“I feel completely naked without my phone,” Pitcox said. “I get so sad when my phone dies. It’s depressing.”

Math teacher Gracie Sosa knows the problems caused by cellphone use in the classroom.

“I am very much against it,” Sosa said. “I don’t think cell phones should even be allowed in the school. Students aren’t focused when they have their phones.”

According to a 2010 New York Times article by Matt Richtel, researchers say the lure of technologies like texting and computer sites are “particularly powerful for young people. The risk, they say, is that developing brains can become more easily habituated than adult brains to constantly switching tasks–and less able to sustain attention”.

The article makes the point that student brains are being rewarded for not staying on task because they seek immediate gratification.

The worry is that teens won’t be able to concentrate on one task for very long, a skill that colleges and careers require.

Many teens, however, don’t see any danger in either losing concentration or getting in trouble for texting.

“When cellphone use isn’t allowed, it makes me want to use my phone more often,” Pitcox said. “If it was allowed, it probably would not be that big of a deal.”

Sophomore Tonya Sodd does not like texting in school or while with friends.

“I’m not much of a texter,” Sodd said. “I hate when other people text because they’re not listening to what you have to say because they’re too focused on their phone.”

With the onset of summer, students will have more time to spend texting, fueling their obsession. The question is, what will not keep their attention…summer reading, summer jobs, family time, church activities…