Loud phone use winds me up. Why?

[randomeddy]

Am I just grumpy or is there more to it, when in a crowded room the general hustle and bustle doesn't make me bat an eyelid but as soon as someone starts playing something loud on their phone I can feel my anxiety levels rising and depending on how long it goes on for I might have to leave the room.

I am a lot more emotional ever since I had a heart attack, has that got something to do with it?

[vixen1700]

Think it's pretty normal to be honest, I can put up with all kinds of noises, but scraping of cuttlery on a plate sends me insane.

There are probably other irrational noise irritations too.

[Rockets7]

randomeddy said:

Am I just grumpy or is there more to it, when in a crowded room the general hustle and bustle doesn't make me bat an eyelid but as soon as someone starts playing something loud on their phone I can feel my anxiety levels rising and depending on how long it goes on for I might have to leave the room.

I am a lot more emotional ever since I had a heart attack, has that got something to do with it?

I sympathise but if you’ve had one attack you surely need to let the minutia slip by?

[anonymous-user]

Might be an age thing too, old people are often quite intolerant. Spend any amount of time in a pub or restaurant and you’ll see old folks looking daggers at someone with kids or even asking to move tables.

[Don Veloci]

Not just you, you're not alone. I've no tolerance for a loud phone interrupting a room whether that be music/video streaming, face time, or other.


I get wound up by a phone dominating a room whether it be peaceful chilling with TV/film or a social gathering - they're not physically here so why should their conversation get to take over the space. Sticking a phone in my face demanding attention

Maybe I'm the mad one.

[sociopath]

Newarch said:

Might be an age thing too, young people are often quite insensitive. Spend any amount of time in a pub or restaurant and you’ll see young folks letting kids run amok without any sort of discipline or control, or being loud and trying to impress their friends

FTFY

[croyde]

What happened to earphones?

Sat in an A&E the other day and loads of youngsters were watching TikTok or other vacuous crap at full volume.

But then I noticed plenty my age were watching telly on their phones with the volume up.

It's just plain rude.

If I am in a room with others and cannot leave, I just don't take the call.

It's just manners.

[Monkeylegend]

croyde said:

What happened to earphones?

Sat in an A&E the other day and loads of youngsters were watching TikTok or other vacuous crap at full volume.

But then I noticed plenty my age were watching telly on their phones with the volume up.

It's just plain rude.

If I am in a room with others and cannot leave, I just don't take the call.

It's just manners.

Electronic media is now the only way the young generation and many of the older generation communicate and spend their time, totally wrapped up in their hand held devices to the point where they cannot even let go of them.

Before the mobile "phone" we all sat and talked to each other which in itself made a noise, just a different probably more acceptable noise to us old fogeys who find it annoying and don't participate in the modern world.

Anyone remember the "letter". My Mother would write a letter to her sister every Thursday, and would get a reply every Monday of Tuesday the following week. We really looked forward to those letters to find out what had been going on.

A question to all those who are complaining, do you have a mobile phone and would you be willing to throw it away and go back to pre mobile days ?

I think we all know the answer to that

So suck it up guys, it will only get worse.

[Pixelpeep 135]

I don't mind people talking loud on a phone if they're actually using it correctly.

These knobs that walk around with their phone horizontal and speaking into the bottom of it on loudspeaker need to be taken from their families in the middle of the night and shot in front of them.


that fking irritates the bejebus out of me.

[bigandclever]

Misophonia, innit, coupled with your own interpretations of what is acceptable in polite society.

[budgie smuggler]

Pixelpeep 135 said:

I don't mind people talking loud on a phone if they're actually using it correctly.

These knobs that walk around with their phone horizontal and speaking into the bottom of it on loudspeaker need to be taken from their families in the middle of the night and shot in front of them.


that fking irritates the bejebus out of me.

god yes, i always get the urge to slap the phone upwards out of their hand high into the air, spinning to a satisfying end on the ground

miserable git i am tbh tho

[DodgyGeezer]

croyde said:

What happened to earphones?

Sat in an A&E the other day and loads of youngsters were watching TikTok or other vacuous crap at full volume.

But then I noticed plenty my age were watching telly on their phones with the volume up.

It's just plain rude.

If I am in a room with others and cannot leave, I just don't take the call.

It's just manners.

This, this, thrice this

[Driller]

For it’s the sound of a barking dog drives me absolutely mad. It just seems like so futile and annoying for no gain.

[jdw100]

Deal with it.

Not as in just 'deal with it' in your head, as in actively attempt to deal with it.

I do that rather than sit there fuming.

If I walk into a cafe (and i do pretty much every day) and someone is playing something out loud - well I can either put up with it or go somewhere else.

If I'm sat in a cafe having my coffee and someone comes in and starts to disturb me, I'll ask them to turn it right down or please use headphones.

Where I live, it's often parents giving phones or tablets for child to watch youtube or play a game...with volume up.

That or 'digital nomads' using Zoom, Skype or Teams with no headphones.

I'm not a dick about it: if its a busy cafe and people do a lot of stuff like that in there, fair play.

It's when its a quiet place and people think they can just come in and disturb me; I'm polite, never angry...but persistent.

90% of people - no problem, they are fine. Didn't realise and then they understand it probably was loud and they just hadn't thought about it. Apologies and thanks all round. Helps I have an English accent....

5% of people (a lot of parents) grudgingly do it.

Remaining 5% - mostly Russians. Not happy. Well if you want to play videos of your night out to each other at full volume next to me....

Threatened once with a stabbing by three yoofs on a Thameslink into London. Was out of my depth there...

Some Swiss(?) chap absolutely apoplectic in an airport lounge...staff had already told him twice to stop shouting into his phone.

One guy in a quiet carriage on train heading up North. Stormed out then had to storm back as he had left his jacket behind.


I have a child - she never has any electronic device when we are out and about.

I make calls: I'll go outside or I'll use a cafe where its the usual thing to do and I'll wear headphones.

What I'm not is one of those people that tuts and makes twisted disapproving lips at people playing sound out loud.

I feel better for dealing with it than sitting there fuming.

[JimmyConwayNW]

Before having kids the kids on ipads thing didn't make sense.

Now I get it as it just gets you a peaceful quiet meal which might be the first time in months the adults have had a chance to go out. I try not to let them have volume up mega loud though so negligible difference to talking volume.

[jdw100]

JimmyConwayNW said:

Before having kids the kids on ipads thing didn't make sense.

Now I get it as it just gets you a peaceful quiet meal which might be the first time in months the adults have had a chance to go out. I try not to let them have volume up mega loud though so negligible difference to talking volume.

I think we'll have to disagree there.

Our daughter is 4 and is regularly out with us for lunch and dinner etc.

She has colouring or books or toys or we involve her in the conversation.

Never had any electronics in the car, she can look at the outside world and we talk about what we see etc.

We had some long drives (6+hrs) on holidays last couple of years and she looks out, plays with toys, we talk or she sleeps.

Same on flights: we flew out for trips and a couple of weddings last year and since only short haul she spent a lot of her time looking out the window - we had a big chat about volcanoes, since we flew over lots of them. Now one of her favourite subjects.

You do see kids at airports with noses stuck in phones or tablets. It's an airport; planes to look at and talk about. Wander round the shops etc.

We have bought some headphones for her as we will do some longer haul trips this year. No way is she playing anything out loud on a plane. Its just inconsiderate and downright chavvy.

In fact i'm picking her up at 13:00 and we'll head to a cafe I use as I have some work to pull together.

She'll do some drawing, run around a bit, 'help' in the kitchen etc.