Our brains are not designed to release good feelings all the time for no reason. The human brain evolved to promote survival. It’s designed to release the good feeling of dopamine and oxytocin when you step toward meeting a survival need. It defines survival with circuits built from past experience: whatever triggered your happy chemicals in the past built neural pathways that turn them on today.

Your phone triggered happy chemicals in your past, by bringing good news and social support. That turned on your dopamine or oxytocin and connected all the neurons active at the moment. Now, the thought of your phone activates a pathway that flows to your happy chemicals.