Influencer Left Needing Wheelchair After Using Her Phone For More Than 14 Hours a Day

Fenella Fox, a 29-year-old social media influencer with over 156,000 followers on Instagram, says she was addicted to her phone and spent up to 14 hours a day staring at the screen. However, in early 2021, she began experiencing headaches and neck pain which gradually worsened, leading to dizzy spells and nausea which led her to needing a wheelchair. Fox claims she developed “digital vertigo” as a result of her excessive phone use.

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“I just felt like I really couldn’t walk properly,” she told The Mirror on Friday of one particular episode. “I felt really unwell. Dizzy, and kind of distorted. I can visualize it, but it’s not easy to explain.”

At that time, she was living in Portugal and seeked medical attention. However, doctors there were unable to provide a diagnosis. As her symptoms became more severe, Fox flew to the UK to be cared for by her parents.

Fenella Fox on Instagram

“I got a taxi to the airport fine, but when I was in the airport, that’s when I was met with a wheelchair,” she stated. “I had a wheelchair from that point up until meeting my mom the other end and the wheelchair up until the door of her car.”

Fox recalled the difficulty in walking and was confined to her bed, relying on a wheelchair for mobility. However, despite her condition, she remained glued to her phone, unaware that it was supposedly the root cause of her ailments.

“I’m in bed, I’m scrolling from wake until sleep. What I don’t know is at that point I’m making myself worse,” she noted. Doctors in the UK were also confused by the unusual condition. It was only when Fox’s father discovered information about “cybersickness” and “digital vertigo” that she chose to abandon her phone.

“I turned off my phone and threw it into the back of the cupboard or gave it to my parents and was like, ‘Please do not let me on this.’ Then I was able to walk again,” she stated.

“Cybersickness”

According to Dr. Gillian Isaacs Russell, “Cybersickness occurs when your brain receives messages that you’re moving — for instance, by a flashing screen — when you are, in fact, still.” She went on to say it can spark “visual vestibular conflict,” a factor for motion sickness.

Despite her diagnosis, Fox is required to use her phone due to her social media accounts for her livelihood. Apart from Instagram, she is well-known on OnlyFans and reportedly earns over $15,000 every month. However, Fox has stated that she can no longer use her phone regularly since her symptoms resurface rapidly.

“It is unreal. That is our life, our world. If we want to make money, we’ve got to be on [our phone] wake until sleep. There’s so many hours to put in,” she stated. “I can’t do it anymore, I can’t do it myself. I try sometimes to put in the hours that I used to but I get sick all over again.”

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