Your phone is an addiction machine. It’s like having a casino in your pocket with lots of little slot machines (apps) that continually beg for your attention with buzzes, dings and flashes. Then it rewards you for glancing at it with treats in the form of texts, pics and likes. Only the sound of clanking quarters is missing.

Whenever you check your phone, you don’t know if it will be a text from that hot guy you met out while your boyfriend was home studying (ka-ching), an email from your mom (clank clank), more likes on your Facebook post (ding, ding, ding) or Kris Kardashian asking you to enter a sham marriage with Kendall Jenner because she loves your mirrored muscle selfies on Instagram (jackpot).

Most of the time, there is nothing (silence). Then a little while goes by and you, pretending to wonder what time it is, check your phone again. Each check is a metaphorical lever pull on the slot that happens an average of 150 times per day—all in hopes of getting more of those precious treats.

The reason you get hooked to your phone is something called Variable Ratio Reinforcement, a fancy psychological term that means your treats come in an unpredictable pattern (just like slot machines). So the more you play, the more your brain thinks something good is just around the corner. Eventually you’re hooked.

Dating apps are the worst offenders. (OK, I realize dating isn’t exactly what these apps are for.) Apps like Scruff, Grindr and Tinder are more like man catalogues that allow you to quickly check out the wares in your area before requesting package delivery.

Much like the more generic slot machines of Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat, dating apps give you unpredictable reinforcements like woofs, unlocks and matches—and lots of “Hey” and “Sup.” But unlike those other platforms, dating apps center around one primary goal: sex. The resulting sexual arousal when looking at these apps makes us feel more powerful, more alert and more alive. That makes them the most enticing slot machines (slut machines?) in your pocket casino.

When the day comes to delete your dating apps (for the hundredth time), you still have all your other pocket slots to play with: Snapchat, Instagram, Facebook, texts, WhatsApp, et cetera. Not to mention games like Candy Crush that work on these same principles.

I’m not saying you need to enter rehab or give up apps altogether, but I am saying you might want to wake up to the fact that you’re less in charge of your obsession with that little brick in your pocket than you think. It’s hijacking your brain, and the consequences can be bad.

How many reading this right now have had a fender-bender due to checking your phone while driving, or have incited an argument because you were texting while your boyfriend told you about his day? Perhaps you were passed over for a promotion at work because whenever the boss walks by you are looking down at your phone.

Maybe you need to be more in charge of your time and attention. If you’ve been able to read this entire article without checking your phone, you’re on your way. Let’s see if you can take it to the next level. For one week, try these:

1. Driving: Put your phone in the trunk every time you drive. If you’re a passenger, keep it in your pocket and converse with the driver.

2. Eating: Leave the phone in another room when you’re having a meal (or your car if in a restaurant), either alone or with another.

3. Sleeping: Turn your phone off completely one hour before bed, and keep it off for one hour after you wake up. That should be a total of 10 hours per day.

If you can’t do any of these, your little casino has you hooked. If you can only do one or two, you have some dependence issues, and you need to start practicing moderation. If you can do all three, congratulations, you are the one in charge … for now.