Your heart rate accelerates, you feel short of breath, you reach quickly to your pocket and feel a wave of relief as you find your phone is still there.

There's a name for the overwhelming fear of losing your mobile phone and with it contact with friends and family — nomophobia — and the findings of a recent survey suggests it's on the rise.

If the answer to any of these questions is yes, then you may be a nomophobe, and you are not alone.

Nomophobia — the fear of being without your cellphone — is on the rise, according to a new report sponsored by SecurEnvoy, a company that specializes in digital passwords.

The Post Office’s® telephony expert Stewart Fox-Mills said: "nomo-phobia is very real for many people in the UK. We’re all familiar with the stressful situations of everyday life such as moving house, breakups and organising a family christmas — but it seems that being out of mobile contact may be the 21st century’s contribution to our already manic lives.