When I decided to give up my home telephone about two years ago and rely exclusively on my cellphone, I congratulated myself on getting rid of those annoying telemarketing calls — sometimes called robocalls.

Up until that point, I had received hundreds of such calls on my home phone but not even one on my cellphone.

Silly me.

Within a few days, I started getting unsolicited calls from 800 and other numbers, which were clearly telemarketing solicitations. I ignored them. A minor annoyance, I reasoned.

But then I started getting calls from numbers with the same prefix as mine. I figured it was someone in the area, maybe even a neighbor, trying to reach me. Wrong. It was a telemarketer in some far-flung place, such as Rochester, N.Y., wanting to sell me a romantic ocean cruise.

It took me a couple of these calls to get wise to the sophistication of telemarketers, so I decided that unless I recognize the number of the caller I would not pick up. In every case, the telemarketer did not leave a message. So, again, another minor annoyance, but I still wasn’t about to go ballistic.

Then, last week, an even newer wrinkle: I received a call from myself. This was a first. I was tempted to answer it to see what I had to say to myself. Of course, alarm bells went off, so I did not answer the call and, instead, checked with my tech-savvy son. He told me do not answer these calls; they are from telemarketers.

Now, I am really ticked off, because I am on both the state and federal ``do not call” lists, but it doesn’t seem to make any difference. One official compared the ``do not call” lists as a ``tennis net trying to prevent a flood.”

There were 4.5 million complaints, including mine, to the ``do not call” registries in 2017. For all the good they do. I have found that these robocalls are getting worse. With state and federal intervention, I would have expected just the opposite.

In this marvelous technological age, this is the downside of progress. Because we are so reliant on our smartphones, robocallers disrupt our lives at the most inopportune times — during meals, while we take a nap, during church services and during business meetings.

The number of robocalls has reached nearly 4 billion, according to YouMail, which collects and analyzes calls through its robocall-blocking service, an increase of nearly 900 million compared to 2017.

Besieged by complaints from consumers, including me, both chambers of Congress have either passed or introduced legislation taking aim at curbing these intrusive abuses. Last fall, federal regulators issued new rules that give phone companies the right to block certain types of robocalls.

Tracking robocalls is close to impossible, because they travel through a dizzying series of networks making it difficult to pinpoint their origin, so this enables companies to sidestep state and federal rules and regulations.

Doctors and other medical practitioners have complained to federal officials that having to deal with robocalls can be the difference between life and death. Because ``neighborhood spoofing” can mimic local prefixes, these providers feel compelled to answer calls, especially since they might involve an emergency. This takes precious time away from what could be an actual emergency call.

A New Jersey surgeon told of an instance where he thought a call coming in from a number he didn’t recognized was a robocall. Instead, he said, it was an emergency room doctor calling about a patient who had lost a thumb and was calling for the doctor’s help.

Consumer advocates are concerned that the number of robocalls will continue to grow, especially since a recent federal court ruling reversed the definition of an auto-dialer and gave the Federal Communications Commission the authority to come up with new guidance.

They fear that the FCC and other government regulatory agencies have become much friendlier toward business under the Trump administration, so they expect the rules to be loosened, not tightened, as most consumers want.

An FCC spokesman said the commission will ask for public comment on how auto-dialers should be defined, then take action after considering these comments.

I can’t imagine any consumer saying, ``Oh, yeah, let’s have more robocalls.” If you would like to add your two cents in opposition to the number of robocalls you are receiving, you can comment to the FCC in writing at: Federal Communications Commission, 445 12th Street, SW, Washington, D.C. 20554.

By BRUCE FRASSINELLI | tneditor@tnonline.com