Social Media Addiction: A Psychological Virus in the Form of Tiny Glowing Screens
Step 1: Invasion
Social media allows users to connect and communicate online. We can express the creative side of our personalities with anyone in the world. We can be who we are or take on anonymous identities.
Interactions occur with the push of a button. Conversations happens at our fingertips. Connection materialize on whatever platform we choose to use. I use social media for a variety of reasons… to talk with friends, to video chat with my family, to scroll through memes, and so on. So, this blog post is not bashing on social media, but shedding some light on our problems, glow and behold… I mean lo and behold, that we might be experiencing.
Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat, Pinterest, Tumblr, YouTube, Tik Tok… the list goes on. What do they all have in common? Instant gratification. Constant connection. Dependent people. Without any users, social media would fail. So, why do we use social media?
Dr. Donna Weimer, my professor and mentor at Juniata College, half-jokingly claimed that social media is “a psychological virus that is overtaking the youth” after I asked her how she defines social media. I was interested in if social media could be considered as a virus.
virus noun
vi·rus | \ ˈvī-rəs \
plural viruses
2) something that poisons the mind or soul
After much consideration, I found a lot of validity to her statement. Social media causes more harm than good — and here’s why. Social media is addictive. We crave attention and affection — it’s human nature. Social media invades our thoughts and occupies our minds. We let it invade us… it’s our choice to use these platforms.
Step 2: Infection
I view social media as a “highlight reel” or “snapshot” of my reality. Social media is a space to highlight accomplishments, friendships, and other aspects of our “perfect” lives. Is what someone posts really what they are experiencing, feeling, and thinking every day? How can someone be so happy? Also, how did their candid shot capture them in a perfect pose with great lighting, framing, and literally every freaking detail?
The answer is our doubt and envy of what we see other people posting causes us to try to do the same thing. Instead of posting pictures and memories that genuinely bring us joy, we use social media for comparison. Social media infects our lives, contaminates our thoughts, and damages our self-esteem.
Step 3: Inhabitation
After infecting us, social media starts to inhabit us…
Who will be our first like, next reaction, or last heart on our post? How is that kid in your math class traveling to all these countries when he claimed to only have $5 in his bank account? Are we procrastinating what we need to study because of our FOMO? Will our crush see our pic and comment? Or are they scrolling in search of someone else? And for the love of God, why can’t we stop stalking our exes?
We are obsessed. Social media inhabits us. One day in the future, I think it will become a part of who we are, literally. Some Mark Zuckerberg wannabe in search of the next big social media thing will find a way to embed social media into our bodies. Hey, at least we won’t have to worry about losing our phones — just our followers…
Step 4: ?
So, what do we do now? According to rapper Watsky, social media will be what saves the world; he claims that “when the sun burns out, we’ll light the world with tiny glowing screens,” (Tiny Glowing Screens, Pt. 1 by Watsky). Whether he is being sarcastic or not, social media is a virus. Our addiction is an infective agent that will continue to cause harm unless we change our approach to how we think about and use social media.
Step 5: Interference
In order to stop our growing and “glowing” social media addiction, there are some steps we can take to interfere with our dependence to impact us for the better. We need to turn off our notifications. Every time we hear that buzz or ring and see that notification pop up, we are more inclined to check your phone. We need to limit our usage. Excessively using anything is detrimental. Moderation is key. We need to be productive and positive. We should find ways to feel like we have done something important every day whether it be small or large. We need to spend more time with people — in real life. (I promise it’s not as bad as it sounds). Most importantly, we need to hold ourselves accountable. Remember, social media is only the end of the world if we let it be.
