Social media is this one big digital place where everyone can share information. Lots of people find joy and happiness from social media and don’t actually realize the negative effects of it. It has some good effects, like connecting communities around the world but there’s also a very big downside.
“I think that spending too much time on social media can control your life,” Addison Hood, a freshman, said.
Addiction to social media is a problem around the world. Young adults can get addicted to social media just like drugs and alcohol according to a recent study, “The prevalence of social media addiction was 36.9% among users.”
People get so distracted and occupied by social media that they forget to do daily activities. “The average American will spend over two months (65 days) on their phones in 2023,” based on a survey on Reviews.org. The study showed that most people waste their time on social media instead of doing other things.
Social media can also impact mental health, “Social media can make you start comparing yourself constantly,” said Ethan Hancock, freshman.
Humans are social beings. They need human interaction to evolve. If they always stay on our phone then the world won’t change.“Children and adolescents who spend more than 3 hours a day on social media face double the risk of mental health problems including experiencing symptoms of depression and anxiety,” according to a series of reports.
On social media, some people project only positives about their lives, which makes many others watching want that kind of perfect life. Many also edit photos of their physical appearance which makes individuals compare themselves to others on social media.
There is even a darker side, there is sexual exploration and harassment on social media. Parents are starting to get very upset about this because there’s been millions who have lost their children to sexual exploration and harassment. “Combating dangers faced by children online had been one of his “top priorities” as chair of the committee and that online child sexual exploitation is a crisis in America,” Dick Durbin, a member of the democratic party, said, in an article on social media harassment victims. This issue is becoming so big that Dick Durbin and Mark Zuckerberg came out and spoke about these issues to parents who have lost their children because of sexual exploration.
Overall social media can be a very negative place. It can impact you emotionally and physically. When you go on social media be careful and be aware of the way you perceive and take things in. Don’t be on social media for too long, take breaks in between. Remember not everything you see on social media is real and don’t compare yourself to others.