Social Media Meltdown

Most people, especially teens and young adults, find themselves opening Instagram, Snapchat, or any other social media app throughout the day. Scrolling down instagram or looking at friends’ snapchat stories and seeing what people are doing gives us a sense of feeling included. The funny videos and memes that flood the TL also is a plus, being that it provides laughs and something to talk about. Social media is cool, why not use it?
All this may be true, however, despite all the pros and kiki’s social media use can lead to a few problems. Now I’m not here to give you an afterschool special on how social media ultimately leads to lazy millennials are some crazy bs like that. I’m just trying to raise awareness, maybe spark up a conversation on how social media affects our lives.
Now the first and most obvious problem social media can lead to is time consumption or procrastination. Yes, we’ve all done it. One minute I’m working on my thesis for a school paper the next, I’m on Twitter trying to see why Kanye West is trending. It’s moments like this when I start to question how addicted I actually am. Why is it that I can’t complete a simple task without being tempted to look at my phone. It’s not like the same things won’t be on our TL or notifications about an hour from now. Unless you’re receiving some type of income for being on social media you should at least try to cut time spent on any app to a minimum. Also, when trying to stay focused on a certain task you should avoid any use completely. Why is it that these social media apps are so important to us that it distracts us from everyday life? Like this isn’t even a rhetorical question like seriously, why???
A lot of people like to check their social apps often to avoid being out of the loop. I mean social media was literally created so we can be updated on the people we care about and love and just know what’s going on. People post party flyers, things about events, who just got dragged in theshaderoom comments, just everything that is happening. And you want to be updated, so you habitually scroll down whatever TL or feed holds your interest.
However, it can become problematic when you start comparing your life to others. Typically, on apps like Instagram or Snapchat people are sharing the best moments of their lives. Hanging out with friends, trying cool new food, doing exciting things, all of the above can be shared by people around you and cause you to feel the fear of missing out, or FOMO. Not to mention, it can make you feel like your life is pretty dull when you’re laying in bed watching Netflix with a bag of chips and see Claire from high school twerking on somebody’s countertop at a house party.
Things can go downhill when you’re so tapped in to your social media that you confuse what's real and what is digital. Social media is not only used to stay updated on people you care about, but it was also created so you and all the other users can flex. Yep, that right. These apps like Instagram, Snapchat, and Twitter are used to showcase your life in the brightest way possible. So that means you are only seeing the best parts of people’s lives, not all of it. Yeah, you might see a picture of  couple hugged up on twitter but you don’t see the fight they had last night about the boyfriend sliding in other girls dm’s. Yeah, you see pictures of someone rocking designer but you don’t see them sleeping on an air mattress at they best friend’s house. Sometimes what people post on the internet can even be flat out lies. Let’s not forget the #bowwowchallenge happened.

This problem can even get deeper and start to mess with your self esteem. You might see pictures of girls with a smooth hourglass figure and curse your cellulite and fat tummy (love the body you have ladies and gents). You might see a tweet by one of your peers announcing her internship at a cool new fashion magazine, while you are struggling to simply pick a major. This is when comparing yourself to others online gets crucial. It could lead to you thinking you’re not good enough or worse...thinking that something is wrong with you. However, this is far from the case. Everybody has their strengths. And everybody has their imperfections and weaknesses. It’s just that most people only show their good side on social media. So, we might get tricked into thinking they have the perfect life. But the reality is, they don’t. They have bad days and struggles just like you, and in some cases maybe even more than you.
All in all, social media impacts us more than we know. It can consume our time. It can even change the way we think about others and ourselves. That’s not to say social media can’t be used positively. This could be by networking, giving inspiration, or maybe meeting a new friend. The bottom line is when using it, use it wisely. Most importantly, don’t let it consume your whole life.