In the current era of technological advances, an average person cannot imagine life without using the internet. One of the biggest contributors to that is social media today. There are many choices to go for, such as Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, or the recently growing Tik Tok. Almost every teenager and student nowadays have all of the above. While these platforms provide a lot of value to their users, they can also become dangerous and addictive. Below you will find a short list of reasons why social media is not all that glorious.
Cyberbullying
The internet provides people anonymity, which often leads to hate threads and arguments. It is easy for social media users to get involved in a hateful drama, which often results in bullying. For a long time, this has been the #1 of the negative effects of social media ever. Cyberbullying is especially hard to deal with since it spreads fast and grows beyond expectations. Many schools try to prevent such events by having students write essay examples on the topic. This way, young kids can learn about all the negativity it brings.
General Addiction
One of the reasons why social media is so appealing is the addictive element. This is especially true for college members and teens, who often look for entertainment on the internet. Regular social media use can make you feel like you’re missing out on something, so people want to stay up to date.
The dopamine released during internet activity can become very addictive. It also lowers the attention span, makes the user feel guilty about their life and hungry for more. That’s why it is extremely important to not go overboard with social media use and monitor your screen hours.
Loss of Sleep
This is a rarely talked about truth social media does to people. A lot of users tend to log in at night, exposing themselves to blue light from the screen for long hours. People may sacrifice sleep in order to scroll their social media wall and then encounter serious health problems.
Lack of sleep can lead to mental breakdowns, brain fog, and low energy. All of which could be easily prevented. The smart idea is to set certain time windows where you can or cannot use the internet. We recommend never using social media for longer than an hour before sleep. Some essays say it is best to avoid screens in the evening at all.
Lack of Privacy
While many celebs and athletes share their life on purpose, some people just go overboard. Showcasing your whole life on social media might seem like a cool idea at first. But to be fair, it can lead to an extreme addiction, to the point where one cannot enjoy an activity without posting it somewhere. One essay points out that being glued to your phone makes you appreciate your day less.
And this is even more significant for people who are online 24/7. Everyone should have at least a bit of privacy. Otherwise, they risk constant social media presence, which can later be used against their intention or will.
Unrealistic Expectations
This is a very serious problem today’s social media platforms face. Thankfully it is slowly being acknowledged. However, it is still present. Many teenagers in the education process encounter this struggle. They go on the app and see all the flashy, beautiful pictures of famous influencers. Young users often cannot realize that social media is all about image.
They fall into the trap of wanting to replicate the lifestyle or body image of actors and models. Which, unfortunately, is tough to do and often impossible. That’s where teachers and university professors should come in and suggest creating your own image instead. If we can spread awareness about this, perhaps many more people will be able to live fulfilling life without fake expectations.
Conclusion
As you can see, social media is not all happy and beautiful. That doesn’t mean we want to discourage people from using it. It would be best if everybody would stay aware of the above effects.
With them in mind, it will be easier to adjust the usage of popular platforms. We need to stay up to date since they’re constantly evolving and changing the media definition.
We advise you to lower your social media usage and see if this results in more quality time left for you. Good luck!
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