Why are people addicted to social media.

When you’re out on the streets, walking down the road, do you notice the green trees, the chirping birds, and the dazzling blue sky?

The answer probably is a ‘no,’ and I don’t blame you nor shame you when I too don’t observe and take in the various beauty around me.

I now wonder what could be the reason? Try as I may, nothing comes to mind other than the handy little invention we now call a ‘smartphone,’ but it’s not the mobile phone that causes our attention is it? It’s what the phone contains. Social media apps like Instagram, Facebook, WhatsApp, Twitter, and many more.

Statistics say:

92% of teenagers go online every day

24% of teenagers are always online

77% of parents believe their kids are distracted by social media, even when the family is together.

They have us entrapped; they are traps we willingly walk into every day despite knowing the grip it has on us. Have you ever wondered why? Why are we so addicted to social media?

Could it be due to social networking? To widen our horizons, stay connected with old friends, keep up with our foes? Perhaps. Our need to communicate is very human; we are social creatures, after all, meant to walk the earth to connect.

Researches go as far as to claim that a simple ‘like’ on social media affects our brains in the same fashion as chemical substances. Linked with social networking is social validation, our need to feel good about ourselves. We experience social validation every time someone ‘likes’ our post on Instagram or Facebook. Social validation literally makes us high in a sense.

Those likes, comments, and shares make us feel good, a further step to improving our self-esteem. And as selfish as this craving may be, we all wish for others to be envious of our lives. Social media provides an opportunity for just that.

Things aren’t always what they seem, and it can never be more true than in the context of social media. On such a platform, we are the best version of ourselves. We are everything we want to be; everything others want us to be. I’m certainly living a double life, so different from reality could be addicting.

Another cause of social media addiction is ‘FOMO’ or ‘Fear of Missing Out.' We are afraid that a second too late may cause us to be behind everyone. We fear missing out on trends, hot gossips, new music, and many more. The worry of being left behind has us hooked, and it feels almost impossible to claw our way out.

A more biological cause of social media addiction offers that every time we open our favorite apps, dopamine is released into our brain. These neurotransmitters are associated with happiness and pleasure. Our brain connects the link between the release of the neurotransmitter to social media and understands that social media is a rewarding activity.

And when the happy-go dopamine fades off, we go back to it to feel that sensation again, causing a repeating cycle.

There seem to be a lot of commonalities between social media and drugs. Both are consumed to leave behind our lives, gain self-esteem, and be a happier version of ourselves, so naturally, just like any drug, social media is addicting.

As you read this article, chances are you’ve gotten distracted multiple times on your way to the end; I know I have as I wrote those.

So, what do we do about this addiction of ours? I think the first step might be to go outside, and this time appreciate the beauty that is all around us- the green trees, the chirping birds, and the dazzling blue sky.