Social media is mainly seen for its entertainment and communication, though when you look deeper, it is not all enjoyable. Social media bases like Snapchat, Instagram, Tiktok, Twitter, etc., are the main social media source used by people all over the world on a daily basis, people are becoming more addicted to it day by day. Social media has become a part of our daily lives, our routines, without us even noticing.

As stated, it is used for entertainment, as well as communication sources. When someone gets home from a long day at work, or school, it is guaranteed that they will sit down and open their phone to a social media site. Sitting scrolling through Instagram or Tiktok, tweeting your thought process, answering a Snapchat message, it becomes draining. 

Sitting and scrolling through pages like Instagram or Tiktok, you could see a variety of things others posted. News, that could be fake, people posting their daily outfit, hateful messages, or even kind ones, etc. Then, putting yourself on social media, posting yourself, your thoughts, you have no control over how others on the platform will respond. Social media, all of its aspects can affect your mental health, getting so sucked in that you don’t even realize what is happening. 

I consulted with a junior here at Pentucket, Allie Fandel, who recently deleted all social media for a month to better her mental health. I asked if she could explain her experience with social media and how it affected her mental health. 

“My mental health affects my school work greatly. With social media, I began to use it as an outlet to distract myself. It became a huge distraction in school and at home. I would find myself scrolling through tiktok every day even though I didn’t enjoy it, it was just something to do. I was going through a hard time, it distracted my mind while also putting me behind, which did not make things easier.”

I followed that question with another one, how did deleting social media assist you in bettering your mental health?

“It gave me the opportunity to focus on my mental health. I found when I had social media I was on it 24/7, but when I deleted it and I had nothing to keep me occupied I was sort of forced to do school work and focus on more important things.” 

Not only is social media a distraction, it is a source that can bring one’s self esteem down greatly. About 10% of teens report being cyber bullied, and many other users are subjected to offensive comments. People who decide to bully others over social media take for granted the fact that they are not face to face with the other person. Emotionally hurting people without even caring.

There are 4.26 billion users on social media, and it will continue to grow. What people do not realize is how many people there are on each platform, nobody knows every single person. News is spread all over the world, social media is one of the main sources to spread information, but it’s not all true. One person hears some news, posts it publicly and all of a sudden everyone believes something that turns out to be fake. Social media is not a trustworthy news source.

As stated, there are enjoyable, entertaining aspects of social media. Though thinking deeply on social media and all of its threads, you realize that it is not all greatness, and that it has become something not everyone can enjoy easily.