Linda Puga
campus editor
It starts to take over your life and subtlety becomes an instinctual habit. It’s the first thing we reach for in the morning and what we struggle to put down after hours of scrolling when we should be getting rest. Social media brings toxicity and negativity into our lives, ultimately putting a damper on mental health.
This generation has become obsessed with checking how many likes their Instagram post received, seeing if that specific person saw their Snapchat story, wondering why that guy hasn’t replied to their iMessage, and keeping up with all the gossip and drama between friend groups.
There is good to social media, don’t get me wrong. Being able to connect with anyone from anywhere in the world is a pretty neat thing. In this current season, it is gratifying to have a form of communication with family members we aren’t able to see and be able to keep up with the community and friends from school.
A common thread among many teenagers and the media is the destruction of self-worth. They compare themselves to people they see in the media, whether it be celebrities, influencers, or models. It puts the idea in people’s heads that they aren’t good enough or worthy enough because they aren’t like someone else or don’t have what they have. However, these things are far from true.
It is so important to keep mental health in a good place because it affects all the other areas of life as well.
Jess Conte, a lifestyle creator, does a social media detox day once a month and always encourages her followers to do the same. She speaks on the importance of having a day off from media and instead partakes in painting, sunset watching, or baking paleo chocolate chip cookies and banana bread like she enjoys doing.
At the end of the day, the media depicts an expectation of reality. It shows perfection rather than progress. Perfect lives, perfect relationships, perfectly happy people, and perfect bodies. It is merely a highlight reel, showcasing a few minutes out of someone’s 24-hour day. Remember that and not to take it too seriously.
