On numerous occasions, I have explained things to my friends and got, “Wait what,” in return as they scrolled on their phones mindlessly. Undoubtedly it is annoying to be ignored by your friends because they are staring at social media. I believe teenagers must detach themselves from social media before things get any worse.
Social Media has become heavily used by teenagers to post about their lives as well as others, find entertainment, and stay up to date with the latest trends. Regardless, it has created bad habits and mental health problems.
Teenagers are being consumed by addictions to platforms such as TikTok, Snapchat, and Instagram. This turns attention to their phones instead of the present moment.
In a poll of 72 students conducted by MHS Media, 55.6% of students agreed that their usage is unhealthy and should be reduced. This shows that teenagers are aware of the negative effects.
Being in high school is very time consuming and requires a lot of work and attention. Social media is convenient and entertaining, which makes for an easy distraction from homework.
This is where procrastination comes into play, which can negatively affect students’ performance on schoolwork. It is easy to lose track of time and phone usage, so before they know it, it will be night. Homework will be rushed, completed hurriedly in the morning, or not done at all.
In the same poll, 57.1% of Marist students said they consume the most social media after school. I know firsthand that this can distract students from getting their homework done and increase procrastination.
Additionally, many parts of social media are fake. Many teens do not understand that what they are consuming is not real or is dramatized for views and popularity. This negatively affects teenagers’ self-image because they idolize influencers. Even though influencers use beauty filters, photo editing, and dramatics to make their lives seem ideal, teens tend to fall for it easily and can begin to resent their own struggles.
Social media is no help for sleep habits either. Fear of missing out and constant notifications keep teenagers up at night. The addictive algorithms manipulate the brain to want to stay awake.
From the poll, 36.8% said they consumed the most at night. With teenagers staying up at late hours, they will be sleep-deprived and sluggish every morning.
With these setbacks, teenagers will see damage in their attention spans, self-images, school work, and sleep schedules. The poll showed that 45.1% of students spend 2-3 hours per day on social media and only 11.3% spend an hour or less.
Though this seems discouraging, teenagers can distance themselves from social media. Setting time limits on each app or turning off your phone at a certain hour will drastically cut down media usage. You can also occupy your time with other things like homework, family time, hanging out with friends, reading, or other interests.
I have also been negatively affected by social media, but was able to combat it and so can other teenagers.
