We eat, sleep, wear and copy social media without even realizing that it’s not real. It has become a habit to check our phones and log on to our social media profiles as soon as we wake up or in the middle of the night. We mindlessly scroll through hundreds of posts and comments, react, like and share. We prefer not to think about the disadvantages of social media because of how much we rely on it.
Here are the reasons why social media is dangerous to us:
Affects Mental Health
The social media image sharing platform such as Facebook, Instagram or twitter causes anxiety and depression. All we do is check people who may not be our friends, on holidays and enjoying nights out, this makes us feel like we are missing out and not doing enough with our lives.
This feeling encourages a compare and despair attitude. We look at what somebody else has and wonder why we can’t be the same. We realize we are not good enough making us unhappy. Most of the post on social media especially videos and photos are exaggerated.We do not realize this hence we end up believing in what we see.
Invasion of Privacy
To be accepted in social media platforms we have to disclose our private information such as dates of birth, our likes and dislikes. Once we become active members of these social media sites our browsing history is exposed and anyone with bad intentions can use it against us. We get unsolicited messages from strangers and pokes from long lost friends.
Addiction
Social media is more addictive than alcohol and cigarette. We can’t go a day without scrolling through our social media accounts. The first thing we do when we wake up is log in to check other people’s status, comment and like. We have resulted in posting our problems on social media to ask for advice from people we think their life is perfect. Some of these are total strangers. The advice we get may be invalid and may not solve our problems.
Humiliation and public shaming
Every time we do something embarrassing someone records it’s and post it without thought. A simple mistake or lapse in moral judgment can ruin our lives. We engage in posting videos and sharing hateful comments contributing to a person’s destruction
Social media never forgets, one wrong video or picture will follow us for the rest of our lives. Humiliation and public shaming on social media slowly destroy individuals, it lowers their self –esteem and even leads to depression. A good number of people have committed suicide as a result
Encourages drug use
We think that posting photos and videos of us drinking or smoking weed will draw more attention and make us appear cool. There is plenty of danger to post these activities for people to see. Most of us end us copying this behaviour just because they saw somebody else doing it. A simple photo or video of a celebrity smoking weed will attract so many likes, comments and automatic Instagram views. We end up doing the same in the name of the celebrity.
Decreased socialization in workplaces
We don’t eat drink or sit together anymore in our offices due to social media. Every break is spent checking our phones for any updates on social media. We no longer have time for discussions with our colleagues.
Nowadays even important messages in the office are conveyed through social media such as Whatsapp groups and emails. Colleagues in the same office don’t meet after work for tea to discuss the various issue because they can communicate through social media
Social media crimes
Social media platforms are flooded with con artists, Why is this? We believe everything posted in social media is true. We post stolen photos and videos saying that we are sick, or involved in accidents to lure people to donate money for us.
How many people have posted fake investments and jobs on social media? And convinced us to send money to their accounts only to realize it was scum. How many people have been murdered by friends who they met on social media? We trust people on social media simply because they look nice without even knowing them.
Cyberbullying
Posting damaging comments and insulting posts on someone’s Facebook wall using someone’s photos to embarrass that person, or hacking account has become more frequent. Many people have committed suicide due to humiliation on social media. Embarrassment can lead to depression, anxiety or increased feeling of sadness and loneliness. We have paid blackmailers a lot of money, just because they threatened to post humiliating photos of us on social media.
Broken Relationships
The presence of a phone can interfere with our interactions, particularly when we are talking about something important. Romantic Relationships are not immune to social media.We feel jealous when our partner has added a new member of the opposite sex to their social media pages. We post our relationship problems in social media to attract comments from other people whom we believe their relationships are perfect instead of solving these issues with our partners.
Lowers self-esteem
Women’s magazine and their use of underweight and photoshopped models have been known to cause self-esteem issues among many women. Social media sites make us feel inadequate with its filters, lightening and clever angles. People who spend most of their lives on social media are less happy and confident when they compare their lives with others allegedly more successful careers and happy people. They may feel that their own lives are unsuccessful in comparison to those on social media.
Final Word
If you cannot imagine your life without social media, that’s a sign that you are a victim of the evil power of social media. Research point’s one way, social media affects us differently, depending on previous conditions and personality traits. It would be wrong to say that social media is all bad because it brings us many benefits to our lives. In the end, you are the one to decide whether there is more benefit or harm when using social media.
