Rina Factor/Contributing Writer
Whenever I am feeling either pressured or upset, and do not want to do anything productive, I tend to sit on the couch and scroll through social media for hours on end.
Even when I successfully close a tab or app, I simply reopen it again because it’s an effortless distraction. Before the invention of the IPhone, I spent most of my time reading books or pursuing creative activities like art and jewelry making.
However, with today’s distractions involving mindless scrolling through images of celebrities and other strangers, it’s become harder to pursue any of my passions.
This obsession with other people’s lives is not only harmful to many people’s psyche, but a huge consumption of time.
A 2016 study by researchers at Penn State University implied that looking at other people’s selfies lowered self-esteem, “because users compare themselves to photos of people looking their happiest.”
The majority of us go about our daily life taking care of our responsibilities and working hard to earn a living.
But celebrities’ social media accounts often appear to detail a carefree life, as if they have no responsibilities. It’s as if their lives solely consist of escaping the paparazzi, posing for red carpets, or attending high profile events.
You will see them working out with their personal trainers or announcing their new blockbuster movie deals. However, you will rarely ever see them posting about their personal failures or emotional struggles.
The people we consider celebrities were once regular people like us—and still are.
You cannot compare these people’s’ lives to your own because a photograph, or an interview of someone is not going to reveal the gritty details of their own life or personal struggles.
We all have the ability to construct a polished persona of ourselves online, but this is not our true self.
Looking at all the beautiful designer gowns that you cannot afford, and the gossip sites constantly spinning titles on people’s personal lives will not enable you to live your own.
Maybe part of my addiction is caused by wanting to spend time living in someone else’s world, because I am reluctant to face my own.
One helpful suggestion that has served me in ending my addiction is taking a break from googling celebrities every five seconds. Another suggestion is deleting Instagram or any other social media application from your phone.
I have found that whenever I download the app, I tend to get lost in the infinite loop of the explorer page.
I think it is time that we challenged ourselves to say “no” to our clicking addictions and say “yes” to facing our own “real” lives—at least for a little while.
DISCLAIMER:
The opinions presented within this page do not represent the views of Panther Press Editorial Board. These views are separate from editorials and reflect individual perspectives of contributing writers and/or members of the University community.
Photo by freestocks.org on Unsplash.
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