Negative effects of social media

Alexander Pope said, “A little knowledge is a dangerous thing.” it goes perfectly with the amateur use of social networks, especially in the 21st century. We take social media for granted and do what we want, what comes next.

Social media has provided new opportunities and avenues for the world to connect in general. With social media, the world has become a smaller place. On the one hand, it is a great invention and a lot can be done to improve our lifestyle. But if you look at it with thousands of immature users, it is becoming a somewhat scary place to live.

There’s a reason most parents or older siblings try to keep little ones off social media these days. From being a platform to connect or share visions of the world, it has been reduced to bring a platform to push and troll. That’s sad given that we can do so much with social media, it’s sad to see how low we can lower ourselves.

Today, 10-year-olds have access and accounts on social identifiers; it can become an addiction and an escape to a fantasy world. This fantasy world that we create behind the 15-inch laptop screen can be scary. Fit models with perfect bodies, exotic travel spots, and perfect photographic moments often don’t match the lives we lead on a daily basis. This disconnect might want us to aspire to more, which might not really be possible and can affect our mental health.

The drive for more followers or likes has a dangerous effect on our mental health. You start to feel anxious, lack of identity, less sleep causing insomnia, a negative body image can be some of the major problems that a social media addict might face. You become as desirable as the models you see around you, you keep adding filters and editing your images to look ‘perfect’, and your sense of yourself is lost. You want to become someone you are not. You start to hate yourself for not having the ideal body, the perfect shape, and so on.

Researchers around the world have found that the “fear of missing something” created on all popular social channels can substantially lower self-esteem and fuel problems such as anxiety and depression among people.

Cyberbullying is also strongly linked to the constant need to prove that oneself is better than others on social media.

On a large scale, not just teenagers, but people today, take the social platform too literally and believe a lot of hoax fake news circulating for advertising purposes only. Today, people are either falling in love with the dangerous trends they see on social media or think it’s cool to be a part of it. The tendency to be part of a social group is what is doing more harm than good.

You have to understand that being social has nothing to do with the number of friends or followers you have on social media. Everything can be a sham, just by seeing another partner have many followers you cannot be jealous and want that life. Don’t let social media be such an addictive drug that you can’t live without.

All this leads to identifying threats that occur due to the exchange of too much personal information on the network unnecessarily. You may also see an increase in hate speech and social disgust on social media accounts that is completely unnecessary. The most disgusting thing that is emerging in the 21st century is cyberbullying. It can be too dangerous and is even claiming lives. The immature use of the social platform must stop and stop now.

After using social networks, many people decide to stay away from them, since privacy is minimal or null with the extensive use of social platforms. If not handled sensibly, your life becomes a window to the world. A topic of discussion.

We, as a world, lack smart users. Either we take everything for granted or we take things too literally. Having said all this, it doesn’t mean that social media is that bad with only negatives. Of course not, there are many benefits of social media. It keeps us connected across great distances, allows us to find our long-lost schoolmates and colleagues. If your motive is to stay connected or share an opinion about life and other things, but if the social site is your source for news or emotional stimulation, it is definitely a bad idea.