We’ve all heard of those horrifying drugs that have been released and affected tons and tons of young individuals by turning them into zombies. We’ve all watched and read what Flakka, Purple Drank, Krokodil can do to people and thought OMG what has the world become?
But, have we noticed that we have all been hit by the number one drug that has total control over our lives? This may not be shocking at first and the analogy may seem a bit off…but read along for some of my personal insights.
You want to stop but you’re unable to
Drugs, they give A great feeling for a short while. However, deep inside you know you need to stop because it’s ultimately bad for you. You get intimidated with so many things being written or shared via social media, but you keep telling yourself not to get yourself towed into it. You tell yourself to halt and get a life. You then scroll through your mini feeds and see how people look delighted and expressive of their feelings. That’s when the itch starts again and you feel the need to comment, like, post or share.
You feel a sense of temporary euphoria
Ecstasy, you’re on top of the world when you have it. You wake up the next morning, but the effect has faded away and you are back to reality. You post a photo, video or status. You get likes, comments, loves and hahas. It takes you back on top of the world, but not for long — your post then gets pushed to the bottom of the feed because others are getting their own kicks out of their posts. It then hits you and you realize you are in need of another shot!
You expose sides of yourself that probably aren’t 100% you
When you are on any kind of drug, you are in a different state of mind — funnier than normal, more confident, deeper, more expressive, sadder or angrier. That is also what happens while using social media.
The actual “kick” is only in your head
When you are stoned, your head feels light, your thoughts come flying through, you feel butterflies and birds around your head, you see waves and colors, you feel like you want to jump around and go to so many places. It is all in your head! You are just where you actually are! You order that plate so you could take a perfect snap of it, you are more focused on creating situations or activities to post about, rather than actually enjoying them. You spent most of the time adding filters, cropping, thinking of captions and waiting for likes rather than taking in and actually feeling the full experience of that fresh air or that intense workout.
You panic when you don’t get the “high”
The same happens with social media. You wonder, “did people see it,” “did I post it at a right time,” “maybe it needed a better caption,” or “maybe I don’t look good enough.”
It gives you a sense of confidence, therefore a higher social ranking
Social media allows you to be anyone you want, adding a few emoticons here and there, checking in to that new restaurant or sharing that viral song. It just always seems like you are getting on with your life and it is full of excitement and adventure.
You think that restricting your use to one drug, doesn’t make you an addict
Same trap with social media. You probably think: “I only use Facebook to connect with friends abroad,” or “I only post photos of flowers in my garden,” or “I don’t follow all the news being shared.” Sadly, we all think this is all we do but the truth is, there is no way to avoid it.
Your dosage fluctuate with those around you
When you are in a gathering, people start using their phones and get drowned in them and you feel left out.
You prefer communicating inside the same bubble
You prefer to not take that call because you will need to make an effort to talk to someone on the same high. It is just like when you’re stoned, you need to make an effort to talk normally, so you prefer to hang out with your stoned buddies.
You have lost friends and family to this “drug”
We’ve all lost friends and family and have been blocked and unfollowed because other people don’t get what we wrote or don’t have our same ideology or beliefs!