Are you a Social Media Addict?| Explained by Sohail khan

 Social media addiction is as dangerous a compulsion as a cigarette (addiction)

The difference is that you blow up your entire career instead of fumes sometimes.

Just like cigarette addiction, we deny this addiction too.

So in today's article of the Ravians786, there'll be a social media addiction test.

Will you be able to pass?

We will see...

Are you a Social Media Addict?| Explained by  Sohail khan 

Arguably, the entire world is on lockdown at the moment

and now that everyone has gone into isolation due to social distancing,

the people are communicating through social networking

Today, Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, YouTube, TikTok are not only applications but also our residential addresses.

Due to this sudden lockdown, people have been using the internet at their homes much more than before

Due to this, there's another problem brewing right next to the Corona Virus- Social Media Addiction.There are lakhs of videos on YouTube alone to safeguard from it.

Everyone, right from Sandeep Maheshwari to Qasim Ali Sha, has tips to save oneself from this addiction.

But all of them have the same thing to say- Stay away from the internet and observe the world outside.

Which is correct, by the way

But when the police greet you with sticks outside, then it becomes a compulsion to go to YouTube and Instagram

There has been a massive spike in social media usage after the lockdown.

Are you a Social Media Addict?| Explained by  Sohail khan 

So everyone lay intoxicated in the world of memes

According to another survey, internet browsing has gone up by approximately 72% after lockdown

And there has been a 75% increment in especially the WTF traffic- WhatsApp, Twitter, and Facebook

I mean What the ****?!

As per the studies of NIMHANS(The National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences),

An increment of approximately 30% has been found in gaming addiction over the past few weeks.

In fact an increment of 87% in internet usage was observed in the first week of lockdown itself

And it is important to remember that social media addiction was a societal phenomenon even before lockdown

But then after that, these graphs came forth- where the traffic of almost all the social media is escalating rapidly.

Social media addiction is not just Pakistan's problem- it is a worldwide problem.

People are being dependent on mobiles.

The time spent on the Internet by internet users worldwide

has increased more than 60% over the past seven years.

And it is but obvious that it would happen- after all, our brains had never experienced anything so sophisticated.

And to be fair to the digital generation, social media is a necessity today rather than a luxury.

It becomes so easy to talk to someone who is 600-6000 kilometers away on a 6-inch screen.

The dopamine kick experienced with every DM, notification, follow, and like

the people enjoy it so much that they want more of the same feeling

And then, it becomes an addiction.

You get a lot of things due to social media presence

Validation, exposure, connectivity, information, entertainment

So the social media satisfies you with a lot of emotions through just a device/platform

But...

just like everything has pros, everything has cons too.Social media has its pros and cons too. There is a very thin line between its use and overuse

 What do you think his problem is?

According to a study, social media addiction can cause problems like stress, anxiety, sleep quality,

hyperactivity disorder, insomnia, emotional exhaustion, frustration, jealousy, body image insecurity, etc, etc.

That means social media itself can lead to 99% of the diseases in millennials.

And how do millennials cope with this?

By going on social media!

And not only this, social media creates unique psychological insecurities too

For example, checking notifications again and again

so that we don't feel left out. #FOMO

or feeling insecure about our appearances due to the perfect, often unnatural beauty standards on Instagram

Body image shaming.

or feeling an inferiority complex over our middle-class existence due to the celebrity lifestyles.

Not only this... As per another survey, 1/4th relationships are also getting affected due to social media consumption

Now you could ask... yes, smartphones do cause social media addiction

but how will we get to know?

You're telling me the child has a fever. I know. I'm asking why?

What is the reason for the fever?

Corona has symptoms. This should have symptoms too

The simple answer is that there are symptoms.

but it is probably more difficult to detect it than Corona because everyone uses it.

In fact, on average, a millennial check his phone more than 150 times daily.

The problem is so common that it doesn't seem like a problem

And this is why introspection and not inspection can help you find out whether you're a social media addict or not

Come, let us do a task.There's a list with which you can find out whether you have a social media addiction or not

For example, do you seek validation right after waking up, even before you ask for tea?

Do you get notifications earlier than bowel movements inside the toilet?

Do you overuse the camera in search of a perfect selfie?

Does your self-respect start with likes and end with comments?

Do you feel any restlessness upon not getting access to social media?

Do you use social media to run away from personal problems?

Has there been a negative impact on your jobs/studies due to social media usage?

Have you fought with your partner/ family member due to social media?

If you're honestly answering yes to these questions, then you've also become a social media addict

You will now have to look for a behavioral pattern in your internet usage

and having understood it, you will have to fix it

And what if you're unable to find patterns?

There is a pattern and you will have to recognize it.

And social media addiction is not just the problem of youngsters

Recent studies have shown that adults have also been spending excess time on social media

 The children learn from the adults

And it is not just the fault of the users

The social networking apps deliberately design their algorithms in such a way

so that they can retain you in their apps for longer

The social media apps toy with your psychology through their algorithms.

Are you a Social Media Addict?| Explained by  Sohail khan 

You keep getting constant dopamine hit by unlimited and infinite news feed and pop-up notification.

which keeps your brains in a groove

This is also called a slot machine effect

Especially in the teenagers where likes, comments, followers give them validation

They relate these to their personalities these days

Validation becomes an important necessity that is utilized by these apps hugely

 Why are you looking for a benefit in this?

Because outside there's a risk of infection, inside there's a risk of depression

Not using the phone risks isolation and if you use it then you risk addiction! There's no answer to this

We agree that it has become even more difficult to divert attention from social media today

If you want to maintain mental health and peace of mind when you have to make use of social media

Therefore, do what you like

If you want to play Pubg- do it. If you want to cook- do it. If you want to make TikToks- do it. No worries

But try and do everything within a time limit/ restriction

The restriction shouldn't be a problem. We learned least that in the lockdown.

The best part about this crisis is that we are reconnecting with our families and friends.

We're communicating with them again

Improve your bonds with them. Pay attention to your hobbies

Social media is not a hobby!

and monitor the time you spend on social media

How many hours are you spending on social media and how many hours can you go without it?

Set your digital time limits

Keep your phones at a distance so that you do not reach out and check your notifications and news feed again and again

Disabling the pop-up notifications is a good start towards social media detoxification.

Watching anything in excess, you see, is the addiction

Reading Sohail khan Articles is only information *sly smile*

The government has to take responsibility for your physical health

but as far as the responsibility of your mental health goes, it can only be borne by you alone

Hence, please be careful

So do not become an addict like me and I am not ashamed to admit that I am addicted quite a lot

And I am putting myself in a de-addiction process

Even in this lockdown, I am trying to read more

I am trying to reconnect with people more

So I am striving and so should you.