The media space is very beneficial, especially over this period in which series of information tend to hover on all domains of social engagements that really matter for us to be aware of.
In as much as an individual seeks to be abreast of daily happenings across the length and breadth of the world, social media remain arguably the platform that offers quicker and easier access to all forms of information.
While on it, realize that the downsides, depending on how often we get hooked onto the numerous media outlets available, can be very damaging to our emotional health and to a far extent, our general wellbeing. In most instances, we are able to detect that our usage of social media is gradually climbing up; however, we tend to ignore such signals. That is the nature of the mind, sometimes.
Addiction to social media, just like any other form of addiction, does not get to that height suddenly. It takes off in that direction gradually and with time. Now, how is an individual able to identify that he or she is suffering social media addiction?
Here are a few common signs:
Reduced real world social interaction: I carried out a survey, and the outcome was interesting. I took a planned walk into shops not necessarily to buy any stuffs, by the streets, to various work places and discovered one common thing running through all my findings. Curious to know what? Eyes were found fixated on screens of various brands and sizes of mobile phones and IPads handled by both young and middle-aged individuals with not enough direct conversations really taking place, though they remained in each other’s space. That is how serious it can get. It takes you into a virtual world where your immediate physical neighbor is not noticed nor given a deserved attention. An individual tends to be more involved with their phones or other gadgets being used than with their fellow humans.
Feeling emotionally or physically unsatisfied: The media space, as I mentioned earlier has a lot to offer, both good and bad, that can easily be accessed at a very fast pace. There is so much pleasure, excitement, engagement attained depending on what an individual may be reading, watching or listening to, while online. As a result, when this source is cut off, perhaps a person having to put his or her phone down for a moment, while at work, there likely tends to be a short-lived sense of discomfort. For such people, the media gadgets become, more or less, everything to them. They appear not to be able to do without them at all. But, when they have those gadgets around them, they feel more relaxed and more satisfied.
Using it even in the midst of risky situations: There is this story about a young lady who was often beaten by her husband. She usually would leave meals being prepared on fire unattended, while on her phone either browsing or watching videos exciting to her only to have much of the food burnt. She could not do without having to handle her phone in the midst of such risky event as cooking. Occurrences of this sort are indicative of an addiction to social media.
Unsuccessful efforts to cut back on social media usage: It is usually challenging wanting to go off social media. This happens especially when you are not able to identify the triggers of the addiction. For some people, when they feel lonely, depressed, frustrated, tired, wanting to relax, or bored, they resort to the usage of social media for relief and engagement. These triggers, for as long as they linger on in a person untreated, make efforts to cut back on social media prove mostly unsuccessful.
Inability to complete assigned tasks on time: When an individual has to always suffer being chastised for not meeting set deadlines or keeps procrastinating, in most instances, you may have that person spending a lot of time on media related matters. This makes them not be able to complete assigned tasks on time. You find them mostly browsing on their phones at the expense of a load of work yet to be done. Honestly, it causes a high level of unproductiveness and hinders an individual’s growth and progress generally.
WHAT TO DO:
Really, it can be quite challenging, when a person gets caught up in this as a lifestyle. Nevertheless, it can be managed and with time, stopped.
Seek help from a trained professional: The professional will guide you through an exact procedure that will help you considerably to overcome the addiction.
Adopt a disciplinary measure for yourself: Decide at some point that, when there is an activity in progress or yet to be started, until it is done, you will have nothing to do with any gadget that can easily get you tempted to have your attention shifted onto social media matters. The truth is, we are all not the same, in that, for some people, this will work but will take some time. However, for others, it may prove a bit challenging; but still try it.
Avoid sites that can make the addiction become more intense: A few examples are porn hubs, betting hubs, chatting hubs or dating sites. Reducing or avoiding them entirely can help the recovery process quite efficiently.
Social media addiction is silent in occurrence. You only notice it, when you accept that you are really being friends more with your media gadgets than with your fellow physical humans. However, with the right assistance and a healthy framework of mind, you can get over it.
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