Over the past 8 months, I slowly became disenchanted with the idea of social media. And, with spending time scrolling on my phone, altogether for that matter. It first began with TikTok. I, like most people, downloaded TikTok around the time of the infamous COVID-19 pandemic, when we were all stuck in our houses with nothing else to do. Ever since that era, TikTok has been a part of my daily life, until last July. I started to notice how insecure I was becoming because I was constantly comparing myself to people I saw online. Makeup, excellent lighting, and countless filters or not, I truly believed I was inadequate in comparison to the girls on my For You Page. It got to the point that I couldn’t look in the mirror without finding some sort of fault with my body, face, clothes, and style. You name it, and I was insecure about it. I decided to take a week-long break to see how I felt. Let me tell you, I never felt freer. That week-long break turned into a permanent hiatus, one that I see no end in sight. That was my first lesson: comparison is the thief of joy.
The next app to go was Snapchat. I had been an avid Snapchat user since middle school, and I kept the app to essentially keep up with all my friends around me. From private stories, voice memos, and group chats, every form of communication you need is readily available in one software. Over the years, sending a picture of my face with no context became my definition of a human connection, and I wonder why I felt so alone all that time. I slowly stopped using the app and turned to a phone call anytime I wanted to reach out to those I loved, and I felt my relationships deepen. That’s when I learned that social media does not mean social connection.
Although from time to time I will redownload Instagram to see some photos shared by my friends, it is no longer an addiction or a daily activity. Instagram was the most recent to go and for the simplest yet most unexplainable reason; I felt physically nauseous every time I scrolled on the app. I still have not the slightest idea why, but I honestly am grateful. Deleting the app decreased my screen time by at least an hour every single day, and forced me to spend more time consuming literature, art, film, and pursuing hobbies I love. The more time I spent away from my phone, the more serenity I felt every day. My creativity came back to me in droves, and I started creating things from poetry to pottery. My last lesson was that humans are naturally artists; technology has just stolen our souls. There’s a possibility our parents were right; maybe it really is that condemned phone.
So here’s what I tell you, beloved reader: go outside! It’s springtime now; go listen to the birds, smell the blossoming flora, and feel the warm sun on your cheekbones. Get off that phone!
