Social Media: The effects of social media to your daily life
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Social media is the fastest way to disseminate knowledge, news and other information. With just a clink on your phone, you will be able to know about the latest happening from anywhere, anytime.
The influence it brings to us may either be positive or negative. Here are some of the effects of social media to our daily lives.
Positive effects
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Social media, if used properly, can be a way to spread awareness. It bridges local authorities and government to common people. Activities and new policies and laws can easily be spread with it.
It is the easiest way to reconnect with long lost friends and relatives. Just simply clink on the search bar on your desired social media account and type in the name of the person you are looking for and boom! You can add them as a friend or just follow them.
Social media can serve as a voice for the voiceless. If you will look into Facebook, you will several pages or groups who support the disabled and abused regardless if they are human or not. These pages and groups are often pioneered by millenials who believe that everyone and everything should be treated as equal.
Finally, social media can be a ground for young people to enhance their social skills which they will need in the future. They become more interactive through chats and comments and they are more able to express their thoughts through their profiles.
Negative effects
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Of course, there are negative effects of social media. One of which is poor sleep quality. According to a research conducted by Young Health Movement, people who are using phones, laptops and tablets before they go to sleep do not have a good night sleep.
Cyberbullying can greatly affect ones view of his or herself. If you spend too much time on social media, you are more prone to being bullied and this can later on lead to either low self-esteem or worst, depression.
We may also want to look like the person we have been following for years on Instagram. We aim for social approval thus we tend to change ourselves. Social platforms like Instagram and Snapchat brings us into an environment where likes, comments and shares are the basis of your entire personality.
If you spend too much time on your phone waiting for the next notification to come in regarding your latest post, you lessen your time for real social interactions. Without us knowing it, we may have been taking for granted the people that we are currently with which may later on result to weak and broken relationships.
Social media was created to bring people closer even if they are miles away but if it is abused, it may bring negative effects on how we perceive ourselves and others. Remember that we are still socially responsible with everything that we post. There is nothing wrong with venting out your thoughts and emotions through social media but let us always consider the people who we are virtually connected with.