SOCIAL MEDIA AFFECTS | How much social media use is too much?

Joseph Lyle
Staff Writer

Whether it be Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or YouTube. Just about everyone has some form of social media. However, how much use is too much?

Most people with social media tend to use it for communication with friends and family. They may live just down the street or on the other side of the globe. No matter where they live in relation to you, you will always have a platform on which you can communicate.

Biology major Hollie Posey said she values the use of social media to keep in contact with friends. Posey was involved in Girls State and made many friends there. After the week at Girls State, she had to leave her new friends and head home. Posey said they’ve managed to stay in touch all these years through the use of social media.

Social media isn’t just about socializing, it’s also fast becoming both a primary news outlet and a source of entertainment for many. Human services major Breona Heidelmark said she is well aware of this use of social media. She said she refers to herself as a meme connoisseur.

Engineering major Nicholas Hill said he gets his entertainment from YouTube and Twitch. Hill believes social media to be a good thing claiming it helps to bring people together.

But how much is too much? Mr. Ellis, a certified mental health counselor from the Wellness Center, claim that as little to no time is best. Mr. Ellis also warns students to avoid using social media while driving and walking.

Social media has a pull to it. There is something about it that makes people want to come back. For many people it is boredom. For others it is to get updated on news and what everyone else is doing.

This pull is so great it often distracts people from their everyday tasks such as academic work. Heidelmark said that she often gets distracted every time she receives a notification from her many social media accounts.

Mr. Ellis said that checking your social media may start out as ten minutes but will quickly turn to thirty minutes then an hour. Next thing you know it’s late and you haven’t even started that homework that’s due the next day.

Some people look at social media as a negative thing. Biology major, Booke Dillenbeck said, “Without it people would spend more time together and focus on what they’re doing now and not what everyone else is doing.”

Dillenbeck goes on to say the only reason she has social media is because everyone else does and to not feel excluded.

The use of social media is great in many instances. However, too much of a good thing can be bad. The best approach to using social media is to use it in moderation. Don’t forget to spend time with people in person and make sure you get everything done that you need to before launching Snapchat or replying to that tweet.