My life revolves around the internet, sad but true. My social life, hobbies, to some extent even my uni course is based around whether or not I can connect to the wifi. Probably the first thing I do every morning is check my phone, snapchat, facebook, Instagram, twitter- it's almost like I have an obsession to see what I missed in the hours I was asleep.
I love my phone. I love socials. Instagram is probably my favourite but I like them all. I love that sense of feeling in the loop even when I'm somewhere I probably wouldn't be in the loop otherwise. But it's scary how much of the day I obsess over it. Yes these things maybe happening in the world but are they happening in my world? No. And the sad reality is that revolving my life around what someone says on twitter or what they post on insta isn't going to affect me other then missing out on the times happening right in front of me. It doesn't matter if I don't see my favourite instagrammer's post the second they share it or it shouldn't anyway.
Living your life online is not living your life.
I'm aware I'm more than just a bit addicted to the digital world, even when I don't need to I go on there for fun... my blog, my YouTube, my interests are all online which I'm not sure how I feel about. The internet is an amazing thing but it's kinda scary how being so socially active online can make you so socially unsocial- Where's the fun gone in talking to people? Just straight out conversations, there's no need to document every aspect of your life online... which is why I want to take breaks starting from now on. Not from blogging or YouTube and I don't think even if I really wanted to, I could switch off from the internet for an entire week or two, physically with a uni course that is so demanding with staying in the loop that just wouldn't be possible. By breaks I mean that I want to give myself a few hours a few times a week where I don't check my phone, hey there was life before the digital age.
I just think it'll be refreshing. Every year when we go on holiday in the Summer that is basically my two weeks internet detox just because the places we travel to don't always have the best wifi or it's an
extra charge that isn't a necessity. When I go away I like to just completely switch off, unwind, laugh at things that are happening right in front of me rather than the other side of the world. People of a certain generation always say you can't live your life via a computer or phone screen and as annoying as it is to admit it, it's true.
It's unhealthy for one thing. Recently on night outs I've stopped snapchatting the entire night just because I want to enjoy it more- I want to live the moment, okay so I don't mind snapping the odd
selfie or group pics but I'm not going to video record the night to share my night out with people who aren't even out. Everyone is guilty of a bit of bragging, social media couldn't provide a more perfect platform for doing so. I'm guilty of it. But really no one shares the shit stuff, they only share the endless holidays or night out pics, the stuff they want people to judge them on, the stuff that makes them look fun. But you can be having fun and not sharing it online, just because it isn't shared doesn't mean it isn't happening.
On the whole I would say I'm not going to stop sharing my life online completely, after all social media is a vital part of my life and the career I want to have so I need them as sad as that may make me sound. But I want to stop being so self absorbed in it.
Is the internet making you socially unsocial?
XOX
Images: Pinterest
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