Facebook and FOMO

I am amongst hundreds of thousands of other college students who were raised to socialize in a way that humans never did before. The development of the cellular technology, the world wide web, and various social media platforms empower us and allow us to live in a world that is deeply connected.

Our generation has helped to fundamentally change the way human beings communicate. There are a myriad of benefits to these developments - deeper cultural understanding, increased access to information and education, and global collaboration - just to name a few. 

But how does this impact the individual? How does this affect someone in their everyday lives, their relationships, and communication methods when they have only been taught to communicate via technology?

Earlier this week, I woke up naturally for the first time in a long time and instinctively reached for my cell phone on my bedside table. I couldn't find it in its usual spot and felt a sudden wave of anxiety. I needed it to be connected - to feel like I knew what was going on in the world. My cell phone holds my entire schedule, reminds me of things I have not yet checked off of my to-do list, connects me to my friends and family, wakes me up for class, and entertains me in my free time. As I fumbled sleepily around my bed to try to find it, I realized that I had accidentally left in my mom's car back home in San Francisco on the way to the airport.

I spent the first day without my phone feeling crippled. I felt anxious, unprepared – naked. In the wake of not having my cell phone, I had to find different ways to manage my daily tasks. I dug up a dusty alarm clock, a planner to manage daily tasks, and resorted to hanging out on campus to meet up with friends.

As someone who struggles with anxiety and depression on a daily basis – what was shocking to me was how liberating not being connected all of the time felt. I focused on what I wanted to do everyday instead of checking my phone all the time. When I was waiting for a friend to meet up on campus, I didn’t have a phone to look at to pass the time. Instead, I looked around. Enjoyed what was around me and actually saw what was going on. I wasn’t constantly barraged by information and had to choose to seek out knowledge. 

I was surprised to find that there is actually a substantial amount of evidence being curated by researchers around the world that social media actually may increase negative symptoms in those with existing mental health conditions, generate pathological behavioral addiction problems, and lower self-esteem.

All the research I found made so much sense. It made me reconsider the number of times I use social media on a daily basis solely out of habit and lack of impulse control. Rarely do I ever feel good about myself or feel like I spent my time productively after an hour on Instagram. Mostly, I feel unaccomplished and I always get a big dose of FOMO - fear of missing out. 

I was not only unhappy to start with, but trapped in a cycle of constant reminder of my inadequacy, comparing myself to the highlight reel of someone else's life.

Just as mental health problems are rooted in both biological and psychological chemistry of the brain, it's interesting to see the biological and psychological effects of social media on our brains. 

Take a look at this infographic and think to yourself - do you genuinely think that social media is beneficial in terms of allowing us to live a fulfilling life?

And more importantly, do you think you could click "log out"?