It is around you everyday, whether you mean for it to be or not. You are constantly being distracted throughout the day by it. The more you’re on it, the more brainless you feel. You have become a victim of Social Media Addiction. Don’t think so? Have you been on a social media site today? I’m guessing yes, since you’re reading this article. Social media has gradually become a growing addiction in our country. It is taking us away from our lives. I know how you can stop, control your use, and get back to truly living your life. Do not let social media control you.

I came to my own horrifying realization of social media addiction while I was sitting in a restaurant with my family. I looked around and everyone was on their phones, children on tablets, and people mindlessly scrolling through Facebook rather than having an actual conversation with the people around them. Then I looked down at my own hands and realized I was doing the same.

I believe we have an epidemic on our hands, no pun intended.

So, I decided to dive into this problem and found that there is actually a lot of argument between whether or not we should be calling this an “addiction”. I have done the research and there are just too many signs pointing to addiction. If you are dependent, if you absentmindedly find yourself scrolling through a news feed, if it is taking you away from real life communication and experiences, then it is harming you, and it is an addiction. Also, there are many methods and practices that can help you ease away from social media and get back to truly enjoying and experiencing your life.

According to Merriam Webster Dictionary, Addiction is “compulsive need for and use of a habit-forming substance (as heroin, nicotine, or alcohol) characterized by tolerance and by well-defined physiological symptoms upon withdrawal; broadly : persistent compulsive use of a substance known by the user to be harmful.” Our use of social media is quite persistent and it truly is harmful. Now, don’t get me wrong, I love Pokemon GO, but we’ve been seeing it all over the news. People just don’t know how to function with a phone in their hand sometimes. Social media truly is harmful to us. There actually is a texting app now called “Type n Walk”, that allows you to text and see where you’re going at the same time. I don’t think we’re solving problems here, we’re just creating more.

In a terrific book by Gregory L. Jantz, called "Hooked," he discusses why technology and social media are so dangerous and harmful. He says in his book, “The World Health Organization now classifies cell phone use under the same category as lead, engine exhaust, and chloroform, under ‘carcinogen hazard.’” That is crazy! We use our cell phones EVERYDAY. He also goes on to say “The use of technology can be toxic to your relationships when time with technology is chosen over time with family and friends. There can be significant toxic effects of shame and guilt when your use of technology undermines your values, morals, principles, and priorities, haunting you even when you’re not online.”

I asked my fellow Facebook friends to either like my status, showing that they think they’re addicted, or commenting no and a reason why they don’t think they are. These were my results:

So, generation has a lot to do with it. I also did an anonymous poll on twitter, which usually targets a younger audience anyways, and 53 percent said yes, while 47 percent said no. Those numbers were much closer, but were anonymous.

Social media is fun, but it’s also causing us to miss out on life. Social media disconnects you from those around you. Now, don’t get me wrong, it is a great networking tool and terrific for communication, but too much of anything can become bad for you. There are ways to stop or just gently ease yourself away from that screen.

First off, record how much time you spend on each website. If you’re spending mass amounts of time on Facebook, but not Instagram, then you might just think about deleting Facebook from your phone. Secondly, delete the apps. If you delete it from your phone, then you won’t have 24/7 access to it, unless you have a laptop or tablet glued to your hip, which some people practically do. Thirdly, try to go a day without any social media usage, or maybe just a few hours. Gradually throughout the week, increase the time you limit yourself to. Eventually, your hunger will subside and you can get back to enjoying your life.

You now have a decision to make. Ignore the problem and fuel it or recognize the problem and resist it. Stop cheating yourself. We are missing out on life because of Social Media. It’s time to quit, even for a day. Just take a break. Maybe even eight hours, just to see if you can restrain yourself from using social media. I don’t expect you to go out and quit cold turkey, because I know I won’t, but I do hope that you stop cheating yourself from experiencing the beauty of life, and take a moment every once in awhile to put the phone down and see things through your own eyes.