Social media usage continues to rise, especially during the recent pandemic when it’s been the biggest source of avoiding boredom while staying at home. According to the latest statistics from FameMass, some users spend up to 9 hours a day on social media. However, as social media is still a relatively new thing in human society, many are not yet aware of the negative consequences of excessive social media usage and that they may have a serious social media addiction.
So, with that said, here are 6 signs you can use to help identify whether you may have an addiction to social media.
1. You’re Dependent On Your Phone
If you find yourself checking out your phone as soon as you wake up, it means you are dependent on it. Also, if you find yourself constantly checking out your phone for notifications, likes, comments or messages during events or activities (like during work, discussions with people, while driving etc.) then you’ve got a problem.
2. You Feel Anxious When You Don’t Check Phone
Let’s suppose you kept yourself busy with work or whatever else. If, after some time, you start to feel anxious, depressed, irritated by everything around you while developing a desire to check your phone as soon as possible. This is a sign of an addiction.
3. You Can’t Stop Thinking About It
“I wonder if anyone commented?” “Did I get enough likes?” “I wonder if my friend tagged me in that photo from the other day.” “Maybe someone sent me a text message?” If your mind is always swirling with thoughts about social media and you’re constantly anxious about your social media accounts, then it’s a problem.
4. You Think Your Phone Buzzed When In Fact It Didn’t
You are so used to hearing your phone buzz, that now you are thinking perhaps your phone just buzzed when in fact it didn’t. Now your mind makes you think that you heard the buzz sound. However, when you check out your phone, you find nothing like it. This is an alarming situation because it means you are craving for a new notification on social media.
5. You are Constantly Checking The Progress Of Your Post
Let’s suppose you posted a picture of yourself with your favorite caption. Instead of waiting for some time and getting busy with other things, you are constantly checking out your post to see any progress. Is it getting enough likes? Are people tagging their friends in the comments? Who commented? Are people complimenting me enough? According to the social media addiction studies, the constant checking of your post progress can indicate you are addicted to social media.
6. You Neglect Work For Scrolling On Social Media
You are at your home and there are a lot of chores, but instead of doing them you are spend your time checking and scrolling on social media. This means you are addicted and this is actually one of the most common signs of any addiction, as it shows you’ve begun to neglect important and necessary things in your life which will often lead to serious long term negative effects.
