Feverishly tweeting at all hours of the day? Check your Facebook page before you go to bed and first thing when you wake up? Addicted to social media? You’re not alone. A recent Retrevo Gadgetology Report asked avid social media users questions like when, where, and how much they spend on social networking sites…and the information may just surprise you.
The Retrevo study showed users under the age of 25 were more likely to interrupt activities such as eating, going to the bathroom, or even having sex to check/update sites like Twitter and Facebook. Its numbers like these that foster the idea that social media is quickly becoming an addiction for some. Is our society too connected, and is that causing a “desensitivity” to having a true social connection?
Let us consider the true ramifications of an addiction to social media, and a life interrupted.
The Family Dynamic
As more and more adults flock to social networking sites familial relationships are affected. Husbands are mad at wives, children are upset with parents, parents are upset with children, boyfriends are mad at girlfriends, and wives are mad at husbands for a myriad of reasons: spending too much time on Farmville, embarrassing messages on walls, inappropriate behavior discovered and monitored, or temptations from the opposite sex. Don’t get me wrong, some families may find a common ground on social networking sites but it seems that many are affected negatively when it becomes an addiction.
Inter-Personal Relationships
While social networking has a way of uniting seemingly different groups of people, it can also divide them. Have friends or coworkers that aren’t active in social media? You’re likely pushing them away with your addiction, and interrupting the real face-to-face networking and relationship building opportunities available.
Productivity
As a social media marketer I’ve had to address the issue of social media addiction, and it’s affect on my productivity head on. If you let it, your addiction can get out of control and hinder your productivity at work and at home as well. The time suck capabilities of an online social addiction are amazing, and can be disastrous. Missing out on deadlines at work, school, or in your personal life can have life long affects.
Health
Staying up later than usual to Tweet? Missing out on that much needed sleep can have disastrous effects to your health. As Americans we’re already stressed, under nourished, and develop sleeping disorders. Added to the mix are distractions like television, the Internet, and social media. And further added to the problem is the ease and availability of social media on mobile phones. Highly addicted users utilize their mobile phones while driving for social media activities, and we all know that distracted drivers can cause serious accidents on the road.
Anything, when overused, can be truly harmful, and the same is true with social media. Being aware of the issues and addressing the problem head on are important if you find yourself addicted to social media. There are many benefits to utilizing social media, just make sure you are aware of the bad as well.
About the Author: Kaila Strong is the social media architect at Vertical Measures, a link building company providing services to clients ranging from basic link building, to brand management, social media marketing, and content writing. She’s fully immersed herself into the world of social media and fully admits she has the best job ever.
