“It has become appallingly obvious that our technology has exceeded our humanity.” This famous quote has been attributed to prominent physicist Albert Einstein. Even though he was referencing the atom bomb at the time, what he meant to say is that we are becoming devotees to our own technology. Nevertheless, in our own era, we are becoming devotees to our own social media accounts.
As surprising as it may be, the average American user spends only about three hours on social media. Although this is true for many Americans, it doesn’t tell the story of every one of them. After this, there’s the stereotype that every single adolescent is addicted to social media, but this myth separates itself from its own reality. In spite of the fact that the average teenager spends nearly nine hours on social media, there are those teens who don’t even own a social media account. Such is the case of Zeke McDavid, a freshman at Hanahan High School, who says: “It’s unnecessary and I don’t have time for it.”
Nonetheless, some people rely on social media for significant reasons. Lexy Hagan, a sophomore at Hanahan High School, moved to South Carolina from Kentucky about four months ago. She relies on social media to stay in touch with her friends and family “because she doesn’t see them much otherwise.” Be that as it may, she is also among the millions of teenagers who use social media excessively just to know what people are doing all the time (with apps such as Snapchat and Twitter).
Furthermore, there is a wide range of people who are addicted to social media as well as people who do not even own a single social media account. People are addicted to social media for different reasons: to entertain themselves, to pass the time, or to express themselves. Likewise, people lose the sense of connection of the real world. They think that everything takes place behind the computer screen and do not know how to have a proper face-to-face conversation. It also produces the opportunity for people to become brutal behind the Internet. Cyber-bullying is a way in which people, especially adolescents, bring the out the reality of how harmful social media can be. Cyberbullying is real and very harmful to the person being bullied. It is a highly dangerous act that is punishable by law. This goes on to prove that if social media is mishandled, the results will not be pleasant.
As incredulous as it may be, social media has taken over the minds of the people in Egypt. Egypt is the top developing nation addicted to social media, with 88 percent of Internet users signing into social sites. Egypt is followed by Russia and the Philippines, who have a total of 86 percent of Internet users, each also using social networks. In the U,S, 73 percent of Internet users use social networking sites, a percentage that ties with Brazil. Egypt, Russia and the Philippines aren’t the only top leaders in addiction to social media. Tunisia, Indonesia, Jordan, Venezuela, Nigeria, Turkey, Ghana, Mexico, Chile, Malaysia, Kenya, Argentina, El Salvador and Senegal all boast social media usership higher than 73 percent of Internet users as well.

Almost every race is addicted to social media, or at least involved with it. When Argentine professor of Hanahan High School, Leandro Gonzalez was asked: “Do you have social media?” He responded: “No.” When inquired: “Why don’t you have social media?” He replied: “Because I’d rather live my own life than worry about what others are doing and because I don’t need to show off.” Although Argentina is a leading country in social media addiction, it doesn’t mean that every single Argentine is addicted. Take Professor Gonzalez, for example. He is Argentine and doesn’t necessarily agree with the usage of social media. This is the way with every race. Not every individual in the race is addicted.

Like most addictions, the social media addiction has a remedy. According to Bustle, the best ways to eliminate your addiction are to turn off your notifications, to limit yourself, get a new hobby, spend more time with your loved ones, meet people in real life, and to make it a treat. This is to say that you should look at social media as a treat. Only allow yourself to use social networks after you’ve done something productive.

In conclusion, social networking/media is a privilege that we must learn how to use properly and to impact people in a positive way. As addicting as social media may be, the addiction can be ended by simply following the recommendations above. Let’s use social media in a virtuous way: by positively impacting people’s lives instead of hurting them. Social media is a wonderful tool that we take for granted, but who knew that one day we would be using a tool as powerful as social media to express ourselves? As Malala Yousafzai has said,”What is interesting is the power and the impact of social media... So we must try to use social media in a good way.”