Addiction to Electronics

A phenomenon sweeping through the world today is the prevalence of social media. Almost every college student, high schooler, middle schooler, and even some elementary schoolers are connected to social network of some kind, be it Facebook, Tumblr, Instagram, or any of a myriad of others floating around the internet. A majority of these users can control themselves enough to put their phones and computers down. Unfortunately, I am not part of that majority. It is a rare occasion that I am seen without my phone, whether I am at home or at school. If you see me at lunch, there is a strong chance that I am on my phone texting, using Snapchat, checking my email or browsing through Facebook. If you see me in the halls, you'd better bet that I'm listening to music with my phone or texting a friend to meet up. If you see me in the ILC after school, it’s almost certain that I'm on a computer watching YouTube videos and texting (wow I sure do text a lot...) while simultaneously trying to compose essays like these. Nothing can stop me, for I am truly addicted to Facebook, texting, and all things related to social media.

My addiction began like many others: peer pressure. It was seventh grade, and I, having no idea of how to be socially acceptable, was quite content sitting in my room studying and playing video games. My only social interaction was through Gmail chat once in a while (really? GMAIL chat? How cool was I?) On one glorious day, a friend of mine told me to try out Facebook. I responded to this proposition with something like "Is that where I face a book and study? Because I already do that." (I had some sass in me). After a lengthy description of the site, the realm of pokes and likes began to seem tantalizing, so I made an account. Immediately, I found it impossible to leave the screen. I became a fan of hundreds of pages, added hundreds of friends, and posted hundreds of statuses and comments. I said happy birthday on people's walls, I joined Facebook groups for classes, and I "liked" pages ranging from Will Smith to Sour Skittles. Facebook entered into my face-to-face conversations. My friends and I talked about whatever was trending on Facebook the night before, regardless if it was stress about a test or "drama" about a middle school relationship. And did anyone think that this would change during high school? NOPE. If anything, Facebook became an even greater part of my life. With all the new friends I met in high school, my social connections branched out even further and I managed to spend even more time online. Of course, the increase in friends just HAD to happen at the same time as the increase in homework. High schoolers always say "Social life, sleep, and good grades; choose two." For the first half of my high school career, it appears that social life and good grades have won out. This year, I've tried to waste less time online, but I still find myself on