BENEFITS OF LIVING WITHOUT SOCIAL MEDIA

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Social media has been a big part of our lives since it was discovered. The surge of social media
was brought about by the discovery of Facebook, which has allowed individuals from different
parts of the world to connect. Social media has closed off the gap of time and distance, where
information can travel great distances in no time. Accessing information about people and
events in different parts of the world in short periods has contributed to negative effects such as
deteriorated mental health, comparisons, low self-esteem, and poor quality of personal
relationships. Living without social media has been proven to increase self-esteem, productivity,
and personal achievement and improve the quality of personal relationships.

According to Vogel (2014), social media promotes comparison and negatively affects an
individual's self-esteem. Quitting or reducing the use of social media has been found to reduce
the negative effects on self-esteem as an individual gets to live a life of their own without
comparing their achievements or the quality of their lives to others. They stop equating their
worth to how better their lives are compared to their peers.

Quitting social media has also been found to lead to an increased quality of personal
relationships. Social media is one of the causes of poor relationships. Most people get distracted
by the outside world and their quest to please their friends on social media and forget about
attending to the people in their real lives. Living without social media allows one to cater to the
needs of their loved ones, thus increasing the quality of these relationships.

Finally, living without social media promotes better mental health by reducing the chances of
depression and anxiety. Social media leads to the feeling of missing out and the pressure on
individuals to prove that they are doing better than their peers. Social media addictive behaviors
such as constantly checking messages and checking updates leads to anxiety and depression.
Living without social media eliminates the chances of being exposed to these triggers.

In conclusion, living without social media has been proven to increase self-esteem, productivity,
and personal achievement and improve the quality of personal relationships. Social media has
been proven to negatively affect these areas of an individual's life because of the nature of
social media platforms and their usage. Being able to connect with different people in the world
causes comparison, neglect of relationships, and feelings of missing out.

Bibliography

Vogel, Erin A., et al. "Social comparison, social media, and self-esteem." Psychology of popular
media culture 3.4 (2014): 206.

Keles, Betul, Niall McCrae, and Annmarie Grealish. "A systematic review: the influence of social
media on depression, anxiety and psychological distress in adolescents." International Journal of
Adolescence and Youth 25, no. 1 (2020): 79-93.

Sprecher, Susan, Diane Felmlee, Terri L. Orbuch, and Marion C. Willetts. "Social networks and
change in personal relationships." Stability and change in relationships (2002): 257-284.