Cultivating a Healthy Relationship With Social Media Essay Example

Technological advancement has led to the exponential growth of the number of social media users. It is not surprising to find a young person glued to their smartphones throughout the day as they engage with other users in the virtual world of social media. Some are so much addicted that they cannot imagine staying away from accessing social media even for a minute for fear of missing out on important updates. An article entitled 'How Do Young People Really Feel about Technology' by Donna Freitas, however, states that young people have mixed feelings about technology that aids access to social media. This essay looks at the steps these young people can take in order to have a healthy relationship with social media. Although technology and social media can enslave a young person, it is possible for the person to have a healthy relationship with technological devices.

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First, to have a healthy relationship with social media, the young person must make a personal decision to change. It starts with the individual recognizing that they have a problem that requires them to take a bold step. Freitas gives an example of a young lady who "made a promise to herself: She wouldn't rejoin Facebook or download any other social media app until she felt she was capable of soundly and squarely remaining in the position of user" and in about year, she had realized her goal (Freitas, 2018). This would take a very strong person and one who has made the decision without being pushed by anybody. Therefore, it is important to begin by making that distinctive decision to change.

The second step that a young person can take in order to maintain a healthy relationship with social media is to look for help. After recognizing that there is a problem and resolving to change, the young person must look for assistance from the experienced so as to have a clear way of how to handle the issue. According to Freitas (2018), parents and teachers can pick the smartphones and only hand over these gadgets to young people only at designated times. However, this may not work for everyone. I remember one time when my teacher took away my smartphone after she found me using it before I had completed my assignment. I viewed this as punishment. I did not concentrate on my studies that day. However, the time I asked my friend who seemed to have a healthy relationship with his phone to assist me, I gradually developed a better relationship with social media. I no longer felt the fear of missing out whenever I was offline. Therefore, seeking help can assist the young person has a healthy relationship with social media.

The other step that a young person can take to cultivate a healthy relationship with social media is to disconnect from social media at the same time every day. This will call for a lot of discipline on the young person. Freitas (2018) gives the example of a young person who is happy to go to church because that is the only time that they find themselves disconnected from social media. The disconnection, however, should not be as a result of the circumstances. It should be about a personal decision and the resolve to develop a healthy relationship with social media.

The accessibility of smartphones has made it easy for any person to become part of social media. Those who are most affected are young people. Nevertheless, although technology and social media can be addictive and enslaving, there is always a way out for those willing to develop a healthy relationship with the virtual world. These people must recognize that there is a problem, decide to change and seek help. They should also be disciplined enough to disconnect from social media at a particular time every day. With that, they will win the struggle with social media.

Reference

Freitas D., (2018). How do young people really feel about technology? Greater Good Magazine. Available at https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/how_do_young_people_really_feel_about_technology