#socialmediaexperiment

[mrjammies-blog]

Day 1 - Notes from the Underground

My first day in exile was softened by social interaction involving something of a binge on another habit. A friend came over. We had grilled cheese sandwiches, talked about redesigning my home office, and drank all my beer. Turns out, my bunker still has a door to let people in and it still has internet. It picked up John Oliver’s transmissions very briefly before my friend showed up. 

In my hunt for something new to do... some new earth to till, I picked up a block of wood in my back yard and started whittling with the pocket knife I always keep in my back pocket. I’m from North Georgia. We all have knives. It’s a fact. Part of my worries about whittling as a hobby, as it can be outlet for the very habitual behaviors I’m trying to rewire with this experiment. It’s soothing in the same way doing dishes is soothing. A simple, repetitive action wherein something is changed in the end. Or maybe the motion of whittling is soothing in the same way that scrolling on your phone is soothing. I don’t know.

It’s strange. I’ve only been on social media for about 10 years. Less than a third of my life. I’ve only had a smart phone with internet for about 5 years. Theoretically, this should be easy. So far, it has been. I still have 20 years-worth of muscles developed without the strenuous use of my thumb and neck muscles used to constantly monitor and window shop other peoples’ lives. I used to build forts in the woods. I used to go for long walks and play soccer by myself in church ball grounds. I used to play guitar and draw and sing and read. I barely do any of those things any more. Things that gave me simple joy. Over the past few years, I have had to force myself to make time to do them, which makes them feel like a chosen vocation... homework. And I fucking hate homework. My mom used to literally tie me to a chair so I’d do homework and even then, I didn’t wanna fucking do it. Soccer, art, and exercise used to just be a thing I’d do when I had nothing else going on. Now, scrolling the internet or watching TV is how I spend my down time. I can’t just waste time on some new artistic or athletic venture. My time is precious and if I’m gonna use that precious time to do something strenuous, it had better pay me since it’s cutting into my media consumption time! ... Fuck, man.

Back in my day!

Yeah, the thing is, I know plenty of people with a much healthier relationship to social media. They’re all younger than me and grew up with it. To them, it’s like the action figures and TV I grew up with. It’s there, sure, and it’s pretty awesome but there’s other shit to do. Social media is a part of their lives but it is not their lives and it’s something I think people not that much younger than me completely understand in ways that our parents and grandparents don’t and that myself and people my age know intellectually but just don’t have the fully-formed muscles for, I guess. 

But I do have a muscle for whittling and I can still talk to people. I am not alone. And, weirdly, not being on social media is reminding me of that.

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[mitchelljanie]

Social Media Experiment

I decided to shape my experiment of altering my social media use to not using social media for three eight-hour periods. I did this over the span of three days (Friday, Saturday and Sunday). My ultimate goal during this experiment was to be in the moment of what I was doing through minimal distractions. Social media and the general use of my phone is often the most distracting for me and shifts my attention away from what I am doing.

My first day of refraining from social media was not too difficult. I competed in a case competition, so I did not have much of a choice of whether I went on my phone or not. During our breaks throughout the day, instead of going straight to my phone to check the latest status update, I took that time to network with other individuals. If I was not doing this experiment, I still think I would have taken time to network with people, but in moments like going to the bathroom or during lunch, I am sure I would have been checking my social media accounts.

My second day of refraining from social media was a lot harder than the first day. I had a lot more downtime today, so it was hard to not go straight to TikTok for hours on end. Since I didn’t have much of a choice on what to do, I was a lot more productive than I would have been had I decided to go on social media. I ended up running some errands, cleaning my room and apartment, as well as going for a walk. In my previous social media log, I had gone on a walk and had spent some of the walk taking pictures. This time around I really enjoyed being present on the walk with my roommate. Today was a hard day to not be lazy and turn to social media as my activities for the day, but I realized how productive I could be without it.

My last day of refraining from social media for eight hours was easier than yesterday, but harder than the first day again because I also had some downtime. I was able to get a lot of homework done in a shorter amount of time than I usually do. It is pretty obvious this is because I wasn’t constantly checking my phone. I was able to take another walk and not be distracted.

Honestly, I will probably not refrain from social media for eight-hour periods again. That being said, I plan on making an effort to be more intentional with my social media use and not use it as an excuse for when I am bored and having “nothing else to do.” I know that I can spend my time more wisely and do things that add more value to my life other than spending hours on end scrolling through social media feeds and looking at posts of people that I could truly care less about.

[morimyth]

Not sure if keeping Facebook at arm's length is helping me, or isolating me. Both maybe. In related news, if anyone wants to chit-chat about whatever, my messenger/dms still work, and I have all the free time in the world, being stuck on this couch for the next week, maybe more. My hip and spine are horrible organs that need to learn their place. Hugs from far away, cuz I really do miss my friends. 🖤⛈️🖤⛈️🖤 #socialmediaexperiment #isolationvspeaceandquiet #whowillwin #probablynotme #iamaweakhuman #ineedattention #andalsohugs #depressionftw #healingisntlinear https://www.instagram.com/p/B0RfXgGAU7-/?igshid=3yngl6bourws

[thefabraja]

“ Be yourself; everyone else is already taken. ”– Oscar Wilde #socialmediaexperiment #loveatfirstsight #bodypositive #malebodypositivity #plussizelove #blueisthewarmestcolor #garden #chubbyindian #chubbyguysdoitbetter m #indian #thefabraja #chocolate #cocoa #cocoaestate (at Diamond Chocolate Factory) https://www.instagram.com/p/BwdEsZQge4A/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=vobep3otzfhf

[thetreford]

MANNNN, this is deep........... Repost from @theoschaffer Hey FB & IG fam, A little #socialmediaexperiment, so what’s on my head is what we call a ‘Du-rag’ or a ‘doo-rag’. According to urban dictionaries it is a silk head scarf worn for fashion and assisting with a hairstyle and/or for “waves” development. Not too sure as it it’s origin but let me tell you what it is NOT; it is NOT the indication that a person wearing one is a criminal, evil or is engaged in negative behaviors. Now let’s be honest, stigmatization, embellished portrayals in movies, videos or this hypersensitive social climate we live have fed into all of our biases. That when you see a minority or urban youth wearing one of these I understand it may be emotionally or psychologically difficult to discern intent based on maybe a personal or past experience, preference or stereotypes or influences. I know that’s a lot to read. But I just want to educate some that although there are and have been people wearing a du rag who have done some wrong things. (Praying for any who may experienced anything.) But likewise there have been (and will be) people who do wrong things in regular clothes, suits, white hoods, clergy collars and more. It’s just apart of this broken world (that I can’t wait for God to take us Home from!🕺🏾) Lastly I want to encourage you that the next time you see an Black Youth or male or any one wearing one of these does NOT mean that you should be alarmed—but instead you’re now AWARE that person may be trying to work on his “waves”. Don’t be shy, stop, say “Hello! and have a conversation with them! After all, I’m working on my waves too! 😂God bless! #ThisIsGrace #LovePeople #DuRag #Hair #Educated (at Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) https://www.instagram.com/p/Bug86VGhlES/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=12agoqi0leqvw

[chaospress]

Click, Share,Beep - Here’s your share of Digital Dopamine.

I remember this one conversation with KolAsher where we discussed how the Social Media has spoiled an entire generation. When we have nothing else to talk about, it’s either this or the climate change (Gah!), or his endless talks about the geo-political scenes! Yet we both continue using a string of apps that ‘let us connect with the world.’ If you wiki search the term ‘social media’ it will tell you and I quote “computer-mediated technologies that facilitate the creation and sharing of information, ideas, career interests and other forms of expression via virtual communities and networks.” Sounds fancy, eh? Well, it is! Never before in history was it is easy to stay in touch with family & friends.

Everyone is a schmuck these days.  Social media, which I believe, started as a form of ‘connecting’ has evolved into one nasty world. This world has today turned into a full-fledged advertising medium, a place to target hate, and a place where one can pretend to be just about anyone they want to enhance one's reputation, and most importantly a place where humans and their brain, cognition, and well-being is desensitized. When it comes to being a ‘social media personality’, you are either loved, seen as an inspiration, or termed flat out stupid or foolish, or an obnoxious, contemptible or detestable person. I think there is no in between.

Having survived (?) 10 years on social media without going bonkers (!!), I feel I have gained some expertise and deem myself fit to write about this mad chaotic world. This medium is perfect to satisfy one's social drives. Here you broadcast information, observe others, receive feedbacks, and the worst of it all, compare! Google’s Orkut and MySpace were quite a big deal back in 2004-2007 till Facebook came into picture.  Facebook’s clear cut and decent UI, and curated third-party apps helped it gain initial momentum with the users. From time to time, Facebook kept updating itself and engaging more users, so much so that it almost became a ‘norm’ to have Facebook. Then Twitter followed. One of the most fun apps even today, I (personally) believe Twitter is unmatchable. Its to-the-point, no hierarchies, no prejudices, and “open to everyone” conversations is what makes this app so much fun! Apart from this, Snapchat came in to up your sexting game (it actually pushed me to click a perfect butt selfie), Tinder came to actually help you score (a date), Tumblr came in with its aesthetically pleasing (whoa!) high-def images, Pinterest came is where the girls could plan their weddings, WhatsApp replaced the good ol’ SMSes, and of course, r/Reddit was a place to discuss ‘anything at all.’  

When I look back, I realize that every ‘like’ that I have got created a kind of a pleasurable stimulus that got me even more addicted. The social media is designed to be addictive. It designed to mess up with your brain’s algorithm and keeps you hooked. It’s scary how much time we spend online these days. What’s even scarier is that we choose to spend time of social media than engage in real-life face-to-face interactions. Walk into a room full of people and you will find more than half of them blankly staring at their screens. The lack of personal interactions has had a detrimental effect on people’s confidence and has hence given rise to social anxiety. Today, people have become more paranoid/nervous about attending social events. They forget to draw a line between what is real and what is not. Obviously, not everything you see on the social media is real. Seeing other people (pretending to be) happier makes one feel ‘life is not fair for them.’ Passively scrolling through the timelines, seeing pictures of your ‘friends’ getting married, traveling the globe, eating at the finest restaurants, wearing the best of the brands, owning the latest gadgets, and will definitely affect your self-esteem, and not in a very good way. Again, here we forget that these are just the ‘air-brushed’ versions of people’s lives.

The more you are online, the worse it gets. Put 2 and 2 together, and you will realize that the more social media apps one has, the more he/she is at the risk of depression. The fabricated appearance/attractiveness of others may result in the manifestation of the insecurity and the quest for recognition among the peer will drag you deep into a chaotic world.

Now has the social media become so important that we are ready to sacrifice out mental, physiological and physical health for it? Think about it. Time is the most valuable asset. Seriously, stop wasting it being stuck to your phone screens. 

Take a moment and breathe. Stretch your legs. Have a glass of water. Realize that there is much more life out there, than in here.

In an attempt to break the Internet, do not let it break you!

:P Now seriously get off your screens! 

[mrjammies-blog]

I’m back. Kinda

I’ve been remembering the days when I was on myspace. The halcyon days that occupied that awkward sweet spot between social media and smart phones. In those days, I’d just check my wall and friend requests when I got home. I’d feel the addiction in my bones if I sat too long on AIM or myspace chat, munching Cheez-Its and drinking orange Fanta. The inoculate to the bodily damage of that routine, it turned out, was just putting social media on your phone. Replace your syringe with an IV and you don’t even notice anymore, right? It fits in your pocket. Out of sight yet always on your mind.

I can’t help but think there is an honesty to that old process of limiting your social media consumption to the computer. It’s the kind of honesty you only get in the fog of war or the rumbling of your belly at an empty cupboard. I’m talking about the honesty only revealed through struggle #firstworldproblems style. Ladies and gentlemen, I am calling for a time before the smart phone inoculate; back when it was easier for your body and your mind to communicate with each other. The desk chair bends your back, your ass goes numb, and the light from the screen peels away at the layers of eye skin. Your depth perception seems... wrong. The blood pools in places that transform your extremities into weights and you realize that you should probably go for a walk. You’re being a bit obsessive. 

After honoring my two week abstention from social media, I logged on to see what I’d missed. It was during the last days of my black-out that my teeth were grinding a bit. I was starting to feel like a lone sailor on a dinghy in a bay somewhere, able to fully view the coast but had made a commitment to stay out there and only eat dry dog fish for... I dunno, some fucking reason.

I returned to Instagram first. Not to post but to lurk. Because that’s healthy, right? I saw pictures I was pretty sure were posted three weeks ago. They looked the same at least. I saw my friends having a better, more exciting life than me. I saw them eating better than me, traveling more than me, nerding out harder than me, protesting more than me, working a better job than me... making a difference. Living life. In my mind, my dinghy sank, taking me with it. Under the waves to be swallowed by Monstro.

Through most of my experience, the allusion was a bit reversed in my mind. I was the lonely widow on the shore, watching the party boat go off into the sunset, just wanting my boy to come home. I would park my rocker by the cliffs and knit him a sweater reading “this metaphor is over-extended.”

In the end, it was something that I feel like I needed to do and the consternation I felt while logging into my social media accounts betrayed how toxic it felt to window shop the lives of others. A medium that is built around social connection ends up feeling like rank salesmanship. All of my friends are one of the Jones’ and I’m struggling to keep up with all of them. It’s a medium that just isn’t healthy for me, it turns out. Built into social media is a recipe for obsession, rigidity, habitual behavior, and anxiety. It’s what I do when I feel lonely or inadequate or jealous.

Yet, I keep coming back to that dinghy. 

So, in response to the risk of being swallowed by Monstro or growing old while knitting the same sweater, I’ll still get on the party boat from time to time with the understanding that this isn’t my party and, honestly, it’s still a party. Don’t take it too seriously. My participation in social media is going to have to be tied to my mental health and will depend on how I am dealing with my social anxiety in that moment. If I’m not okay, it’s best I stay away from it. If I’m already in a state of worry, fear, and self-hatred, I don’t need to add fuel to the fire by looking at how well everyone else is doing.

Social Anxiety is more than just being afraid of people. It’s more than being quiet. It’s being deathly afraid of embarrassment and judgement. Entering social situations, depending on my state, can fill me with an indescribable dread. I feel futility and fatalism, sure that everyone is going to hate me and that the social interaction will be pointless. I react to the fear by trying to exert control and self-medicating with alcohol. If I lose control, the fear takes hold, I shut down, and I hide. Social media makes it worse. I’m sober when I engage in it, I am not in control, and I open myself to embarrassment and judgement every time I post. I can do it. I just need time.

For now, I’ll just leave things here on my super-secret blog.