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Final Draft

I am proud to say that I never grew up as an IPad kid and got to enjoy playing in the yard with my cousins and friends after school. I never really became actively involved in social media until about middle school when Facebook became a big thing and even then I only really limited my virtual interactions to Skype and Discord to chat with friends while we played online video games. Once the development of other platforms such as Instagram, Snapchat and TikTok came around, I definitely saw an increase of my free time invested into reading the latest gossip and actively scrolling through posts of friends, family and influencers. I have never done a social media “blackout” before but the closest experience I have had to it is just simply on days that I can only invest the freetime into catching up on sleep. Following this social media cleanse, I wonder if I will have a different outlook in life such as less negativity or if I will find no effect on my daily life at all. On the first day ...
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Tuesday: Day 3

     It was not too hard to stay off social media over the course of the week. I unintentionally gave in around Saturday when my boyfriend sent me a link that ended up pulling up Tik Tok (he probably plotted against me since he knew I was refraining for this project). I specifically noticed that to avoid habitually opening the apps when I check my phone I had to physically move the apps into a separate folder and a separate window. Going about my day, I did reach for my phone without thinking during times that I typically divert my attention to social media to pass time or as a distraction; however, because the apps were not in the usual place they were, I was instantly reminded that I could not use them. In those situations, I noticed I felt really awkward and almost too aware of my surroundings. On Friday, as I was standing in line to check-out my groceries, I felt really awkward as I waited my turn since I usually go on my phone during that time. I definitely missed be...
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Wednesday: Day 2

     Social media has been a time filler and coping mechanism for me. Whether it was waiting in line at the grocery store or during severe anxiety episodes, I have turned to social media to distract myself. I personally think that I use it to remind myself of what life “could” be. When I see photos of influencers boasting their wealth on materialistic things or of friends and family traveling to nice places, it reminds me that with hard work I could one day be like them. I typically tend to post more positively on platforms because I would not want to showcase personal struggles whether due to privacy or because I do not want to ruin another person’s day by speaking of something bad. Additionally, in my opinion, those who post of their minor inconveniences are seeking attention and pity whereas those who post a more serious struggle, like of a lost one, would be to spread the word. In either case, I prefer to keep that type of information to myself. I like to use social m...
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Tuesday: Day 1

I am proud to say that I never grew up as an IPad kid and got to enjoy playing in the yard with my cousins and friends after school. I never really became actively involved in social media until about middle school when Facebook became a big thing and even then I only really limited my virtual interactions to Skype to chat with friends while we played online video games. Once the development of other platforms such as Instagram, Snapchat and TikTok came around, I definitely saw an increase of my free time invested into reading the latest gossip and actively scrolling through posts of friends, family and influencers. I have never done a social media “blackout” before but the closest experience I have had to it is just simply on days that I can only invest the free time into catching up on sleep. Following this social media cleanse, I wonder if I will have a different outlook in life such as less negativity or if I will find no effect on my daily life at all.      I can sin...
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