Today I’d like to talk about how social media affects teen lives. Lately, my best friend got social media as a present for her 13th birthday. More specifically, SnapChat and Instagram. We’ve been friends for quite a while now, and have always been very social towards one another, and enjoy talking instead of browsing the internet. But as soon as she got her first phone a couple months ago, she has been on it more than ever. And it was just games. Now, every day after school, almost every kid in the class pulls out their phone. Not a single word is said. To me, it feels like a long friendship had been ruined. Everybody is living digitally and not in the real world. It is hard to have a conversation without someone pulling out their phone. It is sad to see all my friends slipping away. Social media cannot replace real-life relationships.

At some levels, social media becomes an obsession and mental health issue. Some teens who separated from their phones for even a few hours develop anxiety. They use the internet as a safe haven for them. “Pediatricians observe that some teens suffer from “Facebook depression”. After spending a lot of time on Facebook and other popular social networking sites, some teens become anxious and moody. Again, this seems to be caused by being exposed to friends whose idealized presentation of their lives appear to be superior to theirs.” (https://www.raisesmartkid.com)

Living in a virtual world is not always sugar and sweets. Some teens just browse the internet for fun, looking at new things to try out. But there is a whole other world out there: cyberbully, scam and trick, and online predators, you name it. Many teens, especially girls, can feel insecure about their body images from looking and comparing themselves to other girls. They can also be judged brutally and unfairly by strangers on the internet. According to Forbes.com, “The CDC has been tracking the rise in depression and suicidality among young people in recent years, and some researchers strongly believe that social media is involved.” There can also be cyberbullying. Bullying through the screen in a way hurts more than in real life. People who don’t even know you can start spreading rumors. People who are too scared to say it face to face say it online easily through social media.

This generation of young adults is important. Do we really want social media affecting how they think and act? I believe that as a solution to these problems, social media sites should enforce their age limits. However, in this generation, kids are getting their smartphones too early. Even though social media sites have minimum age limit at 13, many pre-teens, or even younger children gain access to social media by forging their ages easily. I believe that there is no good side to owning a smartphone before turning 13. There is just no need for it. In addition, schools should not allow smartphones. If kids need to contact their parents, they can do so with a school phone. Also, since parents are a major benefactor to their children’s development, they shouldn’t be on social media too often. After all, eyes were made for the world, not for the screen.