Tatiana Kawalski was a student in Jason Akst's Journalism 401 class at Northern Illinois University. Check out more student Perspectives here.
In the digital age we live in today, spending time on social media is almost inevitable. However, I noticed that the more time I spend on social media, the bigger the toll on my mental and emotional well-being. When I spend less time consuming all the endless content on a social media platform, I’m more in the present moment and not distracted by thoughts of going on my phone and scrolling.
Another benefit I saw from spending less time on social media was that my thoughts comparing my life to others drastically decreased. Since I wasn’t seeing how other people are living their lives all the time through social media, I put more conscious thought into my own life instead. I appreciated the big and small things I was doing throughout the day.
Overall, I noticed how I was more in tune with not only myself but with my external environment as well. I was more grounded in the present and had a lot more meaningful interactions with friends and family. I never eliminated social media completely because I still use it to interact with certain friends -- but the benefits from limiting the amount of time I spend on social media are enough for me to always make a conscious effort to be aware of how I’m spending my time.
I’m Tatiana Kawalski, and that’s my Perspective.