Yeah. Society is distracted. That's not even a controversial take anymore and everyone knows it. We're all staring at our phones while life happens around us. The question isn't whether social media is a distraction. It's why people are so willing to let it be one.
Here's my theory. We THINK real life is hard, the job is stressful,finances are a mess, health isn't what it used to be, and relationships take work. Looking at any of that too closely feels overwhelming. So people don't deal with it.
They doom scroll instead.
Social media gives them a hit of something. Maybe it is dopamine or whatever. Its a little ping of bullshit validation every time someone likes a post or replies to a comment. It's not real connection but it feels like something. That something is easier than sitting with the uncomfortable reality that your life needs work they don't want to do.
It's not even conscious most of the time. People pick up the phone without thinking and thirty minutes of their life disappears. Then they put it down feeling worse than before but do the same damn thing an a few minutes later.
The algorithm doesn't give a fuck about a person's goals. It wants your attention and it's really good at getting it. Smarter people than you or me designed it that way.
So what's important gets pushed aside. Health., relationships, and finances. All the stuff that actually matters but doesn't come with notifications gets shit canned for the hit. That stuff requires you to be present and uncomfortable. Social media lets you be absent and numb. Easy choice in the moment and a terrible one over time.
I used to have this problem when I was going through some mental health challenges, the phone became a crutch. It was easier to scroll than to feel. It was easier to numb out everything than to deal with what was actually going on. So, I get why people do it becuase I've been there.
But I climbed out of that hole sometime ago which is why you don't see me around on the old socials much anymore. I'm not completely immune now but way better than I was. I now see people glued to their screens and I recognize it. It is not connection, it's avoidance. Life is short and there's work to do. The scroll doesn't move me forward. It just kills time until one runs out of it.
What about you? Do you catch yourself scrolling when you should be doing something else? What are you avoiding if you do scroll endlessly?
Thanks for reading,
Joe
Notes:
-All content is mine unless otherwise annotated.
-Images are my own unless otherwise noted.
-Photos edited using MS Paint and/or iPhone SE.
-Page Dividers from The Terminal Discord.