Perspectives On Social Media And Loneliness

Oct 10, 2013Public Service

Provided as a PUBLIC SERVICE to our readers, this is the third in a series of posts written by our youngest team member, Emma Lively. Like most teens, Emma is social media savvy. More posts of this kind to follow.

The average human is only capable of intimately knowing about 150 people. The average number of Facebook friends is 510. That leaves about 360 people that you are “friends” with, that you don’t even know!

Technically speaking you have hundreds of friends, so it would be shocking to hear that “the most common ailment of the modern world is loneliness.” In a world so connected and innovated to keep us in communication, why would so many people say they are lonely?

Our surroundings pressure us into trying to achieve  more than we possibly can, and convince us that everyone else is much better off than they actually are. Why would you post about your bills or your rough day, when you can rack up more likes and comments on the cool mug your coffee was in this morning while you watched the sunrise. Who would ever post a selfie on a bad hair day?!

Our lives have become swindled by the filters we put on our pictures and the level of vocabulary we use when talking about our latest experiences. We count the quantity of our friends, and not their quality. We abdicate our need for communication with mere connection. Social Medias allow us to filter not only our pictures, but who we are! You can easily change your entire demeanor based on what you post about. You can warp peoples views of your actuality. We are only focused on advertising ourselves and creating our best image.

The thought that we will never be alone because we have Facebook or Twitter, is what actually make us more lonely. You begin thinking that what you share, is what you are, but when you start realizing that you aren’t as happy as you seem to others, your self confidence deflates. We begin to think that we will never have to be alone, but if you don’t know how to be alone, all you will know is how to feel loneliness.