One of the leading causes of death for teenagers is death by suicide. Suicide is usually a side effect of depression and lack of knowledge of self worth. All of this can be stemmed from consistent, unhealthy use of social media at a young age.

  The mind of teenagers and young kids are much more impressionable than the mind of a grown adult. The internet is a direct variation to depression. In fact, many experts worry that social media has become so integral to teenage life and it has created anxiety and lowered self-esteem.  

  In the article Does Social Media Cause Depression?, Christian Waldemar states that as the popularity of the internet grew, the diagnosing of people with mood disorders/depression also rose. The human mind has become more vulnerable to manipulation over the years. Instead of learning to love and work on ourselves, we sit and dwell on why we don’t look like the people we see on our social media feed.

  No one really comprehends how much actual work goes into celebrities photos. There is an entire abundance of heavy photoshop, makeup, and surgery shoved into a tiny instagram, twitter, or snapchat photo. When people lack this knowledge, it leaves them feeling like they’re not beautiful or good looking because they don’t fit this mold of “perfect”.

  “Sometimes I’ll see these girls in outfits that I really like,” sophomore Kayla said, “but when I try it on, I compare myself to them and make myself feel ‘ugly’.”

  Another student adds her take on how social media makes her feel.

  “I see people that have everything I want and it makes me feel like I have to have these things and I have to look this way to be truly happy with myself,” sophomore Delanie said.

  Not only does social media deprecate people’s views on themselves, but it wastes a lot of their precious time. Some teens find themselves checking their phones at 10 p.m., looking at the time and realizing they’ve been pointlessly scrolling for hours. People do not realize that so much of their lives are wasted away looking at their phones when they could be outside, learning something new, or being creative with projects, etc.

  “I spend two to three hours on social media a day. I believe that’s an unhealthy amount because those three-ish hours is time that I could have been being productive. It just makes me feel so bad and lifeless when I sit on my phone for so long. I feel so unconnected with the Earth,” Kayla said.

  Social media is like an addiction. Some people can’t get enough. If you feel like you’re being overwhelmed by it, try deleting your social medias and you will see the results instantly.

  “I have done a social media cleanse before,” Kacie said, “I felt so connected with the world and with myself. I got so many things done and it just overall made me so happy.”