I wake up on a sunday with my phone under my pillow. I can hear birds chirping around me but I woke up to vibrations of notifications, messages and updates.
The next thing I know, I am scrolling through all the data, pictures, election results, political fights, breakups, memes while I am in the washroom.
That is how my day begins.
I switch between platforms as I grab my first bite. I cannot lift my head up to see if I am eating alone or with someone. This bombardment of data does create an existential crisis.
I can see my virtual friends using more and more filters, using captions that can change the way their life is perceived or put up stories about things they had no part to play in, but definitely creating an impact on other’s minds who see them as this ‘socially acceptable person’ or someone with a complete life.
I can see how people whom I spoke to last week about their breakup were up and uploading images till 3am last night.
What do you understand of this?
We, as humans, have started looking at social media as some sort of a pacifier. It is like a space full of self doubt, low confidence, low esteem and also the same place where you feel you will heal yourself because it has so much to offer.
The next thing I know, I am reading about elections in the United States. Donald Trump’s comments on Joe Biden. Protests, mass demonstrations, vaccines for coronavirus, wildfires. There is so much to grab at once.
All the thoughts that I should have on a day with no laptop on my lap are washed away as some companies wish to divert my mind to what is happening near the white house or maybe why my ex put up a picture with another girl.
The number of hours I am spending on my screen is helping someone in the US mint money or even win elections.
This is a trap!
All that was created to connect us and eradicate a digital divide has created chaos!
Our thoughts, actions, reactions and decisions, all are determined and controlled by someone who feels he has the responsibility to calm down this mess.
Someone sitting behind super computers now knows my next action, my next click and how much time will I be looking at a cute dog video on Facebook. Does this not scare you?
This space wasn’t created by those who knew about mental health, addictions and the cost of giving up everything for a shallow virtual world. It was created by people who wished to bring technology in our lives in an attempt to replace the functioning of our brains with some artificial intelligence that they thought was a better substitute.
What you saw as a well connected network is now a fight. A fight to survive amid these radiations, fake news, manipulated information and excessive data.
It is evening and a post that I had put up on how increasing screen time is harmful for humans has 288 likes. It was 261 at 3:35 pm and 275 at 3:38 pm.
I want acceptance for what I just preached to the world on a platform that I criticise for snatching away my quality time. This trap has no escape.