Binging and Purging

This past week or so, I took part in a media fast and binge. To say this was a bittersweet week would be the honest truth. These days, having a source of social media in front of your face is totally normal and without it I feel lost. I'm not a huge social media person, I mostly just take part in texting and snapchatting like a lot of other college students as well.

The binge was easy as pie. I usually always have my computer out in class to take notes, so having a screen in front of my face at most moments of the day was rather normal. When it comes to my phone and actually looking at sources of social media, I didn't sense much difference just like with my computer. This truly opened up my eyes and I realized how pathetic our world has become. It's so normal to have such advanced technology at your fingertips every second of every single day. It makes me think of when my parents were in college; like how did they get around Lincoln without a GPS. I believe that technology seems to be unnecessary, but these days, you're out of things without it.

All in all, I realized that I need to not be spending as much time as I am already on my phone, laptop and social media.

On the other hand, the media fast was NO FUN. I tried as hard as I could to keep my laptop put away, my phone only used for texting and pressed pause on binge watching Shameless on Netflix for a few days. People our age are so used to having access to any source of internet twenty-four hours a day and seven days a week, this was one of the hardest things I have ever done. I'm kind of ashamed as to how many times I just HAD to look at my Instagram feed and Snapchat stories, but it made me realize, once again, how hooked society is on social media.

The first day of the fast, I didn't have classes or work: complete torture. I was almost forced to get ahead of the game and start studying for finals. I even began packing my dorm room up. This was the perfect day to just lay around and watch Netflix and do absolutely nothing, but I resisted.

Overall, the media binge and fast was a true test of really reading myself. I finally understand now why all of my grandparents don't understand why our generation is so hooked on social media. I can tell you this, I won't ever willingly do a binge or fast like this any time soon. But it was a great week to gather my thoughts and think more about how social media plays a role in today's society.