I really enjoyed reading McWilliams article because I have often thought of doing a social media detox. I recently deleted Tik-Tok because I caught myself mindlessly scrolling when I should have been doing other things, such as homework or chores. I have now noticed myself going to open the app only to remember it’s not there anymore. I relate to him about his attention being all over the place. I always feel like I need to pick up my phone even if I have already checked it ten times in the last minute and this does not help with my ADHD. I also need to use a “old school” calculator because I have opened my phone to quickly calculate something only to realize I have been on Facebook for twenty minutes and didn’t even remember why I opened my phone in the first place. I think we can use our smartphones to distract ourselves and often do in situations where we feel socially awkward. I know a lot of people when waiting in line for something say a movie, will just pull out their phones and scroll social media. This can be seen as an easy way to pass time but can hinder our abilities to make new connections with the people around us. These moments are the “endless loops that distract you from the moment you are in” that the author mentions in his article. I know that some of my fondest memories are spent in the moment with friends and family and it is because those are times spent in the “real world” as opposed to our “social world”.
I also relate to Erica, the full-time college student mentioned in the article. I relate most with her mentions of checking her smart phone as soon as she wakes up, and when she is eating food. I often eat my meals while sitting in front of my iPad watching YouTube videos. I can relate to that feeling of missing out, but I also know that if something was important then that person would contact me by texting or calling. I need to turn notifications off for games and social media on my phone or turn on focus mode because if that notification sound goes off while doing homework, I will have to check it and that starts the cycle of being distracted through social media.
Resources
McWilliams, J. (2016, February 29). Saving the Self in the Age of the Selfie. The American Scholar. Retrieved February 1, 2024, from https://theamericanscholar.org/saving-the-self-in-the-age-of-the-selfie/