Facebook Part 2: Addicted

I confess, facebook has taken over my life. Now, I will preface this by saying that I am quite aware that I have an addictive personality. I find a game I like, I play until I can't stand it. I am easily drawn into reality television, even especially the trashy stuff. When I get on the bandwagon, one would be hard pressed to get me off. But facebook is a whole new breed.


I check it when I get up using my blackberry, I check it on the laptop before leaving for work, I look at it several times at work using my phone, get on it when I get home, and then again before bed. And for what? It's as if I expect that there will be something life altering, something that will add to my quality of life or answer all my big questions, or make me feel at peace. But after being on facebook for a few years, I can quite truthfully say that that has never happened.


So what is the draw? Perhaps it is the open invitation to snoop. I would classify myself as a facebook creeper. If someone I know is on there, but we aren't "friends", I will check out their page hoping that they have minimal privacy settings so that I might get a glimpse at some photos.  Maybe it's candid hilarity of facebook statuses. I love my witty friends, they make me laugh with their ridiculous statements. Maybe it's the ease of staying in contact. I moved cities recently, so a lot of my friends, and the bulk of my family, live three hours away. Sending a message or posting on their wall is a simple way of showing those people that I love them and am thinking of them. Whatever it is, or whatever combination of the above it is, I am hooked.


Now, this is making me sound really bad when in all actuality I have greatly lessened my addiction and have improved my face-to-face interaction with real live people. But I wonder how and why I got so wrapped up in this internet culture in the first place. Sometimes I feel comforted knowing that I am not the only one, but at the same time I think "oh man, I am not the only one!" Is this social network more dangerous than we thought and are willing to admit?

At the beach in Punta Cana, not on facebook

As with any addiction, I need accountability, My husband has been helping me see lately that I use it way too much. I simply stare at the screen, look through the same statuses several times, and then give up. But it doesn't deserve that much attention or time. No matter how much I may think that spending time on facebook is helping, it may actually be the biggest, most obvious hindrance to deepening my relationships. I need to keep that in check.


No excuse me while I go post the blog on facebook...haha.


-SP