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Social Media: The Newest Addiction

  • Writer: Reese Reynolds
    Reese Reynolds
  • Mar 27
  • 3 min read

Almost any person you meet has some form of social media on their phone: TikTok, Instagram, and Snapchat have become a daily routine for many people, especially those in the younger generations. Although checking social media for a few minutes a day may seem fun or relaxing to some, it is not an uncommon experience to get distracted and end up scrolling for an hour when you only meant to look for five minutes.


Face it: almost any person with social media will admit they have gotten seriously distracted by the scrolling before. But this is not just because people are becoming lazy or unfocused; in fact, many experts are calling excessive social media use an addiction, and 5-10% of Americans fall under the definition of this issue (Hilliard, 2026).


Symptoms:


Many people who suffer from social media addiction show similar symptoms to those who experience other behavioral addictions. This includes positive emotions when using social media and negative ones if unable to access it, increasing use over time, and even an effect on personal life (Hilliard, 2026). Sound familiar? A writer from Stanford Medicine compares the easy, quick access of social media to the hypodermic needle that delivers drugs. Both create an immediate sensation that leaves users satisfied, but always craving more. Even worse, though, is that unlike other addictive things, social media never ends.  It keeps you hooked by constantly feeding you more videos, more likes, and more comments (Goldman, 2021).


Explanation:


But why are simple videos so addictive? Why is it so hard to simply close the app and turn off the phone without coming back? It has to do with a hormone in your brain called dopamine. Commonly called the “feel-good” hormone, this chemical “motivates us to do things we think will bring pleasure,” mentions an addiction expert interviewed by The Guardian. Scrolling through infinite videos and pressing likes provides a constant stream of dopamine for user’s brains. This makes your brain constantly seek more joy, craving the dopamine, leading to an addition to social media (Waters, 2021). In fact, dopamine is the same hormone that causes gambling addictions, which also relies on loops of surprise and pleasure (Kruger, 2018).


Effects:


Specifically for teens, social media use can have detrimental effects. A study conducted by psychiatrists on teen use of social media found that the longer teens spend on social media, the more likely they are to have internalizing, or mental health, problems (Riehm et al. 2019). With the already-concerning level of mental health problems in teens, it is simple to see how dangerous the continued rise of social media addiction can become.


How to escape the dopamine loop:


Like any other addiction, social media dependency must be combatted with “fasting.” Start with a 12-hour break from your phone completely, then 24, and eventually work up to longer periods (Waters, 2021). It will take about a month to fully escape the dopamine addiction, but once you do, you will feel more freedom and gratification from other activities that bring you joy. This detachment can be achieved by putting your phone in a drawer, deleting social media altogether, or placing restrictions on the time and place you can access certain apps on your phone. You may feel excluded or frustrated at first, but just like all other addictions, you will eventually be glad you do not have social media distracting you from completing tasks and living life.


Conclusion:


In sum, social media addiction is a serious problem affecting a frightening number of teens. However, with the right strategies, it is possible to end the dopamine gratification associated with scrolling and find more meaningful ways to experience joy. 


References:


 
 
 

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