Okay, I know this might sound crazy, but lately I’ve been thinking that we all spend way too much time on our phones. Like, seriously—if I check my screen time right now, it’s probably something embarrassing like seven hours a day. Between TikTok, Snapchat, and random YouTube rabbit holes, it’s so easy to lose track of time. But the weird thing is, even though we’re constantly connected, it kind of feels like we’re missing out on real life.
I started noticing it when I went out with friends, and instead of talking to each other, everyone was half-distracted—taking pictures, checking messages, or scrolling for no reason. It’s like we’re all hanging out together but alone. I know I do it too. Sometimes I’ll open my phone “just for a sec,” and suddenly 45 minutes are gone. It’s almost like our phones are mini black holes that suck in time and attention.
The thing is, being online all the time gets exhausting. You start comparing yourself to other people, worrying about likes, and trying to keep up with trends that change every five minutes. And when you finally put your phone down, everything feels kind of boring. That’s when I realized how much I’d forgotten how to just be.
A few weeks ago, I decided to take a break from social media for a weekend. I expected it to be awful, but it was actually kind of nice. I went outside, hung out with my dog, and even finished a book for once. It felt weirdly peaceful, like my brain finally got a chance to breathe. When I went back online, I didn’t feel the same need to constantly check everything.
Don’t get me wrong—I’m not saying we should all throw our phones into the ocean or anything. They’re fun, and honestly, life without memes would be depressing. But maybe we could all use a little balance. Like, maybe leave the phone in another room sometimes, or have a no-scroll day every week.
Because when we stop living through screens, we remember what it’s like to actually live.
