As our science and technology advances, problems that were once deemed impossible are fixed. People are cured and diseases are exterminated. However, there may be an underlying curse to this blessing. Phones are being dropped into the hands of our youth at younger and younger ages every year. Social media has become an inescapable trap of lies that feed the masses of expectations. Are we spiraling toward a devastating end because of our phones?

When the word addiction is spoken, sometimes the first thing the mind runs into is drugs, alcohol and nicotine. An addiction to your phone is probably far down your list, which makes sense. We as a society have hardly scraped the surface of the technology world. Handheld devices are still very new to our world and we are only just stepping down the stairs of discovery. We have no idea what they may lead to, nor their effects. 

Most kids receive a phone anywhere from fifth to eighth grade, some even younger. Even without a cellular device, kids were still surrounded by other forms of media. 

“I got social media shortly after I got my phone so in about sixth grade. Even as a kid I always had an ipod or an ipad so it’s honestly hard for me to remember life without some type of phone,” sophomore Avery Schlattman said.

Although it’s an unpopular opinion, constantly having your phone on you throughout the day is a distraction. As a notification goes off, some students feel an irresistible urge to check it, despite an important lesson or the loss of time to work on class assignments. 

“I am able to admit that it’s hard to focus in class or on homework, or any task sometimes because I would rather be on my phone. It is distracting,” Schlattman said. 

But having a phone isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Technology has allowed for those who may not feel that they fit in to connect with other people who share the same interests. To many students, it’s a way to stay more connected to their friends and more aware of what goes on around them in their community and what happens globally.

“It definitely makes me want to do more things,” sophomore Ashley Murray said. “If I want to go hang out with somebody, I text them to see how they’re they’re doing. Any time I have to do anything, my phone revolves around it.” 

Having a phone opens up opportunities to know exactly what is happening within the minute it happens through social media platforms, but social media has set a new level of anxiety amongst teenagers. Impossible body type standards and romanticized extravagant lifestyles are advertised as normal. 

“Whenever you first get social media you have to have a perfect life. You go on people’s instagrams and they’re in California and they’re amazing. You feel like you always have to have a perfect image,” senior Megan Chambers said, commenting on the culture of social media. 

The ideals of life are constantly broadcasted and thrown in our faces everyday. We can access just about any bit of information at any point in time. The question is, is the anxiety, stress, and the distraction worth it in the endgame?