Sveiki!
A whole week has passed since my first attempt at blogging and so far so good. We recently read an article for rhetoric and media studies class on smartphones and their effect on our generation, you can read more about it here. I found a lot of very relatable scenarios to my life as a millennial. However, the social media app mentioned in the article that caught my attention most was Snapchat. It is also the first form of social media that I was newly exposed to in the US.
Before coming to the States I had little to no use of this app. When I got here though, I very quickly came into contact with the situation of people not asking me for my phone number as I had been used to, but instead asking me for my Snapchat. I had barely ever even heard about it. I felt like a grandma. I had always assumed it was an app for people to send “private” photos of certain “things” to their “special” friends. So, when someone I barely knew asked me for my Snapchat, I was fairly traumatized. We quickly cleared up the situation, but the fact remained, I had always thought that I was well-educated on most parts of the Internet, but suddenly I was falling behind in everyday social life, just because I didn’t use an app. I quickly downloaded it again and began using it, and within a few days, I was addicted.
The article mentions Snapchat as a good way of keeping in touch with friends over the summer and with family on a daily basis, but it isn’t. I found myself sending photos of walls, the floor, my crocs to people just to keep up streaks. It was ridiculous, suddenly my biggest priority went from getting a good education and making friends, to keeping up a Snapchat streak. I didn’t realize I was addicted until at one point I noticed that I can’t be without my phone for even a few minutes of the day. The sad part is, I only realized this, when I had gone home for winter break. That means I had already spent half a year addicted. After I realized this I deleted the app for a while, I then noticed how much less anxious I was and how much more people I met.
Long story short, I’m not saying that you should permanently delete Snapchat, but try deleting it for a couple of days, even one day, especially if you’re an anxious person like me. It makes a huge difference on your mental health.
Latvian in Portland 
Hey Anna! I like how you embedded the link to the article we read for class into your post. That was a great touch. I also got around to using snapchat very late, and was surprised that during freshman orientation so many people were asking for my snapchat who barely knew my name. Needles to say, I definitely spent some time cleaning out my friends list this summer. Great post! You have some really good observations about how media can take over our focus.
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I really liked that you added in the fact that when you first came here, you had barely even heard of snap chat, yet in the U.S it was essentially people’s prime form of communication. I’m proud of you for having the willpower to take control of your mental health and delete it for your own good…not sure if I would have the willpower to do that !
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