Steemit Engagement Challenge / S13W2 - "Protect your Mental Health from Social media Dangers"

Good friends, you are welcome to my age. A page where I share quality and interesting topics as the engagement challenge continues to make our week exciting. This weeks topic, I will carefully make my contribution known on my take on the social media and its impact.

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What is “social media” in your life, and how many hours a day do you spend on it?

First of all, we need to understand the term social media. Just as the name implies, it is no longer the gathering of people in a local or face to face basis but in a digital platform that hosts different kind of people irrespective of tribe, religion or background. It was really child of necessity for some of us who caught up with it.

Since I started using the social media platform, I will really say that it greatly brought about changes in several ways of our lives. There are some many changes it brought to the table. We do not need to rely and put our fate on the postal agencies anymore. A situation where by a message is given and the sender will have to wait for days, and sometimes weeks and months before responding.

Mails, messages, files, and other multimedia attachments can now be easily forwarded digitally to our recipients bearing in mind the time and efficiency. I don't need to be around the post posters office negotiating fees and charges but from the comfort of my home, i can get all these documents done immediately.

The over dependence in advertorials and high charges from TV and Radio stations are also reduced alternatively through the online ads most of the social media.has avail us. I can do some of my business transactions from end to end using the social media platform. And most times it is spontaneous and direct that its results is encouraging without glitches.

I do not regulate the number of hours I engage in the social media platforms but they are used for specific purposes and when i am done, I log out. But averagely, I may say out of the productive time of the day, I may likely be engaging the social media for about 5hrs cumulatively.

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Name five ways social media can have a negative impact on your life and that of your loved ones.

1. Depriving One of Enough Sleep Time

I can remember when internet and the social media newly came out, this distorted our sleeping time a whole lot. We had to visit the cyber cafe at night to browse all night because it was cheaper to browse during those off peak hours unlike during the day. One would go then and be exposed to other environmental risks and also under pressure to cover up before its morning.

2. Addiction

It is good to use the platforms but when there is over use or indulgence, it becomes a problem. Even the food we eat, when they are abused, it problems a problem to our body system. Continuous use of the media platform may creat addiction which over time will affect our lifestyle and other productive activities we have to do for ourselves.

3. Exposure to Adult Sites

This is another disadvantage of the emergence of social media platforms. It also brought closer the access of nude sites to everyone. Children before the ages of 18 are at more risk to effect of this site.

4. Exposure to Privacy Breaches

Most a times, we want to save our files, pictures and videos of important events, and we have always found the digital platforms more handy. But due to centralized nature of this platforms, there possibilities of hackers having their way and thereby leaking our videos. This privacy breaches are sometimes detrimental to us.

5. Financial Leakages

Addiction can also lead to financial leakages. When we are over using the platform , we are also paying more to stay connected due to the internet connectivity charges.

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If you had to implement 5 rules to make sure that social media became HEALTHIER in your environment, what would they be?

I will want to implement the following rules to make the social media a healthier place in my environment.

1. Cheaper Access to Internet and Data Bundles with WIFI hubs created for clusters especially at student areas. This would go a long way to bring about satisfaction of service use and as well efficient access to social media platforms and internet for purposes of a better lifestyle and economic growth.

2. Restrictions and stiffer parental guide on some unguided sites that are capable of causing more harm to adolescents.

3. Advocacy in place for people to stop uploading more private files or documents on net for possibility of hacks. If this must be done, devices should be more protected, all 2 step verification steps done in accordance to media platforms rules.

4. For those having longer screen time, there should be adopted glasses in use to help limit the early damages down to the eyes. Awareness on the use of Anti Blue Ray device glasses should be hyped to help users from loosing their sights quite early.

5. There should be more stringent rules that regulates abuses, inciting comments and other dangerous vices amongst users of the platform. The platform should not be used for negatively in a matter that should undermine the security of lives and properties.

Conclusion

I will say that social media has offered and continuously offered a platform of better opportunities and growth in our every day to day connectivity. We can now do better in terms of communication and everything that relates to human activities through the media.

I am inviting @hisgeneral, @ruzboy, @dar22 to join m.