A minute of scrolling through social media can quickly become an hour that could have been spent enriching relationships with family and friends.

 “It used to be a joke to say that families out for dinner do not talk as everyone is just scrolling through Instagram or Facebook on smartphones. Now it is a depressing reality,” says Andrew Webb in The Spark Blog, “Relationships and Social Media.”

  The question of how much time social media takes out of our live leads to the consideration of how vastly it could have damaged relationships. If social media did not exist, how much stronger would real life relationships be?

 “Social media can of course enhance and advance good relationships. The opportunity to connect families living thousands of miles apart in shared experiences is just one example of the positive impact of platforms like Facebook,” said Andrew Webb.

  It is easy not to notice the impact that time is taking on our lives but it also seems impossible for there to be no impact at all.

 “I don’t have any social media besides Snapchat so I’d say I spend about an hour on social media a day. I’m happy without other social media so I don’t feel the urge to get them and I don’t want to spend even more time on my phone,” says Anika Yoder (12).

 “I feel like social media can affect relationships with family and friends but for me it doesn’t. I don’t use it that much to affect my relationships,” says Adriana Greene (12).

  Many people choose not to get social media for different reasons. Often times people will “take a break” from social media to tear themselves away from their screens and live more in the present.

 “Social media hasn’t affected my relationships with family but it has affected my relationships with friends. There’s a lot of drama on social media and people would rather stay behind a screen rather than confront you in person,” says Kendal Henry (11).

  Social media has likely ruined many friendships due to bad decisions being made when people post things online or when something is misread easily. People have weakened the ability to talk through problems in person because typing things out is easier.

 “I spend about three hours on social media a day. When I go home I prefer to go on social media rather than talk to my family because I usually don’t have any specific thing I want to talk to them about in that moment,” says Kelly Balaban (12).

  When easy entertainment is constantly at our fingertips, it becomes instinct to constantly check our phones. However, because the use of social media is somewhat addictive, long amounts of time could go by I noticed yet have a big impact on family life. A night to yourself may seem tempting as you turn down plans with friends only retreat to a much easier way of connecting and communicating with others.

 “Social media affects my relationships with friends because without it I wouldn’t be able to maintain friendships with my friends from different schools. However, I do think that I go on my phone too much and there should be a time where I put my phone away,” says Kayla Henry (10).

  Many people feel like there are positives and negatives to social media and how it affects our relationships. Friendships can be formed and broken over social media.

  In the end it may be scary to see the added up number of how many hours of our lives were spent on our phones.

“I spend about four hours on my phone a day and I feel like that time strengthens my relationships with friends but it distracts from my time with family. When I get home from school I would rather spend time with my family though than go on my phone because I enjoy talking with them,” says Gabby Patino (10).

  Phones provide entertainment but talking with family usually ends up being time well spent.

 “Studies have shown that people mostly use social media sites like Facebook because they meet the basic need of connecting to others: Making friends, keeping tabs on their lives, and updating friends on the status of your life,” says Jimmy Rohampton in a Forbes article called, “Millennials, Here’s How Social Media Impacts Your Relationships.”

  Although social media helps satisfy the need for human interaction, there are much better ways of doing so. Talking with friends and family on the phone or FaceTime is important because then you can get the actual truth of how they are doing and not just the pictures they upload for everyone to see.

  Also, calling them or setting up a time to meet is a great way of letting them know that you are thinking of them. By liking a post the relationship is not truly benefiting and receiving attention.

  Everyone can appreciate seeing others pictures and updates about their life but it is extremely important to maintain relationships with family and friends through in person or over the phone communication as well.

  Putting phone away completely and living in the present can enrich a person’s life and satisfy the basic. Red for human connection with. More wholesome and beneficial approach. The new year has just begun and it would be a great resolution to put down the phone and live in the moment.