SOCIAL MEDIA & COMPARISON
Social Media: An Alias of Bliss
By AG
OCTOBER 10, 2026 · 5 MIN READ
There I was, patiently waiting at the Sprint store with immense joy. I was finally getting my first phone. I had begged and pleaded with my mom for the brand-new iPhone 6, and I wasn’t taking no for an answer.
My grandfather had passed away just weeks before. Looking back, I think that was part of the reason she said yes. She was willing to do anything to make me happy.
Little did I know, that phone would lead me far away from happiness.
Like the average teenager, I immediately downloaded social media apps. They appeared to be the solution to all my problems: a way to stay connected, fit in, and feel less alone. Instead, they amplified problems I already had and left me feeling depressed.
To me, social media hides behind an alias of bliss. It promises connection, entertainment, and happiness. But what happens when you keep looking for those things and leave feeling worse?
You win some, you lose some
Social media is a lot like gambling: you win some, you lose some, but mainly you lose.
That’s how it started to feel to me. Every time you check, you’re under the impression that you’ll eventually strike big. Maybe someone you’ve been waiting on finally messaged you. Maybe your post got attention. Maybe you’ll find something that makes you feel good about yourself.
Sometimes you do. But how long does that feeling last?
You check again. And again. You’re looking for another moment that makes opening the app feel worth it.
The loss isn’t always obvious. It might be the time you intended to spend doing something else. The sleep you gave up. Or the confidence you had before comparing yourself to someone you don’t even know.
You went looking for a little happiness. Somehow, you ended up feeling like you weren’t enough.
Connected to everything, included in nothing
Imagine talking to your friends all day about hanging out. Everyone makes an excuse. They’re busy, tired, or have something else going on.
Hours later, you check Snapchat and see a picture of them all together.
Now you’re wondering why you weren’t invited. Did you do something wrong? Are you annoying? Do they even want you around?
Before social media, you might never have known about that night. Now you can watch it happen from your bedroom.
And it isn’t just about being left out. Sometimes you open an app and see people living lives that make yours feel small. Someone has the body you want, the relationship you want, or the success you thought you’d have by now.
You know you’re only seeing part of their life. But knowing that doesn’t always stop you from feeling bad about your own.
That’s what bothers me. Something that’s supposed to connect us can leave us feeling so disconnected.
Don’t you think that’s weird?
Don’t you think it’s weird that Steve Jobs helped bring the iPad into the world, but told a reporter in 2010 that his own children hadn’t used it?
“We limit how much technology our kids use at home,” he said. Reporter Nick Bilton also described other technology leaders who set strict screen limits for their children. Evan Williams, a founder of Blogger, Twitter, and Medium, said his young sons had books instead of iPads.
That doesn’t prove every device or platform is harmful. But it makes me stop and think.
If people so close to this technology felt the need to put boundaries around it in their own homes, why was I treating unlimited access as something I was lucky to have?
As a teenager waiting for that first phone, boundaries were probably the last thing on my mind. I just wanted what everyone else had.
When the screen goes dark
Social media doesn’t always stay on the screen.
You put your phone down, but the thoughts keep going. Why wasn’t I invited? Why don’t I look like that? Why does everyone else seem to have their life figured out?
A quick check before bed can turn into an hour of scrolling, followed by another hour of thinking about everything you saw.
In my original experience, the apps that appeared to offer an escape only gave me more to dwell on. The moments of happiness were brief. The negative thoughts were harder to shake.
I’m not saying social media was responsible for every problem I had. But I can’t pretend it was helping just because everyone around me was using it too.
Taking some of our lives back
I still believe social media can be a platform for change. We can share our stories, inform people, and find support. Ironically, we can use it to reach the very people who need to hear about its downsides.
But that doesn’t mean we have to give it unlimited access to our attention.
Turn off notifications that don’t need an immediate response. Put your phone away at night. Take a break from the apps or accounts that consistently make you feel worse.
Most of all, pay attention to how you feel when you leave—not just what keeps you coming back.
That’s part of why I want to talk about social media and comparison here. I know what it’s like to expect these platforms to make life better and find yourself feeling worse instead.
My mom wanted to make me happy when she bought me that phone. I thought it would make me happy too.
Neither of us was thinking about how much of my attention—and how much of my opinion of myself—I might eventually hand over to it.
Life is more than the media portrays it to be. I don’t want to miss mine while watching everyone else’s.
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