Weekly Reflection #1: My Experience With Social Media
My experience with social media has been quite positive. I started using it at a relatively young age, joining Instagram when I was around seven years old, which feels early, though perhaps not uncommon compared to kids today. Fortunately, my parents maintained full control over what I posted to ensure I stayed safe.
I got Instagram when I was seven because my older sister had it, and I wanted to be like her. At that age, I looked up to her and her friends and wanted to be like them, so I made my own account. I asked my parents if I could get it, and they said yes as long as they could have control over it because their main concern was my safety, since I was so young and Instagram was fairly new. My first couple of posts were silly photos and a lot of dance videos. I danced from the ages of two to seventeen, and that was my whole life, and all of my friends were also dancers, so we would all post our dance combinations. Instagram was a platform where I could express myself and show my family and friends the things I loved.
Today, Instagram is my primary platform. I keep my account private so I can freely post casual photos and updates about my life without strangers viewing my content. Another reason I use Instagram is that it gives me some good food recipes that turn out quite well, and it has also given me some great ideas for my free inquiry project.
Tik Tok
I also have a TikTok account, which used to be Musical.ly, and that’s where I would post a bunch of trending dances. When it turned into TikTok, I would also post dances and trends with my friends in high school. It was a fun thing to do when we were all hanging out and to show our creative side. Doing these little videos on TikTok was a way for me to create fun memories that I look back on today.
Now, I use TikTok not for posting but to unwind at night before going to bed. After a long day, scrolling and watching fun videos gives me an easy way to relax, distract myself, and to turn my brain off. I find myself watching a variety of videos, from funny clips to days in my life videos and whatever pops up on my feed. Although I do enjoy scrolling through TikTok as a way to decompress, I do realize that scrolling right before bed is not necessarily the healthiest habit. It can be an easy way to lose track of time because it’s just video after video, which can lead to me not doing what I need to get done or staying up too late. I do try to set a limit on my scrolling time now that I am back in school so that I can stay on top of things but still have my relaxation time.
Youtube
Growing up, my sister and I loved watching YouTube together, especially family vloggers, which gave us a fun glimpse into other people’s lives. My sister and I would also make little vlogs together, not that we posted them on YouTube, but we thought that it was fun to pretend that we were someone else for a little bit.
I don’t use YouTube too much anymore unless I want some background noise or feel like watching some of the YouTubers I used to enjoy. I think it is cool to see the YouTubers I watched as a kid and find out what they are up to now. It brings back a sense of nostalgia and reminds me of the different stages of my childhood and the content I used to enjoy. It is interesting to see how their content and lives have changed over the years, just as my own interests and habits have changed. Even though I don’t use YouTube as often as I used to, it is still a platform I can return to when I want to feel connected to those memories or watch something familiar and comforting.