Reeva Lalani
Our pandemic screen addiction is destroying relationships and reality. Explore the mental health crisis behind our glowing screens, from locked-down isolation to endless scrolling. Can we escape and reclaim our lives before falling into the void?
People have become increasingly attached to their phones, especially since March of 2020. It used to be a fun escape, a way for people to talk to their friends. But until recently, most of our lives resolved around virtual interactions. It blurred the line between the digital world andthe physical world. Many feel like they are lost in the virtual abyss of social media. ​
The convenient invention of smartphones is ubiquitous: for virtually people, it is the way humans connect and communicate. Since Covid-19, our lives are essentially built on this idea of online communication. Once this treasure was discovered, they began to be enveloped in its magnificence.Â
Social media and the general internet have played a significant piece in the puzzle of creating a dormant way of life for those under lockdown. Because of forced time spent at home, families are succumbed to the reserved walls of their residence. The lack of physical communication has begun hindering the mental health of the public.Â
As every coin has another side, the government has played a vital role in negative mindsets and has pushed people to further mental health problems by shutting down public places. The pandemic is not just a medical phenomenon; it affects individuals and may cause anxiety, stress, stigma, and a lot more.Â
The idea of communicating with others, being separated, loses the physical connection between you and the other person. Human relationships are continually eroded because of much-unstructured life development by the pandemic. Many have felt unmoored since the initial publication of the lockdown. This incident has left numerous people feeling even more unwieldy and depressing since March.Â
Seeing as scientists' have developed a vaccine for the virus, as of now, those who are not classified as front-line health workers or immediate patients are left in the dust. Since social media and public health experts promote avoiding contact with others, they have led many to construct a stagnant mindset. Limited human interaction has left them no choice but to communicate through a screen. Dreams and aspirations pass us while we are stuck, scrolling on our phones, with no motivation to do what we love. So, the question we need to ourselves is: How can we steer away from the void that is mental health?Â