Isn’t that a loaded title? To blame a website for being solely responsible for ruining my life. But it’s true. I can prove it.
What’s the first thing I do when I wake up?
What’s the last thing I do before I go to bed?
What’s the first app I open when I pick up my phone? Even if I picked it up for something else?
What do I check, on average, every 10 minutes. Yes, I noted the times one day.
What’s am I doing right now to avoid/procrastinate writing this post?
Facebook.
(source)
How do I find out what is going on in my friends lives?
What’s my main form of contact other than texting?
What am I doing when I should be communicating with my husband?
What am I doing when I should be helping my son with his homework? Or watching him play tennis? Or throwing the footy in the backyard with him?
What am I doing when I should be doing uni work?
What am I doing when we are watching a movie at home? Or X Factor? Or the news?
Facebook.
(source)
Where do I go to read news?
Where do I go to post pictures?
Where do I go as soon as something remotely exciting, like dog poo, child vomit, coughing fits, a massive dump*, happens?
Facebook.
What is ruining my life? Or at the very least monopolizing it?
Facebook.
(source)
My name is Aroha. I am an addict. I need a rehab program and I am not even kidding**.
At the end of my tether, I am considering the options: Delete my account, or create a new, severely-condensed version.
Is Facebook ruining your life? What are you doing about it? What should I do? Maybe I”ll make a Facebook poll…
*I have never actually posted about taking a massive dump, but I’m certain some things I’ve posted about would be just as exciting as that
** I am sort of kidding. This is a somewhat tongue-in-cheek post, but it has a very real undertone to it…I can’t stop
Linking up with Essentially Jess for I Blog On Tuesdays…let’s face it, it’s just about the only day I blog anymore!
Colours of Sunset 
HA!!! You are not alone. I am sickened by myself. I remind myself all the time to jump off there and just be here! ARGHH! Kick me in the ass. My husband does that, not literally, of course. But he does like to tell me I’m an addict. I try and leave the phone in the kitchen when he comes home and we are together in the lounge room. He likes me better that way
I need to start doing that too, but I like to be on twitter when I’m watching shows like X Factor or any show really, because twitter is comic GOLD when watching TV. And if I’m on my phone on twitter….well FB is just a click away!
Oh no! I’m not quite that bad, but once I didn’t post to my page for a day and a friend asked if I was okay. She has now been schooled in the benefits of scheduling on facebook pages! I hope you kick the habit. x
LOL Em. I wonder what would happen if *I* didn’t post for a couple of days….I’d like to try, but I don’t think I can do it! haha
I’m bad on Facebook AND Twitter too Aroha, but I never use my phone to look at it so that means I have to be at home on my laptop. WE can’t access any social media at work which also blocks my addiction 🙂
I go in spurts with Twitter. Most of the time I find I’m having a conversation with myself! I need a job that blocks FB, and to delete it off my phone. I probably need to get a dumb phone so I can’t get on ANY websites or apps!
Put the phone in another room…then you have FB free time…that’s what I do. 🙂
But my legs involuntarily get up and go to the other room and my hands and arms involuntarily pick it up and bring it to be with me! ha! This is what I need to do. I KNOW I need to do it….I just have to DO IT!
I’ve considered deleting the app- but I know I’d just end up on the browser!
Which is exactly what has happened to me before…..TWICE! But I did find I didn’t look at it QUITE as much! Maybe baby steps – that can be the first step.
I have no problem with Facebook because I really don’t actually like it. I visit for an update on politics (there’s a great page I follow) but otherwise, not really for me.
I’d delete your account for a while and get an addiction to Instagram instead 😀
Well I check Instagram and Twitter plenty too! Though nowhere near as much as FB.
I’m the same as Pinky – I rarely use my phone to check FB, only if I’m away from the computer for a while. And at work I check in a couple of times a day. I think how FB ruins my life is I always feel pressure to say something, share something witty or inspiration or whatever. And my life (and thoughts) are far more mundane than that. I hate the popularity contest most of all.
Yes, that side of it isn’t nice, the popularity contest. I find myself saying anything and everything which is incredibly mundane for everyone but me! haha
Ha ha, I’m laughing so hard right now because you know what my post today was about? Email addiction. Yes, computers are definitely ruining our lives:-) xx
I will have to go and have a read! Perhaps TECHNOLOGY is ruining our lives?
perhaps you could take it off your phone for awhile!! x
I will try really really hard. Promise!
First step, take the app off your phone. Second step, schedule set times where you get to look at it e.g. 5 mins in morn, 5 mins at lunch, 10 minutes at night. Then close it down. To think we can just switch off FB is a bit pie in the sky, it’s a nice thought but it is how many of us connect. I’d love to go back to the LBFB (life before Facebook) but it’s not a reality that is possible. Don’t be too hard on yourself, just be a little more mindful about it 🙂
the problem is that I have so much JUNK in my newsfeed that 5 minutes I barely see anything? I think I’m going to start over with my nickname and maiden name and just add family. that will make it much easier to just spend 5 minutes on there.
I rarely post anything on my personal page, I’m always updating my blog facebook page. It can take over your life and become an addiction. I do follow the newsfeed a bit and that is how I found out Robin Williams passed away! For me Facebook has replaced watching tv or the news.
I tend to get all my news from FB too. That is part of the problem – I have to read all the comments people leave and more often than not that gets me so angry! *sigh*
I hear ya. I don’t think I’m on it every ten minutes, but most days I would be on there every hour. And considering I keep getting the same stuff in my feed, it’s not like it’s that exciting.
But please don’t delete it! That’s how we chat!!!
That’s it isn’t it! It’s NOT that exciting. I have FOMO I’ve been told. Heaven forbid someone post something and I miss it!!
You need a new distraction from fb lol. Once I got into Instagram it left fb for dust. I check fb a couple of times a day unless I get a notification. But IG I CHECK multiple times each hour (ok constantly). But it is quicker than fb ever was xxx deb
See, I like IG, but I am not addicted to it. Its too hard to scroll through so I miss a LOT of posts! I only see about a dozen either side of what I just posted, and that’s it.
I took Facebook off my phone almost a week ago and it has made such a huge difference. Great post!
Really!? Have you been using the browser? Ok, I will try this. Seems to be the general consensus..
My names Toni and I’m a facebook addict too! But, I don’t mind it. I just need to be a little more mindful of when I’m using it. I’m getting much better at not checking my phone when I’m out, but I still check it multiple times a day.
if I could just check it when I am on my own and have 5 minutes spare, then that would be ok. But that only ever happens in the car, which is NOT ok. Mindful….it’s a good word! Dunno about practice of it though! 🙂
Oh I feel ya. Hubster used to get annoyed with my FB habit so I have done a month long Facebook fast at times to help me get more balance in my life. After the first few days you will be amazed at the extra spare time you have.
However … you could always do what I did, and turn FB into part of your job. Seriously! I now manage several FB accounts for different businesses and get paid for it. Haha turn your addiction into a paying job, even hubster doesn’t mind me being on FB now (though he still hasn’t got an account)!
Visiting today from #teamIBOT xxx
That is what I need to do – turn it into part of my job! You’re a clever chook Janet!
I can’t stop either, I’m a shocker. I have started making more of a conscious effort to stay off Facebook over the weekends but even tho I’m not posting, I’m still obsessively checking.
I’d love to spend the weekend without my phone, but I use it as a camera, so everything is literally just at my finger tips. Hard to just use the camera and not instantly FB or IG it.
Facebook is the first tab I open, even if I am just getting on to quickly google something! I used to think I could give it up, but I’m a lot less delusional these days that’s for sure!
lol Tegan. I am still in the land of delusion I’m afraid. I open a web browser and go straight to FB even if I was logging on to do something else! It is a sickness!
Tell me about it!! I have a new rule though – no Facebooking Friday nights and limited on saturdays and sundays where I should be hanging with the fam. It’s kind of working, but then come Monday I feel like I’ve missed so much. Major FOMO. It really is an addiction. We all need hellllppppp!
see, I use my phone as my camera, so I can’t be without it because I love taking pics. And then of course I have to FB or IG them and it’s RIGHT THERE at my finger tips. Maybe I should tell hubby that if he wants me to break my phone addiction I need a new camera.
Hello my name is Emily and SO AM I! But doubt it’ll change in a hurry! MEH x
We’re destined to be addicts forever, I think.
I don’t think it’s just FB addiction for most people. It’s portable internet device addiction. My partner is a shocker. He can’t seem to stop himself from checking all sorts of things constantly, just because it’s there and he can. Nobody had this dilemma when they had to boot up a PC before they could check anything. Now it’s anywhere, anytime…it’s disastrous really.
Yep – that’s spot on! Portable Internet Device Addiction. PIDA. Or Pain In Da Ass!! 😉
You can’t possibly be alone. I’m almost certain there thousands of couples in therapy right now, citing intimacy issues due to connectivity in general and Facebook would have to be one of the top culprits.
Facebook is not my favourite thing but it is up there in the mix, and when I’m not on it as my husband as many I know, there is still a feeling that they know lots of shit I don’t and maybe should.
We went to therapy about 5.5 years ago thanks to FB! Not because of how much time we were spending on it but WHO we were connecting with on it. Thats a post for another day. Iroincally, I’m sitting here responding to comments and “The Social Network” has just come on TV. HA!
Every now and then I try to get back into FB, but I just can’t. A few years ago I really loved it, but Instagram has definitely taken over for me.
I guess if it’s not one addiction it’s another? I think IG is the lesser of the evils tho!
If I didn’t blog I would rid of FB. I need to set boundaries too, no work gets done at all. I realised the other day I was supposed to be writing and actually spent the whole morning on FB. Your post has given me a huge wake up call xx
I have uni assignments due and what am I doing? Facebook. It is mindless and easy. Uni is hard!
A little while ago I felt this was me & I consciously pulled myself up on it.. I find deleting the app from your phone makes a difference as you can’t access it as readily. I also popped scrabble & hay day back onto my phone as it’s something a little different. Good luck!
The last time I deactivated my FB account for 2 months, my Twittering rate went through the roof lol. I guess if I am being honest, it’s not FB that’s the problem, it’s social media and my desire to be anywhere but where I am. 😦 Well that was a sad realisation!
Oh my gosh! I have so been there! And when I don’t think about it…I go back into that FB blackhole! I make a cut off time at night for no more social media. I make it 9pm when all the action is happening! But sorry, my sleep is more important.
Well, it has been on my mind a lot recently. Its really hard because I feel so connected online. When I delete it all, it’s lonely here “IRL”…*sigh* But yes, agree on sleep. Think I might go there soon myself! Problem is I have my phone next to me in bed – it’s my alarm clock (and phone, and contacts book, and……)