With new technology, virtually anything can be easily accessed through a phone, computer, or tablet. The world can literally be in the palm of your hand. Social media allows instant access to events, news, and information. It seems as if social media seamlessly intertwines into our everyday lives, but for sophomore Joseph Buckhholz, social media is not essential.

“It’s not that important to me. My friends have social media, but they are not very active. I never post, so I don’t find the need to have or use social media,” said Buckhholz.

The movement of “quitting” social media has been prevalent, especially with the news of famous instagram star, Essena O’Neill, who “quit” social media for a week to be a better role model to her sister. According to ABC News, the star announced that social media was making O’Neill miserable and claimed that social media platforms could be unhealthy, and shut down all of her media.

Junior Jessica Squires, who considers herself an active user of social media and someone who spends time liking, favoriting, and posting than most, also took a break from social media.

“I took a break from social media for a week, because it was stressing me out and I felt like my life was only on social media, so I stopped to find myself. I can’t speak for anyone but myself, but I realized that I was in a way ‘addicted’ to social media and that we as a society are losing social skills, and this behavior has become the norm,” said Squires.

Snapchat, Twitter, Tumblr, Vine, and many other social apps serve as a way to be connected with your neighbor, strange relatives, as well as strangers from the other side of the world.

“Whenever I have a free second, I’ll find myself on social media. I’m active on social media, but it doesn’t consume me. I feel like everyone is at different stages in regards to ‘addiction’. More power to those who do not have social media,” said junior Lily Dighero.

According to Instagram, the company reached 400 million users in September and has since grown at a rapid rate. With that many users, any given person can have many friends, family, and acquaintances involved with social media.

“Social media, like anything, can be used for good or bad. It can be a way to keep up with friends and celebrities, as well as a way to share your personal life, but there’s also the pressure of having an exciting instagram, or ‘fire’ tweets, and competition about followers and whatnot,” said Dighero.

For some, social media has consumed a large portion of their time. The time lost goes unnoticed until the social media is taken away.

“I deleted every social media app I had on my phone and had face to face conversations with people, but conversations were always directed back to ‘Oh, did you see this tweet or see this post?’ Conversations often got cut off by notifications,” said Squires.

The idea of taking a break from social media or not getting involved with social media at all is not revolutionary; it is a point that has been brought up since the creation of the various social platforms. However, students have been reevaluating their usage of social media.