The Strangest Things People Have Seen Someone Get Addicted To
Reddit user /JARClol asked: 'What is the weirdest thing you are or saw someone addicted to?'
Content Warning: Discussions of Addiction
We've all heard of strange, inedible things that people have made a habit of eating, like paper or glue. Unfortunately, there are instances where eating these things works more like an addiction than a dietary choice.
There are a lot of other things that people might become addicted to, too, that have nothing to do with food, but which also are not the usual culprits for addiction.
If someone that we know is addicted to something unusual and isn't hiding it the same way that someone addicted to drugs might, it can be a really strange experience to witness.
Curious about others' experiences, Redditor JARClol asked:
"What is the weirdest thing you are or saw someone addicted to?"
Packing Peanuts
"I used to know a girl who was addicted to eating those little polystyrene chips that are used for packaging."
"She always had a bag of them with her. The noise she made when she was munching on them used to set my teeth on edge."
- -Some__Random-
"Don't tell her about the biodegradable ones (which actually taste nutty)."
- Hardwarestore_Senpai
A Hairy Situation
"A roommate in college was addicted to hair. She collected hair and made hair people. She would use the community vacuum cleaner, take out the hair, wash it, and make hair people."
"She would also go to salons asking for the cut hair 'for her family’s garden' and then proceed to make hair people."
"She had hundreds of them with names and stories about them."
"I kept my hairbrush locked up after it was cleaned out the first time."
- bzsbal
Pen and Ink
"Eating markers, like the tube of it. Inside the casing. I told his mother and her reply was, 'Oh, he's doing it again,' like... Again? Toxic ink? Again? I don't mean licking it. I mean chewing. Black ink in saliva and swallowing the ink-soaked sponge."
- Jazzlike_Grab_7228
"I knew a dude in high school who ate the ink from pens. Every class, gnawing on a pen, eventually breaking it open then sucking on it like a straw. He regularly would be drooling ink. I left that school sophomore year, and I wonder whatever happened to Abe."
- throwawaydbagain
"Abe? Was his last name LINKoln?"
- GetaGoodLookCostanza
The Strawberry Milk Fan
"I used to work with a girl who would just chug liters of strawberry milk. Every time I went to the toilet after her it stank of milk. She was eventually diagnosed with Type-Two Diabetes and gave up the milk… briefly."
- lifesyndromes
"Yeah, I'm not surprised. I'm Type-Two, and strawberry milk usually has more sugar in it than chocolate milk. The smaller-sized cartons you get at lunch usually have 22 to 40 grams of sugar in them and a s**tton of sodium (no, I'm not joking), so a liter would have hundreds of grams in it."
"I got it after 23 years of poor choices and family medical history. She got it by decimating her pancreas and s**tting a machine gun."
"And you said briefly, meaning she's probably worse off. Like, I still have sugar, but I try and have less of it. I f**k up a lot because it's hard, but f**k, if she went back to drinking liters of it, I wouldn't be surprised if she's had some other issues."
- JediBoJediPrime29
Just a Taste
"My best friend used to eat fabric softener in high school. She wouldn't have huge mouthfuls or gulps; she would take just enough to coat her tongue."
"She would keep bottles of it hidden around her room so she could have a taste whenever the mood struck her. I love her to death, but she’s a strange one, lol (laughing out loud)."
- officiallyedgy
Weren't We All?
"I used to be addicted to Candy Crush back in the day. After running out of five lives, I couldn't wait for them to be available so I would forward my clock just to be able to play. My phone was set to the year 2030ish by the time I stopped playing."
- moolucifer
"Wow. You time traveled. That's a loophole though, isn't it? You never had to pay for fake things."
- Hardwarestore_Senpai
Just After a Few Beers
"Not so much addicted but I had a friend in college that would huff the fluid in his zippo lighter when he was really drunk."
"Treavor wasn’t allowed to have his lighter after a few beers."
- shavemejesus
Albuterol Tremors
"I had a good friend in high school who had asthma who’d take hits off his inhaler, all day long. We’d be talking and he’d just casually whip it out whenever and take a hit. Ended up going to bed a couple of years after we graduated and never woke up."
- Magormgo
"I'm sorry. He probably f**ked his heart up. I hate taking my inhaler. It makes my heart race and makes me shake and feel like s**t."
- Weeniebuttcorgo
"Growing up, I used to take two Albuterol vials in my slow, old 90s nebulizer during asthma episodes. That thing was a TANK."
"I got a brand-spankin' new travel nebulizer in college and remember that first time I used two vials with it. I thought I was having a heart attack. That thing is POWERFUL and I wasn't expecting it. Two vials were far too strong and had me shaking for over an hour."
"I still have it to this day, and when I take it once a year or so for a flare-up, even one vial still makes me shake a bit."
- HorseGirl667
The Truth Behind the Problem
"I visited Nairobi for work around 2000 and the street kids all walked around with a small bottle of glue stuck to their upper lip so they were basically sniffing glue continually. It was extremely sad."
- Pretty-Balance-Sheet
"Probably something similar here in the Philippines. Homeless street kids sniff a plastic bag with a bit of contact cement in it to get rid of/to numb the hunger sensation. Not an addiction but a survival tactic… in my opinion."
- cssndrsrno
"Same in Zambian. Not stuck to their lip but carried and sniffed when needed. It was apparently to numb the body from feeling the cold in winter. Painfully sad."
- iron-clad-underwear
Never Underestimate Soda
"My first-ever girlfriend was genuinely addicted to Coca-Cola (self-admitted). She would have a glass as soon as she woke up and drink it all day."
"The one or two times I was there when her family had run out of it, she was irritable, anxious, and so grumpy until she was able to get down to the store to buy more."
"Strangely, it wasn't even the caffeine or sugar she was addicted to, because having a coffee or a different type of soda wasn't enough to ease her withdrawal symptoms."
- SheAlwaysHasMyHeart
"I had a friend who slept with a cooler of Diet Pepsi next to the bed. He had a large Slurpee cup that was always full, no matter where he was."
"We did a five-day offshore fishing trip. He ran out late on day four."
"As we pulled the boat into the dock, he literally ran and jumped onto the dock and raced to the soda machine at the far end."
- LongJumping_Local910
That's One Way to Use It
"My Spanish teacher was addicted to Vix VapoRub! Not to use it traditionally, though."
"She was eating it."
"Apparently, she knows that it's not a secret, because she ate it using a tongue depressor right in front of us, during the first week of school. I guess she figured we couldn't poke fun at her if she owned it."
"She literally demonstrated! She said her grandfather taught her and she likes the consistency/overwhelming scent."
"I can't imagine it's good for her."
- meg6ust6ala6titons
Live to Game
"Rocket League. I'm not even joking. The guy was in his 20s and playing up to eight hours a day."
"He used to be super social and became a hermit pretty much for seven years. He would pretend to be sick at work so he could play three days straight."
"He lost his whole social life. He spent New Year's every one of those years sitting in a dark room with windows covered, playing that game."
"I tried to get him to stop but never worked."
- IMNO-LEGEND
Ice Chewing
"I used to be addicted to chewing on ice, or maybe obsessed. I would bring a cup full of crushed ice with me everywhere. When I went to the beach, I would just bring a bag of ice from the gas station and sit and eat it."
"I stopped for ages and then became temporarily obsessed again during one of my pregnancies. I was checked for vitamin deficiencies both times but nothing came up."
- mistyoceania
The Use of Chapstick
"I'm addicted to chapstick. I can't go more than three hours without applying it."
"I think my lips are relying on the chapstick now because they get dry so quickly. And it feels like nails on a chalkboard when they do, I can't focus on anything else besides my lips being dry until I get some chapstick, lol (laughing out loud)."
- ComprehensivePie8809
"Here’s a pro tip someone told me: before you put chapstick on wet your lips so there’s actual moisture to lock in."
"I also find Vaseline is way cheaper and way more effective. I use it once in the morning and once before bed and I’ve gotten chapped lips like five times in the last seven years."
- sadkrampus
An Interesting Choice!
"Judge Judy. And it was me. My boyfriend introduced me to the show in my mid-thirties and I binged it on YouTube, listening to it whilst working in our warehouse/driving/cleaning/anything."
"Six years later, if I have a task that I really need to get into productive mode for, I put her on and my brain shifts gears."
"At one point, it felt weird to work without her voice in the background yelling at people. She’s like my white noise. She’s my default soundtrack."
- Fuzeillear
These accounts were honestly fascinating, and in some causes haunting, to read.
It just goes to show that, first of all, we all like different things, and second of all, you never know what is going to qualify as "too much of a good thing" for one person compared to someone else.
The term "addiction" more often than not comes with serious connotations attached to it.
Be it for drugs, alcohol, or gambling, addictions are usually viewed as a problem that needs to be fixed or cured.
But are there certain addictions that go unnoticed by the majority of people?
Or, more over, are there addictions that are, for the most part, accepted in modern society?
Redditor jperaic1 was certainly curious to know, leading them to take to Reddit to ask:
"What addiction is seen as completely normal by society?"
To call it a "rabbit hole" is an understatement...
"Infinite scrolling in apps."- Ill_Animator_4437
"TikTok."
"The algorithm is insanely good at keeping people on it for long periods of time."- SDAPastor
"Social media."
"Everyone is always on social media, even i am personally an 'addict' I'm constantly taking pictures for my Instagram, posting on my Snapchat, or scrolling through TikTok. an endless cycle between the three apps."- meanbee90
"Endless scrolling."- The_Funkhouse
Social Media Love GIF by LumpsGiphy"But enough about me, what do you think about me!"
"Attention."
"Some can't see the truth that they are out there trying to compete against one and other and can't understand why people don't like them."
"So they try harder."
"It's an endless loop because they will never be happy with what they have already."
"Life."- MywarUK
Look at that, I must have it!
"Shopping."- justnotthatwitty
"Consumerism."- estergin
GiphyI can just keep going!!!
"Energy drinks."- Professional_Grab513
Hey, you never know...
"Surprise no one has said this but lottery tickets."- Immediate_Pomelo638
Happy Winner GIF by Casanova RecordsGiphyDepending on your inner circle...
"Not crack, but cocaine is HUGELY accepted within pro sports, celebrities, rich people, so on an so forth."
"You'd be surprised at the amount of people who do it."
"People you'd never think of."
"It's a big secret a lot of the time but it's extremely popular."
"It is everywhere."- Reasonable-Low4120
If these addictions don't necessarily pose such an immediate threat to one's health that requires being sent to rehab, in the grand scheme of things they are almost equally dangerous.
So next time a close friend or family member asks if maybe you should think about cutting back, probably a good idea to listen to them.
People Break Down Which Addictions Society Actually Sees As Necessities
Addiction is a powerful disease. And it comes in many forms.
Did you ever stop to wonder how culturally we're allowing, even feeding many addictions under the guise of a societal need or norm?
We'd never allow people to be or stay drug addicted. Right? So says Big Pharma.
Look past just alcohol and drug addiction, there is a whole world of obsession out there, that we're just letting slip by.
Redditor Morticiar wanted to discuss the behaviors society needs us to never stop doing, even at our own risk.
They asked:
"What is an addiction society pretends is a necessity?"
Social media.
The pipeline that feeds all the world's addictions.
Can you stop?
I can't.
Imagine if we did though?
Ka-ching!
"Shopping. This addiction is actually a medically recognized addiction with it’s own name – Oniomania." ~ xaven10
"There's a resident in the condo I work at who gets Amazon and other packages by the dozens daily. I once had to go into her apartment for emergency reasons. The place was walls stacked with unopened packages." ~ zaphod_beeble_bro
Giphy“juicy details”
"Obsessing over celebrities’ personal lives. I don’t give a f**k who’s dating who, who had a baby, who got divorced, etc., and I don’t understand why anyone else does." ~ luongolet20goalsin
"Every once in a while i’ll read some story about a celebrity i’m interested in, like the whole John Mulaney thing with his divorce and him having a baby with Olivia Munn. But I think of it like a little bit of high school gossip. it’s an interesting story, but once i’ve heard the 'juicy details' I move on with my life." ~ keep_running
Dial Up
"Cell phones. Constantly having it nearby, checking it all the time, having to be available 24/7 in case someone tries to contact you. As someone who has this addiction, it's really not healthy and adds a lot of unnecessary stress to my life." ~ triangularbish
"Yeah definitely. I'm switching to a flip phone as we speak. All it does is text, call, play mp3s and it has navigation which is amazing. That's all I need :-) and it's a new phone T-Mobile still makes and sells." ~ agentscullysbf
NEW! EXCITING! BETTER!
"Always buying anything that is NEW! EXCITING! BETTER! What a crock of crap!" ~ bu**holezforeyez
"This s**t affects kids a lot. I remember buying stuff for my nephew and the one thing that always came out of his mouth that made me resist an urge to backhand him. "'S IT NEW!?!?'"
"[disclaimer to internet virtue signallers: when I say 'backhand' it was always just an eye roll. The use of 'backhand' here is for story element so go pretend you care about something else, somewhere else.]" ~ IjustMadeThisCuzXqc
I WON!
"The lotto. It’s really fun to imagine what you would do if you won. If you’re not blowing tons of money on it. That could be worth it right there. But it’s so expensive, and your chances are like .00001 of winning something you can retire with." ~ HayRiver12
GiphyShopping and Lotto?
Guilty.
In fact, I refuse to see Lotto as an addiction.
I'm going to be rich.
So then I can shop.
Oh Shut Up!
"Being 'busy.'" ~ Fetch1965
"My aunt has never had a job in her life but fills her facebook feed with how 'busy' she is all the time. Everyone hates her." ~ happyfunisocheese
GiphyFast forward to Facebook...
"Being on Social Media. It’s not entirely your fault, social media is literally designed to be as addictive as crack." ~ tebaj8
"Well, it's never that simple. Social media got off the ground before anybody ever thought of designing it. There were millions of people using a forum similar to Reddit, years before the internet had any commercial content at all. Some of us may remember Usenet... Fast forward to Facebook and Twitter, and for sure." ~ ikuzuswen
PLEASE LOVE ME!!
"Having people validate you." ~ Brotherbeam
"Emotional validation almost always feels good, and, I guess in a sense, it can be a need, since a lack thereof can result in some mental health issues." ~ shaquille_oatmeal98
"That's the core concept of social media. Not communication or information, validation." ~ refried_pancakes
"One of my biggest growth moments was accepting the fact that I'm viewed as subpar at work but good enough to keep my job." ~ Slapinsack
Overtime
"Working extra hours for free. The organization will gladly let you work for free but absolutely shouldn’t do it." ~ zoomy942
"My previous boss basically said that I have to see it as an investment and that I'll see it back later in some form or another. Never happened. Go figure." ~ RocketCow
"As a fellow company leader who gets pi**ed when I find out my employees are working off the clock, I salute you." ~ deathbybowtie
get a patch
"Nicotine, I feel like I am one of the very few blue collar workers who does not use it." ~ Shhmelly
GiphyNicotine. One of the OG addictions.
And one of the unhealthiest. But how clever of them to make it so appealing by selling it in other ways besides cigs.
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It's hard to know when you're addicted to something.
You might sense there's an addictive quality to the activity or outing, maybe in the back of your mind, like an itch saying, "Hey, you've done this before already."
What really helps reveal the addiction is someone else pointing it out. Once that happens, there's no putting back the pieces of what you think about yourself.
Surprisingly, we're okay with a fair amount of addictions, even when they might be actively harming us as a society.
Reddit user, mjkn01, wanted to know what fixation is perhaps not as healthy as we think it is when they asked:
"What is an addiction that the world is just ok with?"
Maybe it gives you a sense of pride?
Or perhaps it's about seeking out a good feeling for yourself when you've had a rough day.
Whatever the reason, you can't stop.
But I NEED To Know What's Going On?
"24 hour news cycles"
Frosty_Fig3423
"It's bad because it gives the veneer of being informed without actually being informed. You know the broad strokes and the players and who said/did what, but it's all presented in an entertaining way so you keep on watching and you're not actually informed. There are studies done that people that consume their news that way (passively mind you) are less informed on the whole. A lot of buzzwords or phrases that mean something to the audience, but don't actually represent the story. It's caused a lot of problems."
"Politics isn't sports or meaningless. Being informed, and thinking about nuance, or being able to listen to the other side rather than some caricature of it is important in a democracy. And yet we're raising people to hate the otherside, to become further polarized, to treat politics as a game and all the while making sure our voters are less informed on the whole. It's dangerous."
BBQ_HaX0r
*puts down phone* What Did You Say, Dear?
"Phone addictions when it’s parents instead of kids."
toothlessgrins
"Trueee. I’m a new parent and currently trying to fight my addiction to my phone. I never realized how bad it had gotten till recently"
mrsteacher420
"Yeah, this is one none of us want to talk about it. You can kick smoking, booze, sugar, social media, caffeine, but I’ll be damned if any of us will get rid of our phone. It’s the first thing I look at every day and I can’t leave home without it. And really, I don’t need it, but I have to have it."
blisterson
Hard To Let Go Of The Rush You Get When You Swipe
"Shopping"
macaronsforeveryone
"Dealt* with this a few years back, probably because I started getting some fine lines and I thought expensive makeup and new clothes would make me feel better. Yeah it didn't, just added some stress to my life and relationship because of money stuff. Dont fall for this easy trap ladies and gents, I know the pressure is big but it's really okay and quite normal to age.."
Altruistic-Order-661
You don't think too much about the food and drink you consume.
So long as you're happy while eating or having a drink, then it shouldn't be that bad, right?
Unfortunately, there might need to be real discussions had about how much we're all drinking.
If Only You Could See What It Does To Your Brain
"Sugar"
Sad-Illustrator1610
"Dude, I work at a certain large coffee chain and most people who think they are addicted to caffeine are actually addicted to sugar. Unless you are ordering an iced/hot coffee, cold brew or espresso, the amount of coffee in the drinks you are ordering is minuscule."
"Sure, it will offer you a little caffeine but if you are consistently getting a white chocolate mocha everyday and thinking you need your “coffee” fix, it’s not the coffee you’re needing."
MissHannahJ
Something We Should Talk About, But Can Never Talk About
"I think a lot more people are addicted to alcohol than we care to admit"
Babylil22
"I'm an alcoholic and I'm struggling with it because it's so normalized. All of my work buddies just want to go out and drink after work around the weekends. I go visit my girlfriend at work it's at a bar and everybody's drinking. They sell alcohol in like every corner store. It's passed off as a sophisticated hobby. I go 2 months without having a single drink and then I have a pop and can't stop kind of drinking habit so it can get dark pretty fast."
"I'll be fine for the first couple days doing it and then after like day 4 I'm pretty much having an emotional outburst, normally at my girlfriend who comes home to find me f***** up. It is a sad degenerative disease and I wish I didn't have it and I wish I would have learned better communication and coping skills earlier in life."
Velghast
Need Papa's Fix To Keep Going
"Caffiene"
severflux
"My favorite drug before cannabis. I wouldn't be able to function! Went through a serious withdrawal years ago just to cut down my consumption (was drinking an entire espresso pot a day); physical pain was crazy. Tried cutting out my daily latte recently and could not get my work done. It's serious!"
Alternative_Belt_389
"Offered in generally-unlimited quantities at most workplaces. It's somewhat dystopian to realize it's basically 'Hey, in case you get tired working 8+ hours, here's as much free, addictive stimulant as you can handle to perk back up and keep working'."
Fluffy_Munchkin
And then there's these, the worst of the worst in terms of addictive quality, which we might never kick as a society.
Doesn't matter if we know about it.
We need these things in our lives, regardless of how bad they are.
Something About An Epidemic...?
"Ambien, I work as a pharmacist and it blows my mind that SO many prescribers write for it too often. It's got to be one of the most incorrectly prescribed medications out there. To stop taking it is a rough process ☹ Weeks of little to no sleep until your body figures out how to sleep again."
Tyretitan
A Lot More Complicated Than We Care To Admit
"Consumerism. It's good to keep on buying for the economy so they actually promote it."
Light_Shifty_Z
"This is why I think we will never make any real attempts to fix climate change. We essentially need to overhaul our entire economy, the world as we know it, to reduce consumption of energy/oil/plastics."
"Overconsumption has been made commonplace and convenient. We are f-cked"
ECONOMIC_DEMOCRAGUY
Yeah. Yep. Yeah.
"Social media"
mywifiisbadtho
"This might be too recent to have cause real waves but I am pretty sure that in a couple of years you’ll have to accept the consequences every time you log in. A few years later social media sites will all have to have standard khaki packs sites and big bold horrifying message everywhere."
Meanwhile-in-Paris
"I really believe that in a few years, social media log in pages will have warnings like cigarette packs in Canada."
"Warning: the use of these sites has been linked to depression, anxiety, insomnia. Please enter at your risk." Or something to that effect."
thatswhatshesaidxx
Be aware of your own vices.
Accept they're a vice.
It's okay to have them, just don't let them be the defining force of your life.
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When people think of addiction, sex, drugs, alcohol, and gambling are probably the first habits that come to mind.
But the addictions mentioned above are just the most stigmatized addictions people talk about because they tend to cause the most damage to the individual and their relationships.
However, there is a slew of other habits people have and can't break that can cause almost, if not, just as much damage to relationships.
Social media users shared several examples when Redditor Russian_lover1 asked:
"What is an addiction that society readily accepts as normal?"
Just because malls are closing down across the country doesn't mean people are no longer shopping.
Retail therapy has become so much more convenient online, and people are actively buying things they don't need more than ever.
The Destruction Of A Marriage
"I don't think a lot of people even realize this is a thing. My ex-husband had a shopping addiction and it ended up costing me a ton of money over the years and when we divorced."
Justifying Sales
"One of the reasons I left my ex fiancé was because of his shopping addiction. If it was on sale, he could not say 'no.' He seemed to think that if he bought something on sale he had saved us money and couldn't seem to comprehend that we didn't need rooster shaped umbrella holders so he had cost us money because we had no space or use for the sh*t he kept buying. And all he would say was 'but it was on sale! I saved us money!' 'Would you have bought this if it wasn't on sale?' 'Well…no…' 'Then why would you buy it? You're still costing us money?' 'Because it was on sale! I got us a deal!' And round and round and round we'd go. Same guy who would drive all over town burning gas to find milk that was 15 cents cheaper on the gallon."
"So glad I got out of that. It wasn't his worst offense, but it was the cherry on a sh*t sundae of a relationship."
Wants Vs. Need
"Yes this one is very real. My wife is not horrible for it to be honest, she finds great deals and typically returns well over half of the stuff she buys, but she buys a lot of stuff. We've discussed the difference of wants vs needs but there always seems to be justification at the time of purchase and then it gets stored somewhere and forgotten. It's just the high from shopping, which I didn't think would be as prevalent with online shopping but I was wrong."
"It's not breaking the bank or anything but we certainly have too much clutter and crap lying around."
The seemingly innocuous things we ingest have just as much addictive properties as the ones found in a drug.
Hooked On Coffee
"Caffeine is probably the most widely accepted addiction. It's no big deal when someone says 'man I can't even think until I've had a cup of coffee'. Replace coffee with almost anything else addictive and you've got yourself an intervention."
– ncwmike
Energy Drinks
"I got so sick off of Monster drinks - only drank them for about a month but I was up to four a day and got a horrible UTI. Immediately stopped drinking them the moment I got home from the doctor."
– Keri2816
The Essence Of Sweetness
"Wrong. Sugar is the most popular addiction. It's even in coffee."
"It doesn't help that the food industry dumps tons of sugar into foods for the sole purpose of making them addictive."
These behavioral lifestyle addictions have the potential of driving a wedge between you and those closest to you.
Toiling Away The Hours
"I mean I know a few people addicted to work, like work at the government hospital in the morning-afternoon then go to the private hospital and work till 2 am type work addiction."
"Most people at work think this is a bit 'crazy' though."
"The problem with work addiction is that it tends to increase your success in life, as opposed to most other addictions (even if other QOL markers would still be lower than non addicts) so it is harder to see the harm in this particular addiction for most."
Our Mobile Devices
"Phones, I'm addicted to mine my girls addicted to hers my siblings and parents, my friends, most people ik tbh."
"First thing we do when getting up is checking out phone, last thing we do before sleeping, every time something isn't happening."
"Now I'm not saying phones are bad yada yada but there is a real issue with addiction to them."
Damaging Effects
"There really is. Humans are no longer capable of being bored. The real reason we were so much more imaginative and creative as kids is because we didn't have an instant source of entertainment at our hands, so when we ran out of something to do we created it. I remember one time I decided to feed our lawn with flowers and buds from the tree, oh and grass from the lawn itself."
"That said, i love my phone, and I think it legitimately improves my mood and my life. I see no reason to get rid of them if the benefit outweighs the damage. Similarly to masturbation/porn. Some people, a scary amount of people to be sure but not the majority become addicted to it and it takes away from their lives and even becomes their life. That's a problem, and they're obviously better without it, but I'd say for most of us it improves our life, and the loss is so insignificant that there's no reason to stop doing it."
Image Obsession
"Diet and exercise."
– hhunkk
"This right here is the answer that should be at the top. Dopamine is a powerful thing."
The pandemic forced everyone to self-isolate, but that didn't mean people missed interacting with their friends.
Zoom sessions and other methods of online engagement like Facebook Messaging has soared.
And while we're not exactly out of the woods yet, people are still in active texting mode. I'm even seeing locals walking around the city as they text. Subway rides are generally quieter than ever because strap-hangers are all staring at their mobile devices.
Smartphone usage is dangerously convenient. And whether users don't like to acknowledge it or not, it is a normalized addiction that affects all of us, myself included.
But until there are proven facts that being addicted to our phones can cause severe mental or physical harm, the world will continue furiously advancing towards innovation, and we're all just passively going along for the ride until realizing we've reached a destination we were never prepared to reach.