The article that I have selected came from the HuffingtonPost.com, and the title is called Is Social Media Dependence a Mental Health Issue. The author Klein argues that there is a connection between the use of social media and drug abuse because social media exposing drug use creates a rise in the abuse of alcohol or drugs (Klein, 2014). While social media does expose teenagers to unhealthy lifestyle choices such as using drugs, it is not justified to assume that it is the direct result of the excessive use of social media. Social media is another way of saying a technological interpretation of our society. Although there are a significant amount of images showing drug user being under the influence, that is based on the society’s preference, and social media is used as a medium to express those social preferences. As a result, if the issue is the increase of people abusing drugs, then it is up to the society itself to create the change that will benefit everyone in the future. Klein also discussed how the increase dependence in social media harms individuals mentally due to the constant self-evaluation; However, because of the biological reward that is received to ourselves from disclosing personal information, it is difficult to break from the habit (Klein, 2014). Klein then relates that component with drugs by saying that social media and drugs have similar functions in how they affect individuals (Klein, 2014). This is why in Super Sad True Love Story, the young adults were so inclined to commit suicide because while their apparati made them feel lonely at times (Shteyngart, 270), the lack of their apparati means that there is no more of the biological reward that is received when others are viewing their placement in their society.

Shteyngart, Gary. Super Sad True Love Story: A Novel. New York: Random House, 2010. Print.

Klein, Sarah. “Is Social Media Dependence A Mental Health Issue?” The Huffington Post. TheHuffingtonPost.com, n.d. Web. 05 Oct. 2015. <http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/05/07/social-media-mental-health_n_5268108.html>.