Every February 28th marks World Day Without Facebook. But it is not easy to turn away from this social network, used by 2.5 billion people around the world.
“One hour a day”, “a few minutes while waiting for the bus”, “almost all day, since it is part of my job”. When users are asked about their time spent per day on Facebook, the answers are variable.
However, one thing is constant: this social network is today an integral part of our society. Nearly 2.5 billion people worldwide, according to the latest figures from the platform identified by the Journal du Net, use this network.
So if, for a day, we hang up a bit? This is what is proposed, every February 28th, on the occasion of the World Day without Facebook. An experience not always obvious to carry out, because it is sometimes (often?) Difficult to disconnect from this virtual world.
How to explain this addiction? What advice to manage to disconnect?
A tool that provides pleasure
Even if the generation of Millennials tends to sulk Facebook, it remains the number 1 brand in the world, explained the site Numerics .
Some users have even become “addicted”, as testified by our colleagues from Obs, Cain. “I realize that another latent addiction, deceitful and almost invisible, is indeed present in me”.
And he does not seem to be the only one in this case: “Addiction is witnessed by continuous use, loss of control, compulsive use, addictive desire and consequences on physical and mental health. All this, over a period of 12 months, ”explains Laurent Karila, psychiatrist and addictologist at Paul-Brousse hospital (Villejuif).
Add to this, different factors (genetics, brain, family and social environment, …), and addiction can arise.
A dazzling dependence which can be explained by the popularity of the network, as Laurent Karila analyzes:
Facebook is a fun tool, so let’s get back to it. You can build a cyber identity, gratify your life … It is a very popular network and some vulnerable people switch to addiction.
Destructive pleasure?
A new identity, new friends, new loves. Facebook can offer a new life to those who want it. Problem: it is a virtual world, and this euphoria can give way to suffering.
“These vulnerable people use Facebook not to suffer and not to have fun, ” says the specialist. However, by dint of being confused in this system, “there is an imbalance of pleasure”.
And sometimes this addiction can lead to drama. In 2016, an American teenage girl died after many hate messages on the social network.
How Facebook was born?
Created in 2004 in the United States by Marck Zuckerberg, Facebook is used both in the private and professional spheres (for the media, advertisements, etc.). At the time, it was called “The Facebook” and contained a home page where you could fill out your profile, your friend’s list, the groups you belonged to and the messages you received. In 2010, moreover, the film The Social Network retraced the genesis of this concept. Today, Facebook is the number one social network in 153 of the 167 countries studied (2019).
A break to become less a slave
In this context, how is it possible to successfully disconnect? Not easy. And yet:
“Some people say: “I delete my account and I am going”. Three weeks later, they return. It is better to take several breaks during the day rather than cutting everything and resuming the same rhythm later.”
Other advice: delete notifications, do not turn on the network when watching TV and unplug when you are at the table.
However, not everything is bad on Facebook. “We must not demonize this tool, because we can also create healthy links with people, and research them. It is also a significant promotional tool ”.
It remains to find the right balance and self-discipline. What if we tried?
