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My Reflection on “Social Dilemma”

 After watching The Social Dilemma, I couldn’t stop thinking about the way social media has been quietly shaping my thoughts, my habits, even my self worth. The film isn’t just another warning about screen time. It’s a disturbing look into how platforms like Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok are designed to mess with our minds, all in the name of keeping us addicted to our phones.

What really hit me was hearing former insiders from companies like Google and Facebook admit that these platforms aren’t neutral tools but they are truly built to manipulate the users mind. Every scroll, like, and notification is carefully engineered to trigger the same part of the brain that gets activated similar to when someone is gambling or on drugs. It’s not about giving us what we need, it’s about feeding us what keeps us online the longest.

I started thinking about how often I pick up my phone without even realizing it. How a simple notification or text can change my mood on that day. How I’ve felt anxious or insecure after spending time on certain apps, comparing my life to their collected snapshots of other people’s. The film puts this under a microscope and shows that it’s not just personal but it’s by design.

One of the most powerful parts of The Social Dilemma is a dramatized story of a teenager slowly being pulled into an online echo chamber. You see how the algorithm learns his behavior, pushes him toward more extreme content, and isolates him from real world connections. It felt uncomfortably familiar. I’ve seen that slow drift in people I know. I’ve even felt it in myself especially when it comes to communicating with others outside of social media.

The documentary doesn’t offer easy solutions, but it does something more important: it wakes you up. It made me question how I spend my time online, what I’m giving up in exchange for “free” platforms, and how much of my mental energy I’ve handed over without noticing. Since watching, I’ve started setting boundaries, turning off non-essential notifications, limiting app usage, and being more mindful about when and why I pick up my phone. It’s not a complete fix, but it’s a start. If you haven’t seen The Social Dilemma yet, I highly recommend it. Not because it has all the answers, but because it asks the questions we should’ve been asking a long time ago.

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