Is Social Media Becoming an Addiction?

After reading the article, "Students Denied Social Media Go Through Withdrawals" by Jill Laster, I found myself questioning whether or not social media is becoming an actual addiction or if it is just the way most people choose to communicate in our society today. According to the Merriam Webster dictionary, addiction is defined as "a persistent compulsive use of a substance known by the user to be harmful". Although people may experience emotional side effects when disconnected from social medias such as anxiety and misery, these effects are minimal in comparison to withdrawals felt by other people facing addiction problems and do not pose an immediate threat to a person's overall health. I have never met anyone who has ever experienced physical withdrawals symptoms such as sweating or difficulty breathing because of their inability to access media. 

Although I do frequently use various forms of social medias throughout the day, I do not think that I should be classified as having an addiction. If anything, my addiction would be my need to constantly stay connected with friends and family and my cell phone and the Internet are the outlets I use to fulfill this need. Just as Susan D. Moeller explains within the article, “going without media meant, in their world, going without their friends and family". For those who have grown up with the luxury of technology, it is hard to think of alternative ways to communicate with their peers other than through the use of media devices such as cell phones and social networks. Personally, I feel that this sense of disconnect from others is the reason for the anxiety many people report feeling in the article after being cut off from media sources, therefore making it invalid to automatically label those experiencing these symptoms as being addicted to social media.