But First, Let Me Take A Selfie

We all follow at least one person who pops up in our Instagram feed way too often.   They’re not the one posting group photos.  They’re not even posting photos of their food.  They’re the one who has perfected the angle to tilt their IPhone in order to get the best “Selfie”.  And they have the perfect filter to go with it.  We know their gym schedule.  We know when they’re getting ready for their night out.  We know when it’s bed time.  Their Selfies allow us to follow their schedules very closely.

For us followers, we can’t help but wonder- What are they thinking? Don’t they know they look ridiculous?  But for the repeat “Selfie” offenders, it could be a sign of an actual addiction.

For some people, the lyrics “first, let me take a Selfie” may ring true to a psychological disorder.  In one serious case, “A British male teenager tried to commit suicide after he failed to take the perfect selfie. Danny Bowman became so obsessed with capturing the perfect shot that he spent 10 hours a day taking up to 200 selfies.”[1]

Instagram users, especially the biggest “Selfie” offenders, may feed off the idea of receiving more and more “likes” on their photos to validate that people are in fact enjoying viewing their Selfies.  On celebrity instagrams, for example, Kendall Jenner, you see thousands of comments saying “LB for LB.”  This means that if you like one of that user’s photos, they will like one of yours back.  And for the Selfie addict, what better way to feel validated than to receive likes from random strangers?

What do you think? Can posting too many selfies be a sign of an actual addiction?


[1] http://www.realfarmacy.com/scientists-link-selfies-to-narcissism-addiction-mental-illness/#yQqQKLJZuagJXysL.99

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