
The clicks, the likes, the high scores that
Rule our lives are like a little hit of drug,
Cocaine with Facebook, meth with Insta,
Even Tetris comes with dangers of the addict kind.
We need to know that we’re the best, most loved,
The centre of this world.
But how much time we waste on clicks
That all amount to nothing in the end
When we crowd around those pearly gates
Our score on Candy Crush won’t mean a jot.
It’s probably best we get outside and meet with friends
Before this life in lands of plenty ends.
I downloaded Bejeweled Blitz the other day and it was probably the worst mistake of my life. I am literally playing that thing every opportunity I get and in just a day or two it has become a bit of an addiction.
I couldn’t understand why I was so attached to it, but I kind of unpicked it a bit and I see that my addictive nature really hurts me with things like this. The need to beat previous scores and see my name climb the leader board becomes all consuming, just like alcohol does when I have that.
It also happens when I run and I get that hit from seeing how many more miles I can run. The same can be said on Facebook when I get more and more likes. Each of these things give us a tiny hit of dopamine and this makes us ravenous for more.
I think that I might be deleting that game before I lose any more of my life to it. I need to remember that likes and high scores aren’t all that important when we step back and look at the bigger picture.
Much Love
Rachel xx
Margot Kinberg
There is definitely something about that ‘rush’ that can be awfully addictive. It’s part of what keeps people playing online games like Fortnite, or going to casinos. It’s that ‘zap’ that feels so good, but as you say, it’s also quite risky.
Dave Williams
Agreed, and that little hit of a rush can be so tempting, like it’s saying “Pssst, hey! Check out your account — see if you’ve got more likes, see if Doug and Jane posted anything about what they’re doing, see if …” I got that way with Twitter a couple years ago, and I backed off. Life’s a bit calmer without the tug to check my account during the day.