Why Start the Facebook Diet?

Do you ever wonder how much time you spend on facebook? Do you think about how many endless hours you waste creeping photos of people you barely know or chatting with friends about how bored you are? Sure, facebook is great for keeping in touch, sharing your thoughts and stalking your ex's new girlfriend. But seriously, there are only 24 hours in a day and how many of those hours do you spend hunched over on your laptop, scrolling through your news feed. I will be amazed if we all don't end up with crippling back problems and carpal tunnel syndrome.

Okay.. so maybe I'm projecting my life on to yours. Maybe you don't check facebook everyday, or stay up until the wee hours of the morning on chat... but guess what, I do and I need to stop. The first step in treating an addiction is admitting it. So here it goes. My name is Carling and I AM ADDICTED TO FACEBOOK. And I sure as hell know that I'm not the only one either (a sign of addiction is also denial..trust me I'm a psych major). 

After doing a bit of research, I came across this questionnaire designed to test for alcohol addiction. I decided to change the wording a bit and answer as truthfully as possible. 

1. Tolerance. Has your use of facebook increased over time? Yes - I remember the good old days where I would actually have more than one notification because I hadn't checked my profile for a week.
2. Withdrawal. When you stop using, have you ever experienced physical or emotional withdrawal? Have you had any of the following symptoms: irritability, anxiety, shakes, sweats, nausea, or vomiting? Hmm.. anxiety yes ...what if I have new friend requests. They'll think I'm rude if I take a long time to confirm. Or what if someone invited me to their party and I didn't know about it! Did Suzy have her baby yet!!??
3. Difficulty controlling your use. Do you sometimes use more or for a longer time than you would like? Yes - that's why I'm creating this blog!
4. Negative consequences. Have you continued to use even though there have been negative consequences to your mood, self-esteem, health, job, or family? Other than going on facebook during work, or sitting on the computer instead of exercising, or rejecting my second cousins "family tree requests" I can't think of any possible negative consequences :P
5. Neglecting or postponing activities. Have you ever put off or reduced social, recreational, work, or household activities because of your use? does homework count?
6. Spending significant time or emotional energy. Have you spent a significant amount of time obtaining, using, concealing, planning, or recovering from your use?  Facebook hangovers are the worst.
7. Desire to cut down. Have you sometimes thought about cutting down or controlling your use? Have you ever made unsuccessful attempts to cut down or control your use? Well this is my first attempt to cut down my use, so let's see if it's successful :)

As you can see I am in desperate need for the facebook diet.

*Carling