Thinking about Instagram for too long makes me overwhelmed. An app that thrives off the indulgence of vanity doesn't seem particularly appealing, but Instagram actually has a whopping 700 billion monthly users as of April. And yes, that number is definitely growing. Occasionally, I become incredibly aware of how much I use social media apps on my phone and subsequently vow to calm down. On September 4th, I took it to a whole new level: I deleted the app off my phone.

I figured I would try and answer a simple question: Am I really addicted to Instagram? I set boundaries for myself: no Instagram for a week. It was a social experiment, and a cleanse, of sorts. Below is the documentation (kept in the Notes of my phone) of the days that followed:

Tuesday, September 5th: Day One

Here we go. I am becoming increasingly self-aware of my addiction to mindlessly scrolling. Hopefully, I will get over this quickly and I will feel good about myself in the coming days. Right now, it's not looking so good.

Wednesday, September 6th: Day Two

Okay, this is actually HARD!! Who knew? Actually, everyone knew, which is why when I asked all my friends to join me in this experiment they all vehemently opposed. My biggest problem is that all my apps moved around and now I keep clicking the Netflix app by accident because that's where Instagram used to be! Also, I just want to look at pictures of my dog on Instagram because I miss her. But I can't. What have I done to myself?

Thursday, September 7th: Day Three

The hardest part of my day: Realizing I can't finsta. Seriously, this was extremely difficult and upsetting for me. Also, I wanted to stalk a girl's page on Instagram and obviously could not. That's probably a good thing and likely saved me a lot of wasted energy and anger. Maybe I can actually last until Tuesday!

Friday, September 8th: Day Four

All I wanted to do while waiting at the nail salon was scroll through Instagram and I couldn't. Devastating, really. I took some really cute pictures of my friend with some ice cream and I really want to post it. This is called real self-control. Okay, update for the day: I am giving up. In the final minutes of my cleanse I am reflecting on these past few days by admitting that I am addicted to social media and it is honestly difficult to live without it.

Well, there you have it. I tried to delete Instagram for a week and completely failed. Like totally, utterly, completely failed. I couldn't even last four full days. I got my answer, though. Yes, I am really addicted. Are you? See how long you can last without your favorite app on your phone. If you can last more than four days, I commend you!