I'm the type of girl that people claim exist in her own bubble — classic introvert, bookworm, poet, dreamer and the type of person who has a hard time staying connected with anybody. My friends are constantly complaining that they would forget what I sounded like, if they didn't take the time to call me for themselves.

It isn't like I'm some sort of social pariah or some cavewoman with no clue of what a Facebook account is. I may not have a Twitter or Instagram but my Snapchat and Facebook are fully functional, thank you very much. I think what it comes down to in the end is that I just don't spend the average amount of time perusing these beauties, which might be considered a quirk in and of itself.

I don't know the exact statistical quantity that correlates with these averages but I'm guessing it's no small number. Regardless of how critics might inflate the social media use of America's youth, I don't think there's too much exaggeration with these particular stats. I understand the purpose of social media and its significance —really, I do. That's why I've kept up with my own accounts and spend at least a couple of minutes each night managing them. But sometimes, I think social media is doing us a huge disservice.

I went to a birthday party at someone's home last week and I can't tell if the food, decorations, and even the seating arrangement were meant more to please the guests and birthday girl or to please the list of Snapchat contacts the event was being televised to. There was one girl whose phone camera lens was like a pair of contacts for her - I wonder if she actually saw anything without her phone being pressed against her eyes.

My sister is my polar opposite - for every conversation I try to avoid, she can easily manage three simultaneously and thrills in it. Her social media accounts aren't the acts of duty I consider them; they are her windows to the world and she lives vicariously through her friends as much as they do through her. Recently, though, she felt like she needed a break from being constantly bombarded with what everyone was doing with their lives. She took a week off social media and now she's back, stronger than ever. It's okay to feel like you need some time to disconnect (or in my case, some more time to reconnect). What works for someone else is not going to always work for you, which makes perfect sense considering that we're all pretty unique people. My personal social media rule is that I can't abandon it, because that would mean abandoning a bunch of important relationships for me; as long as your decision about using it is the best thing for your mental health and wellness, you're making the right choices.