I remember when the addiction started. It was the seventh grade when my mom and I stumbled upon the reality show, “The Hills” on MTV. We watched one episode, and then soon realized a marathon was on, and in just one sitting, we watched most of the first season. We were officially hooked, and became so desperate to watch the show, that we ordered all of the seasons on DVD. Following that, every single night after I finished my homework, we would cuddle up under piles of blankets, eat popcorn, and watch the show.

I always really liked Whitney, even though she was one of the side characters. I just felt like she was really down to earth, and I could relate to her more than the others. However, every time she spoke, I remember she had a speech impediment, and even though it was very mild, it was definitely there. She said her letter, “S” like a “T” half the time, and after watching so many episodes, I unconsciously picked up the habit. My mom kept correcting me, and fortunately the problem got fixed. Even though this is a minor thing, it’s important to reflect upon how the media we watch influences us.

According to a study conducted at The California State University Northridge, the average American watches four hours of TV a day. At this rate, in each person’s lifetime, they will have spent nine years being glued to a screen. Without accounting for all the other social media the American encounters daily, this is a lot of time for our brains to be watching other people. While watching TV, especially reality TV, we see how people communicate to each other, resolve problems, create problems, view the world, and live their lives. If this is what we fill our brain with for four hours each day, it is naive to think that this exposure won’t affect us.

You know those cliché movie plots where two people start to fall in love, and then there is a big misunderstanding about something, and it causes them to break up? While we watch these movies, we think to ourselves, “just tell her how you really feel,” or “just tell him the truth”. We get frustrated because if they were to communicate clearly, there would be no misunderstanding, and the couple could live happily ever after. That’s what can happen to us if we aren’t aware of our communication with others. When we watch shows where people don’t have good communication, treat others well, are overly self-focused, we can become more like this if we aren’t self-aware.

Don’t get me wrong, watching TV is not bad in itself, it’s just when we start to let it influence us in an unhealthy way. We should never be less of who we are because of a show we watch or person we follow on Instagram. The main point is that we need to be self-aware because it is only natural for the brain to mimic what we see on the screen in front of us. However, we are all made so uniquely and it would be a shame if this was lessened due to media.

My advice to you all is to reflect after watching a show, and ask yourself, “is this making me the best version of myself?” Sometimes after watching a certain show we can tend to be in an aggressive mood, stressed mood, or humorous mood. Thinking about these things is important, and realizing that the things you watch are shaping you and affecting yourself and your relationships. So as much as Keeping Up with the Kardashians is humorous, make sure that you don’t become them. Keep doing you boo. And if a show is making you anxious, angry, or feel negative emotions repeatedly, don’t be afraid to ditch it. Whatever leads you to be the best version of yourself, focus on that.