Edited by: Madhumitha Arivu Chelvan
Every once in a while, social media and the internet can get a little too overwhelming for us. A simple act, like checking the news, can give us so much anxiety. Regulating the hours you spend online helps keep a check on your mental health. And that is the exact moment when you delete all social media apps, except for WhatsApp; and here’s why:
1. ??? Clubs
Being a student in Manipal, you’re probably a part of a couple of clubs. All club related communication happens via our second favorite green-colored thing on this planet. First being Shrek, of course (That’s what you had in mind too, right?). Anyway, unless you want a bunch of red dot messages from HRs in your inbox, you better be checking all the messages!
2. FOMO
FOMO or Fear of Missing Out is a term widely used these days. Who invented it? I think group chats did. Imagine going off of WhatsApp and missing out on all that drama and gossip. Sounds impossible! We thrive off of group chat (special mention: club spam groups) discussions!
3. Important Messages (read: Placements)
All vital communication from the Student Council’s side is done via WhatsApp. Apart from SC, Class Representatives often resort to “Official Class Groups” to notify you about the successful upload of class notes. Missing out on these messages is a risk you truly can’t afford to take!
4. Old Chats
You probably have too many important chats on WhatsApp and too little storage on your Cloud. I bet you’d want to hold on to those precious voice notes your friends sent to you. Not to mention, all those photographs from that beach trip that your “photographer friend” sent to you!
5. Birthday Planning
We all love those groups made out of panic one week before someone’s birthday, right? Whether it’s cake, a custom t-shirt, or the classic video, you’d want to be a part of these birthday celebrations. Where else do you think the discussion will take place?
While some of these are Manipal-centric, I think most of these apply to any college student! Regardless of how dependent we are on WhatsApp, don’t be afraid to take that small break every once in a while. When things get too overwhelming, turning off notifications helps me. What about you?