It seems that most phone-attached, selfie-obsessed millennials love snapchat and they  will not be deleting it anytime soon. On what other app can users make stickers of friends, see what they would look like as a dog and receive a shirtless picture that was not meant for them, all in the same day?

Like all social media , Snapchat is an easy, entertaining way to interact with friends. When taken too far though, we become absorbed by silly app features and lose a sense of meaningful communication with friends and peers.

The obsession with keeping streaks has gone too far. Sure, if one has a 100-day streak with their best friend, that is one thing and that is great. In reality, though, most Snapchat streaks are between friends who hardly talk and are too distant to have an actual conversation. Or, they exist between people who really are not friends anymore but somehow feel the need to send a picture of themselves just to save a hollow relationship with someone.

Many have had the experience of being wronged by someone, maybe even someone toxic and then seeing that little hourglass next to their name on Snapchat and having to pretend like everything is okay just so that they do not break the streak.

Most people with a streak actually have multiple streaks going that they just send the same picture. So, that flower-crown selfie someone just received from the guy who sat next to them in freshman year MAT 102 probably went to 20 other people as well. That personal friendship they are trying to maintain by keeping a streak isn’t really personal at all.

How many people even acknowledge the other person’s daily life through these streaks? Not many; it is just a generic exchange of photographs with no conversation associated with it.

There is truly nothing like that rush of panic when receiving a “KEEP THE STREAK!” snap from that pal that you have not even talked to in six months. It usually ends with taking a picture of the inside of your pocket just to make that tiny black number increase by one. It just seems pointless.

Why not just have an actual conversation via text instead? Or even better, have one in person.

No disrespect is meant for Snapchat or anyone who enjoys maintaining their streaks. The next time you check off the 20 people you are sending that photo to, ask yourself: Why them? If they are that important to you, do not hesitate to send them a message worthy of more than an overly filtered photo.