In a time where social media is almost impossible to avoid, it would be silly to assume it doesn't have an affect on us. I'm not making a revolutionary statement, merely just stating the facts. There have been numerous times where I have taken a break from all social media, whether that be getting rid of the app on my phone or deleting my account all together - the relief and sudden relaxation has been almost instant.
Don’t get me wrong, social media is an incredible thing that has given countless people opportunities they couldn’t have even dreamed of. The creativity and connectivity given to us through a little app is amazing. It allows people to show off their skills within any industry and ultimately get noticed. But with that need to get noticed comes a sense of addiction. Even though I have never used social media for business, when I first made my accounts on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, I found myself constantly checking how many followers I had, as though every ten minutes I expected to double the amount. It was an unconscious thing. During times where I actually had things to do, my phone found its way into my hand so I could scroll aimlessly down my feed to see photoshopped celebrities on a holiday I would never be able to afford. If I had the opportunity to find out the total amount of time wasted on social media, I’d turn down the offer - it would more than likely make me feel sick.
Why are we so obsessed with how other people live their lives? I’d lose count if I had to check how many times I’ve asked myself that in the past. It becomes an even bigger concern when it involves people we don’t know and never will: celebrities. Especially celebrities who are prone to photoshopping every inch of their already perfect bodies or show off their wealth by posting photos of themselves covered in diamonds. Why should I care? There will always be a sense of envy should a photo pop up on my feed of someone living the ‘perfect’ life, which is why I decided to delete Instagram and Facebook not that long ago (yes, I did make a new Instagram account but more on that later). I realised I wasted so much time on Facebook finding out what old school friends (I use this term very loosely) were up to and if their online life seemed so much more successful than mine - both career and personal - I would just feel so crap about myself. If you thought that would stop me stalking these people even more, you thought wrong. It was an endless cycle that I’m sure a majority of you have gone through before. I hadn’t spoken to these people in years, so why did I care so much? It’s not that I actually did care, I think it was more to do with finding someone in the same situation as myself so I could stop feeling like my career was going nowhere. Instagram was on another level. I have always been an introvert and have never had an interest in drinking or girls' holidays or really posting much about my life online, but when it came to seeing both people I knew and didn’t know having great time, I began to wish I was in those friendship groups. At first, I simply unfollowed all the accounts that made me feel like I wanted to be someone I wasn’t but that wasn’t enough; I found myself still searching for them, wasting hours scrolling through photos and videos of a life I didn’t really want. It made me feel shit. So I deleted my accounts.
Admittedly, to begin with it was strange. I realised how addicted I had become to social media. Any spare minute I had, I found myself grabbing my phone to click on the apps I had deleted. It was a serious addiction, one I know so many people have too. In a sense, I was addicted to seeing how rubbish I could make myself feel. Comparing myself to others understandably affected my self-esteem, made me feel lonely and just completely dissatisfied with my life. It’s ironic that platforms known to connect people and increase social interactions can make one feel such things. Even research has shown that social media can decrease stable mental health and make you feel worse about yourself. I’m not surprised. If people are doing studies on it then why do people continue to post content that makes others feel completely awful? Yes, I know we can’t tell people what to post and granted, a lot of people are innocently showing their followers their day to day life… It all comes down to society and what is expected of us when it comes to our image. When I got rid of my social media accounts, I began to care a lot less about what I looked like, whether I was wearing clothes that were on trend and just felt a lot more… Free.
As mentioned above, I did return to Instagram however I had three rules:
- Don’t follow anyone you know will make you feel low
- Delete account if it begins to affect you negatively
- Delete account if you find yourself looking up people for hours on end
Some would say it’s a bit excessive but having felt the negative results of social media, I think they are necessary. Now having been back on social media for a number of months and having stuck to those rules, my experience has been a lot more positive. It’s important to note that I am not exempt from the bad days everyone goes through, I just make sure I stay away from Twitter and Instagram during that time - it has helped a lot. Despite all of this, social media has brought me closer to friends I rarely see and has even introduced me to new people who I speak to on a daily basis. Also, I must admit that I’m partial to the odd meme and having no access to the best ones on Facebook and Instagram was not fun.
Let me know your thoughts on social media down below.
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