“Most people say that their social media profiles do not affect how they see themselves or how happy they are, but in reality it does”
ANONYMOUS
#1. THE PROBLEM
How badly we want to believe that none of it is affecting us, but the ebbs and tides in our inner world after scrolling through the feed and statuses say it all.
A study showed that limiting the use of social media can lead to significant improvement in well-being. It also concluded that extensive use of social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram & Snapchat results into increase in depression & loneliness.
Melissa G. Hunt, associate director of clinical training in Penn’s Psychology Department shared that, “It is a little ironic that reducing your use of social media actually makes you feel less lonely.”
However, on digging deep, things became clearer and she was of the opinion that, “Some of the existing literature on social media suggests there’s an enormous amount of social comparison that happens. When you look at other people’s lives, particularly on Instagram, it’s easy to conclude that everyone else’s life is cooler or better than yours”
We spend most of our time on social media checking out what other people are doing in their lives. These leads to comparison and whenever we compare, either we degrade ourselves or we upgrade ourselves. Whether we make ourselves inferior or superior, we are harming our well-being. Putting our own selves down just because somebody else has achieved something or is going somewhere directly harms our self-worth.
However, putting somebody down and making oneself feel better is not also a way to feel good about ourselves, that won’t last long. Originality and uniqueness of your being won’t be flourished in either experience.
Well, then what can be done about the issue?
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#2. I GUESS I’LL JUST QUIT
I am sure you all must have used a knife at least once in your life. The knife that we use for cutting fruits, vegetables and other household purposes can also be used to harm or even kill somebody.
What do we do? Do we stop using the knife? Or do we make ourselves clear about the consequences of its uses and learn how to use it for our own well-being.
EXACTLY MY POINT!
Technology & Social Media have been invented to enhance the way we live. Quitting is not an option, for people pursuing a normal life. (However, if you’re planning to go to the Himalayas, there you won’t need it 😀 ;)) Just kidding.
It would be such insanity to not use such an amazing platform that has been created to share all the joy, love, peace & inspiration you have within. (If you haven’t found yet within, keep looking. You’ll find it soon! Then only start sharing, because you cannot share what you don’t have! 🙂 )
#3 SO, WHAT CAN BE DONE ABOUT IT?
The best advice people give is, to limit your time on the social media platforms. This is a piece of advice worth implementing. However, what about the impact that is created on your mind in that limited time? The updates and feeds leave an impact on your mind, even in a small amount.
How about eliminating the impact altogether?
Here’s the trick!
“Follow people or pages who inspire you to be your OWNSELF”
A REQUEST FROM YOUR SOUL! 🙂
Your feeds should be filled with such posts that arise positivity, joy, encouragement, appreciation, love, inspiration and all other positive emotions within you. With such a trick, even those 10-15 minutes that you spend on social media will create a positive impact on your mind.
If you are really serious about your mental health and the impact your social media page is creating on you, get into this activity with me for a few minutes RIGHT NOW.
Step:1
If you are using, Instagram, Facebook or Snapchat, just go to the following/liked page section and glance through each and every one of them. Let’s be a little bit honest with ourselves today and check on what we are feeding into our mind since so many days.
Step:2
Ask these two questions for every people/page you follow:-
- After watching their post, what kind of emotions arise within me?
- Are these posts adding any value to my life in any aspect?
Step:3
If the answer to Questions #1 is some kind of positive emotion and the answer to Question #2 is a YES, then continue following that person/page or else it is better to unfollow and clean the trash.
- Check the people you follow and like every now and then.
- Unsubscribe to certain unwanted mails
You clean the trash can in your house regularly right? Then why not on your social media accounts?
How you feel inside creates a lot of impact on your life. If not now, when will you start taking care of it?
LOTS OF LOVE ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥
MAY GOD BLESS YOU! ♥
Photo by Sara Kurfeß on Unsplash
