In this technological age, social media has become the primary means to connect with our family, friends and the rest of the world. For many of us, this routine has become an intricate part of our daily lives.
Yet, this seemingly harmless habit can become a fast-track course to decreased self-esteem, increased anxiety and increased depression.
Research has shown that the more time people spend on social media, the more depressed and anxious they become when comparing their lives to others. It is not usual to see your own life as not as exciting, thrilling or picture perfect.
Scrolling through news feeds has the ability to make people feel bad about their own lives. Oftentimes, people don’t consider the tremendous influence or impact social media can have on someone’s outlook and overall mood. Just think about if you have ever been blocked or unfriended and how it made you feel.
But what people need to take into consideration is that on social media, everyone’s life looks perfect. It’s easy to become jealous or envious of what other people are advertising about their life, particularly images of alleged happiness, great friendships, fantastic physiques or crazy success. It can make us feel inadequate about our own lives, simply because we don’t have what they have or because our self-worth is low.
It is important to remember you are only seeing a snapshot of reality. This isn’t a person’s whole life, not even a reflection of reality, but merely a glimpse of the life they CHOOSE to present to the world.
What you are viewing are the highlights of someone’s life. People can be whoever they want to be on social media. You can post whatever you want to post. You allow people to see what you want them to see. It is heavily embellished and mostly rooted in fantasy.
Social media is a way to get attention from people. It gives us a false sense of belonging and connecting that isn’t based on real life exchanges. If we don’t get as many likes, comments or retweets as others, we can be seen as less popular or less appealing to the rest of the world.
Self-awareness is key. If you think social media is negatively influencing your self-esteem, it’s time to reconnect with the real world.
Carrie
Dr.Carrie!
I have found that since the 90’s!
People will have this thought of: “This is the Internet!” “And I can be/say anything/everything I want!”
It does disconnect us only from us.
But! Even our world!