Is social media usage making you paranoid?
You spend hours on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.
Seeing the "happy pics" posted by your friends, relatives, and colleagues does not truly make you happy. Do you feel good about it?
Do these images sometimes irritate you and make your thoughts turn negative?
When you are overwhelmed with household chores or parenting, you might turn to social media for entertainment or relaxation. It quickly turns into a negative experience, leaving you feeling doubtful about yourself, envious of others, and even depressed. Just a few minutes on social media negatively impacts your mood and well-being. You are trying to relax. But your mind wanders and you are disturbed. This influences your personal life as you might transfer the negative vibes to your near and dear ones.
Envy kicks in when you see women all dolled up and looking beautiful. A feeling of remorse sets in when you see their vacation posts. Social media filters and other editing tools may be the reason behind those perfect-looking snaps. It still makes people feel insecure or inadequate.
This technology was designed to bring people closer together. They began to use social media more and felt more lonely, anxious, and depressed.
The Fear Of Missing Out (FOMO) syndrome is a genuine psychological phenomenon. You constantly check your phone for updates, even if it means sacrificing your sleep and neglecting your real-life relationships. Social media platforms can become breeding grounds for harmful behavior, such as spreading rumors, lies, and abuse, which can cause deep emotional wounds that may never fully heal.
Social media posts can be deceptive. People share mostly the good things on social media. This can create a false impression of what our lives are really like. Studies have found a strong link between heavy social media and an increased risk for depression, anxiety, loneliness, self-harm, and even suicidal thoughts. This round-the-clock, hyper-connectivity can trigger impulse control problems. The constant alerts and notifications affect your concentration and focus, disturb your sleep, and make you addicted to social media.
Dear influencers, please try to be more authentic and transparent online. Create more genuine social media content. Try to share behind-the-scenes/glimpses of your life, be honest about your struggles and challenges, and do not conform to unrealistic beauty or lifestyle standards.
Dear readers, Always bear in mind that most of the social media influencers are doing it for publicity and reach. For them, it is a source of income. They might not hesitate to capitalize on our insecurities.
Remember, nobody's life is perfect as you see on social media. They all have their ups and downs in life. Heart-breaks, self-doubts, and disappointments happen to them as well. But they choose not to share it online. It is always better to consume the content with a pinch of salt.
Great topic. So true. We need this to go viral 😎