Congrats girl, you did it! You made it through another semester, proving yourself to be an academic weapon (hopefully, anyway). Even if you’re feeling more like an academic victim after that last final, you can shake it off, because summer is right around the corner.
With that in mind, it’s the perfect time to start thinking about how you want to spend your break. Are you going to travel, read some books, or tan on the beach? The possibilities are truly endless. For me, there’s one thing I’ve been looking forward to for a hot minute: giving up social media.
While in school, social media feels inescapable. Between keeping up with campus events, promoting organizations and opportunities, or just staying up-to-date with the latest trends, it’s almost impossible to avoid a daily scroll on Instagram or TikTok. The problem is that that scroll always ends up being three hours, and I’m just not about that lifestyle anymore. Let me give you my top three reasons for why taking a social media cleanse over the summer will be my key to a truly relaxing break.
MENTAL HEALTH
In my experience, social media has been horrible for my mental health. The truth that I often forget is that nothing on my feed is real. On social media, everybody tends to curate a specific image of themselves. They purposefully omit all the challenges that they’re facing in the real world.
Additionally, everything is so status-based, which puts a value system on which experiences are more desirable than others. This mindset falls back on me as well, which can cause me to care more about the post I’ll share later rather than enjoying life in the moment.
Finally, there’s something beautiful in just doing things for yourself and those around you, not for hundreds of people you’ll never actually talk to. Respectfully, I don’t want you to know what I’m up to, and I don’t need to know what you’re doing either. It’s a simple life, and it’s sweet.
Time for other things
Ahh scrolling… how I detest you. I couldn’t count the number of times where I was looking forward to starting a new book, show, or movie and instead wasted hours scrolling mindlessly on Instagram thanks to that oh-so-smart algorithm.
I’m putting an end to it this summer. I have books to read, hobbies to revisit, people to catch up with (in person of course), and no time to waste on a screen. More importantly, it’s good to let your brain be bored sometimes. Some of the best ideas come from messing around while not having anything else to do. Don’t let something as insignificant as social media take that from you.
avoiding brain rot
The term “brain rot” has been trending lately, and I’ve never heard a better description of the feeling of being trapped on social media. There comes a time when I literally feel my brain being numbed by the monotony of the scroll. It’s like every post makes the light behind my eyes go a little dimmer and my thoughts become a bit fuzzier.
This summer, I’m keeping my mind sharp by removing the problem. Trust me, I’m not going to be sitting around reading Aristotle, but at least I won’t be wasting my brainpower trying to figure out the lore of the TikTok Rizz Party. Even taking my dog on a walk is more educational than that and arguably a lot more fun.
Overall, there’s a lot to see and do in the world outside of the phone screen. Despite what we’ve convinced ourselves, humans aren’t designed for that lifestyle anyway. So, join me this summer and give social media a break over the next couple of months. It’s sure to help you relax and enjoy each summer day in its fleeting and secret beauty.
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