Social media can be a great platform as well as a dangerous space. It is the epitome of a double-edged sword. While I enjoy using social media overall, there are a few things that I remind myself of in order to maintain a healthy mental and physical space.
Firstly, I am very bad at remembering not to take social media too seriously. I try to remind myself that people only present the best parts of their lives on social media, so I shouldn’t feel bad about my current situation, even if my life doesn’t seem as exciting at the moment. It is easy to forget that social media is idealistic and that people may not present their struggles because they want people to believe this facade that their lives are perfect.
I sometimes take the approach to turning it off completely. I try talking to someone in person and sometimes it is a real challenge to take a break from talking about myself. Sometimes, someone might really need to vent or talk about a problem their facing and I want them to know that I am there to listen to them and be there for them when they need me. Over time, I have learned that when you’re there for others, someone will always be there to do the same for you.
Though it’s hard, I try to remember to focus on the moment. Whether it be while on the greatest vacation I’ve ever been on or while I’m working on homework. I try to remember to put down the phone and focus on the moment. If I’m on vacation, I worry about enjoying the vacation while it lasts instead of posting about it, which I think is the hardest part because it is so easy to take Instagrammable photos while at a cool destination. If I’m doing my homework, I try to finish my homework without any interruptions. However this is really difficult as I get distracted easily. My only hope is that I avoid developing any attention disorders.
When I’m at hanging out with my friends, we all try to make conversation rather than staring at our phones. And even though we all agree that it is very hard, I’m glad that we are all in a mutual agreement that it would be better for us because we improve the quality of the time we spend together. Sometimes I get very awkward with strangers and I hide behind my phone because it is so easy. Hopefully one day I can teach myself not to be afraid of making conversation rather than pretending to find something interesting on Instagram.
These are just simple reminders I try to incorporate into my habits and though I am far from perfect, I think that there is improvement and I hope to one day be less dependant on my phone than I am now!