Unplugging for a bit

I'm unplugging from social media for a bit. I'll keep Facebook Messenger to talk in our friend groups, because it seems impossible to get everyone on a different service, but I will not be on Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, etc. for an indefinite amount of time. I thought about keeping it a secret, but unfortunately, I need more accountability...

Because I sit at a desk all day, it is SO easy for me to get stuck on these sites. Whether it's on my phone or on the computer, I find that I am wasting so much time on these platforms. When I wake up, the first thing I do is reach for my phone to browse through Facebook and Instagram. Just wanna see what people were doing and thinking and eating while I was sleeping... There's something wrong about that. When I wake up, what if I went straight outside and felt the sunshine, or made coffee, or read a book? The habit of immediately turning to social media kind of sickens me, and simply put, it's not the way I want to be spending my life.  At work I reach for my phone every few minutes, hoping there's a new red number next to an app signifying that someone out there in the universe feels what I'm feeling (yeah, I'm admitting to that). And honestly, I'm not even that interested in what I'm reading on the news feeds! I mean how many Buzzfeed lists can we post, people?? It's become a terrible habit of mine to scroll through endless images and information and I'm sure it's not healthy. I've started to wonder about the toll it's taking on my mind. I call it Constant Comparison Syndrome. It's not a natural thing to be inundated by everyone's thoughts and achievements, and I think it negatively effects my thought processes because I'm a naturally curious, inquisitive and sensitive person who is deeply susceptible to overthink and deeply consider other people's opinions and choices.

I'm not wholly against social media. In fact, I LOVE IT! Which is why it's an issue for me. I just don't have the willpower to simply "not go on and check later", so I'm uninstalling the apps on my phone and blocking them from my web browser. YIKES! I hope I'll notice a marked change in they way my days are spent and I'm really interested to see how I use the freed up time. Obviously I'll be getting much more work done (you're welcome boss), but I'm also interested to see how other things change. Like for instance, when I take a photo, will I think, "Ooooh that's gonna get a lot of likes on Instagram", or will I take a picture just for the sake of taking a picture? I want to have memories, so I'm not going to stop taking photos, but I'm calling into question: why am I taking this photo? Is it for instant gratification in the form of comments or getting the number of those damned little hearts to go up?? Seriously.

I know this seems extreme and maybe even silly that I have to write a post about this, and I'll admit, I'm kind of embarrassed. I am by nature an over-sharer and I feel like these platforms just make it too easy for me to get obsessed with posting images and information for others to see and connect with. I circle back to the point that I don't think social media is inherently a bad thing, but the quantity and frequency of it all has become too overwhelming for me; I fell victim to the addictive and seductive feeling of instant gratification. I'll leave my posting exclusively to my blog for now. And maybe I'll share pictures with people via email. Imagine that! I'm curious to see what I'll deem blogworthy; Where will my fleeting genius/witty thoughts go when the status option is taken away from me? Will I begin writing things down? Will I keep a diary? Will I blog more? This is scary and exciting and I'm doing it.

Feels good to get that off my chest.



And a little wisdom on the subject from the talented Allen Stone:

Are you looking for peace of mind?
You won't find it in your status line,
What are you trying to prove?
Whose mountain are you trying to move?

I fell for it, too, yeah,
Whatever keeps you occupied,
Whatever gives you contact high,
Whatever keeps you busy, baby,
Will never make you satisfied,

Are you looking for security,
Validation or identity?
You won't find it in things,
The more you got, oh, the less you see, yeah,

I fell for it, too, yeah,
Whatever keeps you occupied,
Whatever gives you contact high,
Whatever keeps you busy, baby,
Will never make you satisfied, yeah,

I've been all over the world, yeah,
I've dug for diamonds and I've dove for pearls,
And the real treasure that we all seek,
Is hiding in plain sight of me, oh,

Whatever keeps you occupied,
Whatever gives you contact high,
Whatever keeps you busy, baby,
Will never make you satisfied,

Whatever keeps you occupied, yeah,
Whatever gives you contact high,
Whatever keeps you busy, baby,
Will never make you satisfied,
Will never make you satisfied, yeah,
Will never make you satisfied, oh.