The last time I went on Instagram, I was not as eager as I used to be 3 years ago, when my life depended on every share, like or comment. Reason being, I had undergone some months off social media and my hiatus proved to be healthy and a process of my self-care. I took the decision to go off social media for various reasons, but mostly to protect myself from the not so friendly, not so positive and not so encouraging aspects that come with social media.
Social media gives us an outlet to express and evoke meaning in our lives; to curate and display our daily surroundings. But, even then, I got anxious from the monotonous routines of subscribing to certain standards of living that excited me through other feeds. Thus, I took the plunge, and deleted social media; Instagram and Facebook mostly because these were my most active sites. It was a fresh breath of air, a calm and cooling effect to release yourself from likes, comments and DMs.Â
Quite often, our moments of joy, excitement or sorrow are captured in the palm of our hands and through our screens. But, suddenly, the void of not being able to share what I am doing in the moment surprised me, yet also motivated me to swear to a period of secrecy and self gratitude. I went on strolls without my phone to just soak in sunshine that did not deflect off my flashlight. I went to many restaurants and ate my meals before candidly posing with it for views. I suddenly felt the need to stop taking pictures of random and mundane things that a lot of people are in contact with. And, I stopped posting status updates on current affairs and how angry I am about everything that is happening in the world.
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Quite frankly, it has been nearly 6 months since I have been off social media, and I have never been sounder and more shielded in my own light. I no longer wanted to validate what I was doing, simply because I found reason to support my choices and be more single-minded about inviting positivity into my life. I no longer found toxicity through damaging tweets and trolls that harmed my mental health and frightened me to have independent thought. I livened up my daily routines by reviving my love for books. I found myself lying on my bed often reading and scrolling down things I once thought I did not have time for, such as the news or healthy recipes.Â
Not to condemn those avid social media users (I was also one of them); it is quite a fun portal to keep in touch with those who are not near you. But, I think I grew out of my obsession with social and virtual validation. Everyone uses social media for their own reasons; hence it should strive to be a much healthier platform instead of a judgmental one. However, I just think I am more content without it in my life.Â
For this reason, do what is best for you and perhaps you will find that social media is either your medium of self-expression or a route for activism.Â