Hoohoo, guys.
Today I’m talking about somethign that sat with me for a while and that has been a big part of my life for years and years: social media and the problems they bring. I’ve thought about this long and often but I guess there is some stuff I need to say.
Let’s start at the beginning. I sometimes have days that are… not so good. It often happens around my period and I feel bad (or nothing at all) for one or more days. Today was one such day and in an impulse decision I deleted the Twitter and Tumblr apps from my phone. I didn’t have to turn off notifications because that’s something I’ve done ages ago. I just can’t deal with being permanently accesible to everybody who wants something (which is why I often ignore texts until I feel ready to interact).
Not counting icq and kwik and all the stuff I got when I was about 12, I think tumblr was the first website thingy I joined. I kind of love tumblr, or I should say I love my tumblr bubble of bookish and nerdy people and the occasional shit poster. I found many friends on this website, some of which are among the closest friends I have. I love them dearly and I also love tumblr. I could spend hours just scrolling through my dashboard and sometimes talking to people.
I also love Instagram. Seriously, some people are so talented at taking photos, I am in awe! Instagram is just an aesthetically pleasing app, I sometimes close it and reopen it again right after just to look at the pretty photos. And then there’s Twitter. Which is okay, I guess? It’s a good way to interact with people and keep updates on friends without actually interacting with them. Because as I said, I sometimes don’t want to talk to people, so social media in general is great to keep up to date. I won’t talk about Facebook because I barely use it anymore.
Anyways, what these three apps/website have in common is that they’re really, really time consuming. I spend so much time on my phone it scares me sometimes, especially because I often do nothing but stare at this screen while I scroll through photos and texts and snort from time to time or remember certain passages in books. And just like that half an hour has passed and I haven’t done anything at all.
And what comes with it are so many negative feelings. For example, there is always someone on Twitter in a discussion with some troll or idiot and it often makes me so angry annoyed and I get invested in it, sometimes without knowing any of the people. On Instagram, I always feel pressured. Pressured to post or the algorithm will fuck everything up, pressured to take better photos, pressured to write a good caption, pressured to interact with many people as possible. And it wears me out and makes me tired. Constantly checking my phone, answering comments and messages,… I’m actually kind of sick of it.
There are so many hobbies I don’t have nearly enough time for. When was the last time I’ve drawn something? When was the last time I finished a crocheting project? When was the last time I sat down and watched something without checking my phone?
Well. I can’t remember. And I realized that social media makes me stressed out, uncomfortable and just plain tired and that means, byebye apps. I kept Instagram, but deleted everything else. I don’t necessarily need it and it will only give me more time to do things I actually enjoy. So yeah, if you follow me on any social media and I am scarcely there… now you know why.
How about you? Do you use social media? How often?
Until next time,
Hi Kat,
great post and I am really impressed by your honesty but also the topics you discussed.
Actually, I do not use Social Media. I mean, yes, I do have Whatsapp and Pinterest (and Blogger, of course) but that’s it and of course there are a lot of moments in which I am contemplating to get Facebook or Twitter or Instagram (mostly when it comes to connecting and information) but – even though I am 20 and most of my friends use Social Media a lot – I never do. First, I survive. Second, I am kind of a afraid of the things you mentioned above – spending too much time, feeling stressed and so on (I already feel stressed by Whatsapp and I am a lot like you when it comes to answering messages I guess :’D).
I also paused blogging for a year and now I am back and it feels like Social Media gained a lot of importance in this year. And I mean, I am not good in taking photos, I love my small little blog and I don’t feel like getting Social Media atm. Maybe I will in some months. Maybe I won’t.
But even without I feel like they tend to stress so I absolutely understand you and I am kind of impressed by your decision to just delete them. And I hope it makes you feel better.
Love, Dana
https://buchtraumwelten.blogspot.com/
Hi Dana,
thank you 🙂
If you manage without social media, that’s so great! I guess if you’ve never really used it, it’s not exactly necessary and that’s completely fine. Great even! Facebook is unnecessary for me because I only check mine about once a week in case somebody who hasn’t got my number wants anything.
WhatsApp stresses me as well 😀 And yeah, social media is kind of stressing and after two days of less social media, I already feel better. And yup, social media definitely got more important. Especially with books it often is an easier way to promote and/or show books. Instagram is great for me because I love photography, but for others Twitter might be a great way to discuss stuff in few words. While everything comes together on a blog, social media is a good way to interact with people and spread your newest blog post. But as I said, if you don’t need it, that’s fine and it is not necessary at all! It can be fun but then it really has its downsides as well.
I still have my accounts there, but I deleted the apps from my phone. And I don’t really use the websites because I find them to be mostly confusing.
Love,
Kat