Social Media can be great. It allows you to keep in touch with people that'd otherwise disappear from your life, it exposes you to news and information that are unavailable through more traditional channels, and it provides you with fresh avenues through which to express yourself.
But it can also be pretty damaging.
Recently I noticed that after I check Facebook and Twitter I get sadder, sometimes even depressed. The constant barrage of negativity, outrage, conflicting opinions, shares and retweets forced on you are just too much. You never know if, when you scroll down, you might see a puppy or a massacre. You never know if a person you quite like might decide to point a finger at someone else, and suddenly your view of them is marred by hostility. Even if you don't engage with any of that, you feel like you're constantly on your guard, fighting back against the tides, just trying to keep it together while you're flooded with information.
So, I've had enough.
I've deleted the social media apps from my phone. I've blocked the websites on my computers. I'm trying to wean myself of an environment which, to me at least, seems toxic. It's not easy. I find that a significant amount of my time was spent browsing those services, and now I'm bored more easily, and have nothing to distract me from mundane drudgeries. But I'm trying to fill the time - I've started reading books again, for one, and I rediscovered how great books are.
I'm sure other people have thicker skins and find this whole thing a bit overblown. Others might blame me, not unjustly, of escapism - trying to deny the world and isolate myself from much of the terrible stuff that happens in it. But this is the choice I made, for better or worse. I don't know if it'll last. But I'm going to try.
Sup guys. Tell me about your social media experiences.
But it can also be pretty damaging.
Recently I noticed that after I check Facebook and Twitter I get sadder, sometimes even depressed. The constant barrage of negativity, outrage, conflicting opinions, shares and retweets forced on you are just too much. You never know if, when you scroll down, you might see a puppy or a massacre. You never know if a person you quite like might decide to point a finger at someone else, and suddenly your view of them is marred by hostility. Even if you don't engage with any of that, you feel like you're constantly on your guard, fighting back against the tides, just trying to keep it together while you're flooded with information.
So, I've had enough.
I've deleted the social media apps from my phone. I've blocked the websites on my computers. I'm trying to wean myself of an environment which, to me at least, seems toxic. It's not easy. I find that a significant amount of my time was spent browsing those services, and now I'm bored more easily, and have nothing to distract me from mundane drudgeries. But I'm trying to fill the time - I've started reading books again, for one, and I rediscovered how great books are.
I'm sure other people have thicker skins and find this whole thing a bit overblown. Others might blame me, not unjustly, of escapism - trying to deny the world and isolate myself from much of the terrible stuff that happens in it. But this is the choice I made, for better or worse. I don't know if it'll last. But I'm going to try.
Sup guys. Tell me about your social media experiences.