Social media, without any doubt, is one of the many beautiful inventions of mankind. Being able to get in touch with anyone across the globe, the entertainment, and the appeal of curated photos and videos is one to behold. However, what was intended to facilitate social interaction has now become a platform that could be detrimental to our mental health and fuel the unhealthy urge to fix certain issues. From wondering if your contact has deactivated or deleted their accounts, to trying to figure out if they blocked you from accessing them. For the sake of clarity, here’s how to know if someone blocked your Instagram to free yourself from the burden of worry.
That said, we can all admit that the negative impact social media has on us is glaring and could lead to an overwhelming feeling of anxiety. While the oppression that comes with each social media is dependent on its function, they are all unhealthy and could disrupt your daily life – some more than others. Here are some common major anxieties associated with each social media, some of which you probably didn’t know existed:
INSTAGRAM: The Fear of Missing Out
For a social platform that only encourages people to share their stories and life events via photos and videos, Instagram does heighten anxiety in users. With perfectly filtered images and videos of people living luxuriously and achieving their milestones, it is almost impossible to feel like you’re not doing enough. You could also begin to worry a lot about your selfie angles, life achievements, and other forms of social pressure you normally wouldn’t overthink.
TWITTER: The Fear of not Appearing Smart
Twitter is filled with people’s discussions on various trends and topics. Unlike Instagram, you don’t fear that you’re missing out on social exposure, but you fear not being able to keep up with hot topics and memes that every other person seems to find funny or relatable. So, interacting with these tweets or posting a tweet of your own becomes difficult because you don’t want to appear dumb or ignorant. And when you eventually do, you fear that someone points out a mistake or reacts negatively to your tweet.
LINKEDIN: The Fear of a Failed Career
LinkedIn is an amazing platform for building connections with potential employers and employees. However, it develops the anxiety of professional insecurity once you start investing your time in it. You see so many people with so many educational and career achievements, which could make you feel like you’re not worth the competition. On LinkedIn, you always get to worry about looking and sounding professional, rather than taking actual steps that’ll help you stand out.
PINTEREST: The Fear of Lack of Creativity
On Pinterest, you’ll find various DIY projects that creators vouch are affordable, of good quality, and “easy to make”. Not being able to get these projects right could make you feel like you lack the spirit of creativity and innovation. So, you worry about the perfect photo of your creation and going to stores to buy items you could actually spend time “realistically” crafting.
FACEBOOK – Fear of Overall Failure
The anxiety you feel when you log on to your Facebook account is not surprisingly overwhelming when compared to other social media platforms. Facebook permits all forms of posts from graduation photos, wedding photos, and baby showers. The fear of not reaching certain benchmarks at a certain age is usually the Facebook influence.
Conclusion
While many will advise you to simply quit social media since it triggers your anxiety, the truth is, quitting social media at a time like this is nearly impossible. Instead, try setting boundaries and engaging in topics and events that are only good for your mental and physical well-being. You can also practice digital detox at least once a week to ease yourself from all the numerous contents on your feed.
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