Interesting topic right?? I have been using Instagram for over 4 years... I used to use it for health and fitness and then it became my photography. It was cool in the beginning. Posting photos of my travels, doing the hashtags, working with top bloggers in Germany and also having a free holiday around Europe being an Insta famous Bloggers Photographer. Free breakfasts, free hotels and incredible experiences. I used to spend over 2 hour's on Instagram a day. Worrying about how many like's a photo would get, if my followers were going up at a good pace and if my videos were getting enough views. If not, i would just delete it and try again at a later time of the day..
I was speaking to a friend who models, and she said she is over Instagram. She was doing what I did. Spending hours a day making sure posts "looked good" and how many likes and followers she got. She said she could feel how bad it was for her health! Instagram is so amazing, how we are able to watch people so closely. I love all the fitness girls I follow and able to see what workouts they do and then do the same when I go to gym. They also inspire me so much with the photos of food they post. Now i know that you can post whatever you want but I feel that some of the fitness girls are more real..posting photos slouched over,food babies and their " imperfections". People now have the opportunity to be seen more than ever and people are using Instagram more than Facebook and Twitter now. No one is posting feeling sad or lonely or cleaning their house or about the low times of their lives...which we all have. Its all about an illusion that people are creating! You see people buying their 10th car and you like i just budgeted my groceries for the week this is so sad....
What is the end goal with Instagram? I was excited when i got 10k followers and then 15k , 20k and then 25k followers. What is the final goal? It will never end. I had family down from Israel and for a lot of the lunch i was on my phone. I can tell you right now on your death bed you will never wish you had more followers or were more popular on Instagram.. It always seems like everyone else is doing better than you when everyone posts the best parts of their lives. I am guilty of looking at others Instagram pages and thinking why does everyone else seem to be having an amazing time when you have no idea what is going on in their lives. Alexis Ren once had a live video where she was crying saying that she is a human being too who gets sad and she missed her mother and people must realise that we are all human and we all have ups and downs.
Sure I still use Instagram but Instagram was making me actually sad and mostly frustrated.. Seeing photographers in Europe shooting and then wanting to be there too.. Seeing photographers posting work and then hating my own work and of course the banging fit bodies of girls who have had stuff removed and surgery to look like that..unrealistic right??
I want to spend more of my time talking to my friends and family, going for walks and reading a book. Everyone is trying to prove something. Whether that is having money, having fun or eating at a restaurant..
The fact that social media cause's depression is proven scientifically. The mechanism is very simple on Facebook, Instagram, etc., people tend to post only the highlights of their lives. Everyone is posting picture of fun times, vacations, good times with friends etc., while no one is posting the miserable aspects of everyday life. . Life is complex, everyone's life is rich of sad and happy moments. Some big moments, a lot of minor, less important moments.
So if you take a platform where anyone can self promote himself and post only the highlights of his life, do you understand what kind of distorted reality such a platform can depict?
There are more important things to spend your time on in the day and waking up and just having breakfast instead of taking in everyones posts every day. So give up being on Instagram so much and see family and friends or take a walk outside. Even make a list of the things you are grateful for. Remember that you are unique!No one is YOU! And stop comparing yourself to other's and cheer yourself on! Cut social media out and boom...cut out stress , anxiety and sadness.. Focus on your own success... Focus on the things that make you a better person..Focus on where you are going! Focus on the people in your life!
Big hugs!!
