I wanted to talk about something a little different today: why I took some time away from social media.
Social media is central to today’s society; it is pretty much used in every form of life. To communicate with friends and family, to find a new place to go for dinner or drinks, to find outfit inspiration, to name a few. Social media plays a central role in our lives today.
I’ve had many jokes over the time that my phone is “glued” to my hand & some have even gone far as being worried about me if I don’t reply for a longer period of time than normal (not kidding).
As a blogger, and with having a business surrounding social media - as well as simply just taking an interest in my social media platforms in general - I do spend a lot of my time on my phone. Everywhere I go, especially when it’s somewhere new, I want to take photos and post them. To write reviews about these places. I also attend a lot of events whereby the nature of my attendance is to be documenting the night through photos and a write up. For this reason, being heavily on social media is just a big part of my life.
- What I learnt -
I noticed a few things while I had my ‘time out’. Firstly, I had much better concentration! Sometimes I really struggle to switch off and I’ve got a million and one things running through my mind so at times I do struggle to not check my social media regularly, mainly for work purposes. I managed to go a full 6/7 hours without checking my phone at all (for messages etc) and I got so much of my uni work done; leaving me feeling less stressed and much more relaxed.
I know some people can get really bogged down by what other people perceive their lives to be on social media and struggle to not compare theirs. Trust me, I have my moments too. However, I do realise that people choose what to put on social media and how they want to portray their lives at all times. We’re all human and sadly, we all go through shit (pardon the French). I know from comments I’ve received about how perfect my life looks at times and how I appear to always be out having fun but people don’t see the other aspects of my life that might not always be so great.
I’ve been feeling a little overwhelmed lately, for a number of reasons which I won’t go into but I felt like I needed a real detox where I just focused on me. I wasn't too well last week so I was stuck in the house and, usually I’d be slobbing around watching films I’ve seen a thousand times & scrolling through social media until my fingers hurt! I decided that for a few days I just wanted a break from social media and to be honest, from my phone! Sometimes closing yourself off from the world for a couple of days is so healthy!
I am lucky to have some amazing friends so I received several messages when I put up that I was taking some time out on my Instagram; checking in to make sure that I was okay. For that I am so grateful. I just needed some well deserved me time.
I just didn’t feel the need to check my phone. I felt strangely calm and controlled knowing that I had made a decision to delete my social media and that I wasn’t really missing much for the time that I wasn’t on it! It gave me a strange sense of freedom. I watched a full film with my family and really enjoyed family time. I also watched some TV programmes that I hadn’t ever fully concentrated on before and was surprised how much funnier I actually found them when I paid proper attention.
I think that sometimes we get so wrapped up in social media that it becomes our life- without even realising it. Have you found yourself constantly scrolling through Instagram for the sake of it instead of spending quality time with your family? Or maybe even missing details from your favourite films/series because you’re sat on your phone? We’re all guilty of it and I know that I’ll probably be back to my normal self soon (which is completely fine)! However, taking the time out made me feel much more relaxed and at ease.
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With today being World Mental Health Day, it is really important to take time out to yourself to just relax, however that may be. Mental health is so important- just because we can't see the hurt doesn't mean you're not suffering. Don't be too hard on yourself and give yourself a break. Take some time out and do more of what makes you happy. If you're feeling down, please speak to someone. Talking helps ♡
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I definitely enjoyed taking some time out and I'll even go as far as saying that I might do this every few months. If you've taken the time to read all of my rambling and got this far - then thank you!
Love,
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