Quitting social media | digital minimalism
I deleted facebook 8 years ago, snapchat 5 years ago, instagram 3 years ago, twitter 2 years ago and gladly never made tiktok
I was influenced by beauty bloggers very badly which led me to have multiple identity crisis's and change my style many times. Shopping was a lifestyle and hobby for me since I never made space for saving any money. As a result my wardrobe was exploding in clothes that I wore once or twice or never even had the opportunity to wear. This was the pivotal moment that started minimalism because I had no choice but to get rid of my clothes and start decluttering.
Changing styles and experimenting with appearance was difficult to portray online due to fear of judgements. Through the years I had many different phases and would completely erase my feed and start from scratch for every new era. This made me worry about what others will think about my inconsistency
Funding for the lifestyle for a perfect feed was expensive due to outings, diners, and mainly outfits. It seemed on the surface that I was wealthy but the truth was that every penny was spent on the image with nothing being saved or spent wisely. I would see a photo of a blogger and try to replicate it by buying a similar outfit and going to the same location
I was constantly comparing my appearance to that of others even though they have gone through plastic surgeries. I would spend hours contemplating going through these surgeries to feel as beautiful as them.
My makeup obsession stemmed from my insecurities however social media encouraged me to be dependent on makeup. The perfect image meant I felt the need to wear a full face of makeup every time I left the house in order to be picture perfect every second. This made me feel worse about my true self and more insecure when bare faced. Now I only wear makeup a few times a year for occasions and I can confidently be natural outdoors. There's no more pressure for selfies.
Maintaining a certain style or aesthetic became exhausting and was draining my energy because I felt like I trapped myself in to one aesthetically pleasing box
I no longer wanted to deceive everyone by only sharing best moments when my reality was the complete opposite in every way from my appearance and makeup to what was really happening behind close doors. My life was far from perfect so I felt fake by presenting it as if it was
Posting regularly and so perfectly invited jealousy and envy which negatively effected my life. A private life has become a much happier life. I don't trust that everyone wants the best for me and is happy for my successes so I keep everything to myself.
Every minute of the day was about taking pictures to share online in order to seem interesting or aesthetically pleasing. This wasted a lot of time and cause problems by missing things or running late. Especially getting a daily selfie before leaving the house.
The lack of productivity was terrible. I never achieved anything for several years until I quit social media and focussed on improving myself. I now fill boredom and spare time for good habits. As a result I've studied 3 courses, joined 3 classes, read 15 books within 6 months, and take morning jogs a few times a week
It was part of my routine to check the pages of my favourite celebrities and show them some love. This love turned into idolisation and consumed me with their lives and drama. I would passionately speak about celebrity gossip in majority of my conversations. Now I'm oblivious and focus on my life and better it.
I was having less conversations by being more focussed on taking the perfect photo instead of talking with the friend infront of me which made the quality of our time together worse on my behalf. I view this as inconsiderate behaviour now and give my full attention to everyone.
Since I don't know what my few friends are up to and they don't know anything about me either I'm required to reach out and directly make plans together. This has made for better real life experiences that no one needs to know about through posting it online. I'm in the present moment.
The addiction to blu light exposure was apparent in my tendency to mindlessly scroll until the sun would rise. Scrolling had no time limit which made sleep very challenging. Getting out of bed and getting tasks done also took a lot of effort due to scrolling on apps. Now I fall asleep quicker and get out bed faster.
