No, my friends, what I do is wake up insanely worried and think of all the ways that my feelings are hurt. Yep, total waste of time. I rerun scenarios through my head where a friend didn’t say hello and I assume it’s my fault. I think about how I’m always the one reaching out to a friend and immediately assume my overtures might be unwelcome. And, worst of all, I overthink any and all social media comment interactions and responses. It’s a torturous game, especially at 4:20 am when I can’t turn my brain off.
I have always been a worrier and my guilt response is strong. So strong that I often joke about titling my memoir: “I Feel Bad About Everything.” The only person that feels worse about everything is my Mom, so you know that it’s genetic.
We’re living in an incredibly divisive time. I’m sure I’m not the only one weighing and measuring social media interactions. And, to be honest, I’m doing a bit of judging, which is never good.
I realize that the core of all of this is social media. For all the good that it CAN do – reuniting old friends, allowing friends all around the world to stay easily connected, creating a groundswell of support for good causes – it can also be absolutely the WORST. I have friends, SMART friends who have tried social media and immediately realized that they couldn’t handle it. One of my very best friends said: “I constantly felt like my life fell short of everyone else’s life.” This friend is an amazing person with SO many friends. If she felt like that, imagine how those of us with smaller social circles are feeling.
I know the answer here is less social media. (Yes, I’m addicted. Yes, I should quit. No, I problably won’t.)
So here’s my action plan: 1) Cut back on social media. 2) Assume everyone’s intentions are good. 3) Mind my own damn business.
We’ll see how it goes.
No comments:
Post a Comment