Unplugging from Social Media

I was sitting in the front seat of my hot car in July. I had just gotten in and turned on the AC. I was rushing from my first week as a new teacher to go and get my two boys from the sitter. I mindlessly opened up instagram and opened up my Dm’s, I had an unread message. So I sat there and read it. In the midst of my husband being gone on a trip for 10 days, balancing my first week of teaching, as well as being Mommy, I sat and proceeded to write an apology, an explanation of myself to a total stranger. In the midst of growing my following and trying to connect with my readers, I had added several moms who also blogged and I had committed to engaging with them on their content as well.

Anyway, this message was a direct attack on my “lack of engagement” on my content for that week. Which evidently, and according to the instagram algorithm, is a cardinal sin. She went on to attack my character, my intentions, and my authenticity. I scrambled, with a feeling of anxiety and chaos, for an explanation for how I had been trying to just get by that week and how sorry I was that I had not been replying to her comments. I paused. Is this a joke? Had I actually gotten that consumed by this artificial world of growing followers and pleasing people who read my content? I highlighted the entire message. And deleted it. That was a startling wake up call for me.

It is not out of character for me to take intermittent periods of time to unplug from social media. The reasons vary. But this time, it was for a detox. I let the drive of an increase in followers and the drive for desirable content and connections make me forget why I started in the first place.

So I have been away from social media since July and it feels incredible. I feel refreshed. I have a significant decrease in anxiety. I am present. It feels really good.

But maybe that’s just it. How ironic. We get quickly consumed with social media. We want people to see how funny, creative, or beautiful our lives are that while we are increasing engagement on our social media, or in my case, defending ourselves to total strangers, we lose connection with the world. Our world.

I have only had instagram back for a week and I am already opening the app mindlessly and scrolling. It is scary how addicting this stuff is. (Tip: in your settings you can limit your allotted social media time for the day, this has helped me keep it in check.)

If there is anything I have learned from this time unplugged, it’s that I was away from social media every single person is doing the same exact things. I didn’t miss anything! Call it good, bad, indifferent. Nothing has changed. The hours that I have lost from scrolling the same accounts and faces of people who I barely know, are hours that I can never get back. I was so concerned with consuming their content and seeing what they were doing, and I have been gone for months and they are still doing the same exact things.

I have taken the last 3 months to consume moments with my children that I will never get back. That is something worth plugging into.

There are things I missed. One being that Taylor Swift released a new album #bless. Also, there was a pop up event in NYC for the friends 25 year reunion. I missed out on peoples photos of them at the gym (no hate, get it girl). I missed out on a few new hashtags. But in reality I am okay with what I “missed” for what I gained. This is something I will continue to do at least once a year.

I commit to taking a break. Not a Rachel and Ross kind of break, like a real break, from social media. It has been so good for my soul, and even better my family life.

So why go back right? Honestly? I love having funny stories about my kids. The ridiculous stuff they say or do. I like being able to use it as a platform for my blog and to connect with other moms. Social media platforms do not have to be awful. It is just ensuring that you are honest with yourself about when you, your heart, your art, and your family needs you to unplug.

So I challenge you. Take one quarter a year off from social media. See what you actually think when you can silence out the white noise of the world. You’ll be glad you did.