What is Social Media Anxiety and How Can We Cope With It?

Social Media! Boon or Bane?

We all are well aware of the pros and cons of Social Media. How its effective usage can help us grow and keep ourselves updated and how the over usage in an ineffective manner can lead to a bad experience and Social Media Anxiety.

If you ask me, Social Media for me is my Work Place, I respect others’ privacy, give proper credit and admiration to others’ content and I try to adopt the best available practices which can help me to learn and grow in my area.

I have always tested my addiction level by adopting Social Media Detox at frequent Intervals and it has never disappointed me 🙂

What is Social Media Anxiety?

In recent years, social media has changed the way we interact with one another. Half of the world is present on social media, sharing moments, communicating, and engaging with one another digitally more than personally. This Social Media Buffon has not only successfully been able to change our communication process, but has also affected our overall mental well being.

Unfortunately, the daily updates on social media create room for unrealistic expectations, comparisons and low self-esteem among the users, leading to social media anxiety. The ones who are aware and mindful may not be as affected because they are more likely able to understand what’s realistic and what is not. On the other hand, people who are still trying to understand their own identity get impacted because they feel pressure to look in a certain way to others. Youth, in particular, can be negatively affected. 

Hence, Social media anxiety is somehow that deprived feeling of missing out on things. A fancy term FOMO (Fear of Missing Out) came into the limelight very recently that exactly explains how people cannot control the urge to check the phone to stay updated with what their friends are doing, where they are going, and what they are missing out?

That constant urge of posting everything you do, following the trends, following what others are doing and yet feeling unworthy of not doing enough, hits you badly in the long run.

“A number of likes don’t determine your social worth.“

-Priyanka

What causes Social Media anxiety?

That feeling of “not doing enough”.

When you feel inadequate, unworthy and left out in the digital rat race.

When you see someone moving ahead in the same path

When you compare your chapter 5 with someone’s chapter 20

When you don’t focus on the efforts one has put in his/her journey but see the rewards they get

Sometimes it is also the limited accessibility to the resources and support that causes one to stay behind.

Very recently, we had a very healthy discussion on the same topic where we shared our thoughts and views on how social media change the way we think and how it has given easy access to everyone’s life. You can check out the highlights here- The Bloggers League.

How to Cope With Social Media Anxiety?

You have no idea how many people lurk at your work. No idea how many times people go back to revisit your work. How big they smile when they simply think about your work. How fast their heart beats, how excited they get when they see you posted something.

People are shy about their feedback. Sometimes it’s because they are simply shy. Other times it’s because they assume you already know how great and talented you are or maybe they just don’t understand what you are doing, sometimes it could be due to the language barrier and also due to priorities.

My point is even if you barely have any likes, comments, followers or reshares, don’t get discouraged, don’t lose your heart. You have a lot of silent fans, but they are still your fans.

Keep on creating amazing content. Because there is always someone who is waiting for your post and who loves your content genuinely 🙂

Keep it simple. Be original and never fall into the comparison zone, as you never know how the journey of a person would have been.

Few Basic Social Media Etiquettes to follow:

• Think before you post anything on social media.
• Think before you comment.
• Think before you give your feedback in the form of a comment.
• Think before you put your negativity in someone else’s post.
• Think before you troll someone.
• Think before you approach someone.
• Think about whether what you are posting is reliable.
• Think, if it will inspire others.
• Be respectful.
• Be encouraging.
• Use please and thank you.
• Give due credits.
• Unfollow if you don’t like someone’s content instead of criticizing them.
• If you don’t agree with someone’s idea, don’t comment.
• If you think someone has a different opinion, don’t say it is wrong, opinions are never right or wrong.
• Check your intention.
• A number of likes don’t determine your social worth.
• Digital life is not a testament to your actual life.
• Remember that social media is a place where people put up the curated highlights of their life. So Judge less and avoid the comparison trap.
• Once in a while have a complete social media detox. It helps.

Love and light

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