I have a LOT of time to think lately. Being pinned down to my couch sometimes, often for long periods, I can get really restless.
My mind will turn over a multitude of subjects, memories, and projects. To get it spinning even faster, social media has become my new version of changing channels constantly. I'll go from a "shop for this" button to family vacation posts to an in-depth article on horrors happening on our borders. Sound familiar?
As for where each of us fits in the social media grand scheme, it is almost expected to curate our lives for a virtual public. As I see it, this can be really great (keep sharing your cool trips, please!) but also potentially harmful. Sure, you're told again and again (possibly through a link you saw in a social media post) to stop comparing yourself to others, to realize no one's life is perfect no matter what they portray on Instagram, but you do it anyway...sometimes not realizing it...not recognizing that feeling of pressure comes from the comparison trap...and during the holidays, this sense of pressure gets turned up. Way up.
Holidays can really drive up those feelings of unworthiness and isolation. I am one of those introverted weirdos who can entertain themselves with a pipe cleaner for hours, but that said, the benefits of connection, no matter what that is for an individual, is real and needed, whatever that looks like. So I guess my point is, try to catch when you're comparing yourself to someone else. And enjoy social media for what it is--a way to connect with your friends and followers and a place to share important info (aka cat memes)...but NOT a tool to amplify the negative ways in which you judge yourself.
This holiday season, let‘s focus on ourselves, on making the world a better place and just getting through the day...hour....even the next minute. Be kind to yourself and to others, unless they are totally out of line. Even then, spank them verbally if necessary, but don’t let their words get to you.
One step in front of the other, we can do this. You are not alone.