When you wake up in the morning, what’s the first thing you do?
Some of you probably stretch, open your eyes, hit your alarm to the snooze position (maybe too many times) and then the next most common thing to do is check your phone. I mean why not? You’ve been out of contact with your friends for hours. Think about how many years that is in dog years.
But seriously, don’t roll this off as another 'spend less time on your phone’ post because it’s not. I’m not here to tell you not to check social media. I’m on social media as much as the next person. I LOVE scrolling on the gram or Twitter, and I even participate in an occasional controversial Facebook post once in a while. ONCE in a while, don’t get it twisted and unfriend me.
I took a second to reflect on the accounts I follow. It was a mixture of my friends, some meme accounts, a couple of foodies, a celebrity, Youtubers, etc. Up until last week. If you’re a frequent flyer on Daily Cup of JoJo, you’ll know that I recently gave up sleeping with electronics in my room. If you didn’t know, you could read it HERE.
I’m undergoing some significant technology changes in my life and, ultimately, I am a happier, more energetic and enthusiastic human being. I haven’t quite figured out if it's mind over matter or if there are scientific facts associated with it. I’m trying to be more mindful of how I spend my free time and make it more meaningful to me and the energies around me.
Social media can be damaging to one’s mental health, and I think this is something we are all aware of but don't talk about.
I like social media because I have control over it. I decide what I put out into the world, and that is an empowering feeling. The problem is, the public decides how "worthy" it is. Social Media is for the ultimate you; it is where you are your version of a 10. If it doesn't go on social media, it didn't happen.
There is an intense pressure to be "perfect," but is this achievable?
We determine our worth based on how many likes, favorites, retweets, or views we receive on a post. The higher the number, the better we feel.
Recently I did a massive clean out of the people I follow. I love seeing people posting inspiring things but if I found myself comparing myself to them then it was a toxic relationship from the get-go, and they got the boot. I began questioning myself worth because my friends weren't engaging with my posts the way I wanted them too. Comparing muse f to these "public figures" is so unrealistic because we are two completely different people. I was hosting an internal competition between me and this "figure" I've never even met. How is that fair on either party? Anything from body image to caption wittiness. It's a typical "it's not you, it's me" situation, but my feed is so much more enjoyable now that I've removed those negative cues from my scrolling life.
It's a small step for mental health but a giant leap for Jordan. I want to support others and their moves but I'm not going to give up my self-worth at their expense.
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