Let's Talk Social Media & Mental Health

 

There are a lot of really big feelings in the United States right now, and the world in general. A lot of people take to social media to express those feelings. And clearly we all can have different opinions. That's part of what makes the world so great.                                                               And if you express your opinions or feelings online then it's likely that you'll have those who completely agree and you find a tribe, but it's also likely that those who feel and think differently than you will express their feelings too. Sometimes hatefully. On your page. In your comments. 

So how do we navigate keeping our mental health in a good place and still be on social media?

We have to have boundaries. 

I manage two sets of social media. One for my writing/books/horses/personal life (therhondamarie on all platforms) and the other for my small business (clotheslineapparelco on all platforms). On both of them I talk about things that are important to me. One as it relates to me personally and one in terms of the merch being created for it. 

Both open me up to criticism. 

And I'm kind of a dick at times. 

When trolls or haters come onto my pages I sometimes egg them on and push their buttons because engagement is engagement and my goal is to make the algorithm think my content is good so it gets shown to more people. 

However, if I'm feeling mentally fragile then I will report the comment if it's bad enough or just delete it, block them and move on. The block feature is your friend. And you don't owe anyone a follow. 

I used to have a really hard time unfriending mutuals, but then I learned that if their content makes me unhappy or affects my mental health negatively then I have no obligation to them. Not even a little bit. I tend to unfriend anyone who is overly angry and consistently posts from a negative point of view because even though I may agree with their opinions I find it triggering when it feels like someone is angry all of the time. And my peace is the most important thing. 

It's also important to know when to take breaks. As I sit here writing this I know that over the next few days I will only login to post the content needed for the business and other page to maintain traction, but I won't really engage or interact. And that's okay too. 

Another important (VERY important) thing to remember is that those vanity metrics (number of followers, shares, etc) is not tied to your worth as a human. It's not tied to your awesomeness in any way. I've sort of felt this pressure lately. My business tiktok is really close to 10,000 followers, and for some reason I have convinced myself that once it hits 10K that means I'm successful. It's completely ridiculous. I am successful because I have returning customers who purchase merch from me and make videos wearing it telling everyone that they love it. That's the success. Every single order that comes through because someone thinks my stuff is cute or meaningful or gives them a feeling of nostalgia and whimsy. 

Overall, how you manage your social media is up to you. If you want to delete people then delete them. If you want to block people then block them. If you want to argue in your comments then do it. It's YOUR social media, so as long as you're not bullying people online then hey...you do you boo boo. 

Just make sure that whatever you're doing that you're putting your mental health first. Love y'all!