These filtered lives

Social media has wrecked us. 

Don’t get me wrong, I love Instagram and Twitter just as much as the next person, but I will also be the first to admit that this love sometimes costs me. Social media can turn into a trap if used in the wrong way, which more often than not, it is. 

Our next status update is often our biggest priority because we want the world to know just how much fun our lives are. We see so many posts of colorful, vivacious times happening in the lives of others, and we want our own lives to look just as Instagram-worthy as theirs. With all the #relationshipgoals, #friendshipgoals, #lit and whatever other hashtag that catches your eye, it’s hard to distinguish what’s real from what’s filtered. So let me help. 

Almost every post you see on your feed is filtered. Sure, the picture or tweet proves it happened, but it’s only a small portion of what happened to that person whose life you’re envying. Most people don’t post the negative aspects of what’s going on, so before you become too jealous based off of what they post, remember that a picture only paints a thousand words. 

Statistics have showed that anxiety and depression skyrockets with people who spend time on social media. This is not to say that everyone who participates in social media suffers from anxiety or depression because of their scrolling habits. However, social media does have the tendency to consume a person and cause them to believe that their life is not as good as the people who pop up on their feed.  

I know that I am more than guilty of scrolling through Instagram and wondering why I can’t have the life of someone else who has more followers than me, or someone who’s pictures are just so much cooler than mine. I have to stop and remind myself of a couple of things. One, that picture that is edited and filtered. Two, that picture does not tell the whole story by any means. And lastly, I cannot become so obsessed with the idea of someone else’s filtered life that I forget to live my own.  

Don’t be fooled by the filtered perfection of social media. Live your life in the moment, and look up from the screen to see a beautiful world that doesn’t need a filter to be amazing. #unfilteredperfection.