Heyo!
If you remember back from my previous post What I'm Giving Up For Lent, I decided to ditch social media from my phone for forty days. I decided to ditch Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and Snapchat from my phone, keeping messenger to keep in contact with people because I really don't like texting that much at all. I still used Facebook, Twitter and Instagram on my laptop but that was it, and this meant I spent a lot more time out and about and away from screens.
This was probably the best decision I could make, especially given the very busy time of year for me with all my deadlines and submissions I needed to complete and meet. It turned out to be the best possible thing for me because I got a lot of work done, and spent far longer looking and living in the world around me, not living it second-hand through my phone like I used to. I went out more, physically socialised more (which was exhausting at times for my introverted ass, but I did it anyways and it was really good!) and went to way more coffee shops (mainly diss, but also to socialise) so that was fun!
Doing this also stopped me performing some self-destructive behaviours in states of anxiety or bad/low moods, such as looking at other people and their seemingly social-media worthy and 'perfect' lives. I know for a fact I'm not the only one who does this: we all seem to know it's not a good idea, and yet we do it regardless. Not being able to do this as much (and if I did, on my laptop) meant I could catch and stop myself from doing so. Yes, I did check out Instagram on my laptop from time to time to avoid my uni work (again, who doesn't?) but I wasn't looking for perfect lives, I was looking at knitted wonders and crocheted masterpieces for inspiration. I found whilst doing this my relationship with social media has changed dramatically. One of my friends even called my Twitter 'wholesome' in this period, so clearly it did something for my mentality and the image I was giving off to the world (if at all because y'know, uni work!) Whilst I did catch myself about to do this afterwards, I've stopped myself and now I don't really do it, which is working well for me. I encourage you all to evaluate if what you're looking at or actively looking for online is healthy, and if it isn't try and train yourself not to tap on that screen!
Doing this also stopped me performing some self-destructive behaviours in states of anxiety or bad/low moods, such as looking at other people and their seemingly social-media worthy and 'perfect' lives. I know for a fact I'm not the only one who does this: we all seem to know it's not a good idea, and yet we do it regardless. Not being able to do this as much (and if I did, on my laptop) meant I could catch and stop myself from doing so. Yes, I did check out Instagram on my laptop from time to time to avoid my uni work (again, who doesn't?) but I wasn't looking for perfect lives, I was looking at knitted wonders and crocheted masterpieces for inspiration. I found whilst doing this my relationship with social media has changed dramatically. One of my friends even called my Twitter 'wholesome' in this period, so clearly it did something for my mentality and the image I was giving off to the world (if at all because y'know, uni work!) Whilst I did catch myself about to do this afterwards, I've stopped myself and now I don't really do it, which is working well for me. I encourage you all to evaluate if what you're looking at or actively looking for online is healthy, and if it isn't try and train yourself not to tap on that screen!
I used to spend a good half an hour scrolling through all social media in the mornings, and whilst I still did this some mornings I had to get up and get breakfast and turn on my laptop to do so. I often didn't have time to do this, but I never felt 'out of the loop' at any point. My friends would take Snapchats when we met up, and it kinda showed me how sometimes it could be more annoying than I thought. I kept all my memories with me, not on my phone. I don't mean to criticise, but I think having a social media cleanse is something everyone could benefit from from time-to-time. I got up earlier, felt refreshed, got better sleep and spent way longer completing my uni work without the constant distractions (I got a bit distracted when I had WiFi on on my laptop, but I learned to just turn it off and boss my work out!) It was very liberating, but I am dreading opening the Snapchats I know people have sent me.
There was one negative to this whole experience, and that was not being able to post on my new business account on Instagram properly. If you haven't already seen me talk about it all over social media, I finally bit the bullet and set up Bestitched, my craft business! If you need anything made like blankets, cushions, face scrubbies, earrings and more then I am your gal! Drop me a message or an email if you want, or check out my Instagram (and whilst you're there give me a cheeky follow!) I hit 150 Instagram followers today and I've been so blown away that even though I barely used it over the last month and a bit I've come this far. I am excited to see how far I can go before the end of April now I can properly run the social media and build my following (and hopefully my orders!)
All in all, not having social media was a huge blessing. I used to get anxious when I saw stuff online, but this whole process made me realise that real life is better than my online one, and that that should be an extension of my current daily life not a different life altogether. I have re-downloaded Twitter and Instagram but not Facebook or Snapchat, and in all honesty I don't know if I ever will. I'm just going to see how I adjust back to it, if I do, and go from there. It's been a lovely, far less toxic 40 days because of it, but a small part of me is glad I can once again share what I'm up to (not as often!) with everyone. Mainly because I still have some amazing things lined up that will be brilliant to share, especially if I can help anyone in the process!
Having a break from online Beckie meant I could figure out how real-life Beckie was doing and feeling, and this was something I really needed to do. Now, there aren't two Beckies, only one, and she's a self-aware and rather wholesome and far less self-destructive human bean. I urge you all to spend some time with yourselves, and look up into the real world instead of viewing it through your overpriced smartphone screens.
Having a break from online Beckie meant I could figure out how real-life Beckie was doing and feeling, and this was something I really needed to do. Now, there aren't two Beckies, only one, and she's a self-aware and rather wholesome and far less self-destructive human bean. I urge you all to spend some time with yourselves, and look up into the real world instead of viewing it through your overpriced smartphone screens.
B x
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