Summertime means summer break! (Duuh). And this means travels: Bahamas, Greece , Italy, Mexico and so on… Instagram gets flooded with pages filled with friends going to exotic locations, posting these breath-taking views and having the best time of their lives. On the other hand, you are at home watching Youtube videos and trying to figure out what to do with your life (sooo me right now 😦 )
People always say ‘social media is not real life’ and ‘you only post what people want to see’. It’s hard to admit but we do feel sad for not being the ones on these profile pages, for not having the so-wanted-summer-vacays.
I have watched a recent Youtube video from one of the bloggers I like to follow. She was going through her editing techniques, most loved apps, most used filters etc. One of them really shocked me… it was an app to make you taller. Literally!! Doing a little retouching here and a few over there she managed to make her torso longer, thinner waist and increased the size of her leg. I was so surprised.
From there onwards I started looking at social media with different eyes. I always thought these girls had the perfect body, were all tall & lean, but really they are people just like every other one. Ok, ok, I wasn’t THAT naive but I never thought that actually changing proportions was actually a thing.
This weekend I also realised this. I was walking through the shopping mall and this really famous blogger passed right by us. I was surprised. It was nothing like the pictures. Alright, she was wearing athletic wear and was probably going to the gym but if my friend hadn’t pointed it out I would’ve never realised.
As girls, there is this pressure to look perfect, to have every inch of hair on the right place, to have the perfect body and this really is what everyone wants to see. I think the majority of the followers would prefer watching someone’s Stories while on vacation at the Maldives than watching someone cry at home. We don’t really know what or how much editing is used and this turns into a problem because it’s not real, it’s really Photoshop and heavily edited pics.
Not comparing yourself to others is pretty hard, even worse when we are constantly being bombarded with so much information 24/7.
I recently started a few detoxes from social media. Instead of checking it first thing in the morning and last thing at night, I began doing other stuff, reading a book, drinking a cup of tea…
The addiction and worry with other people’s lives makes our ‘happiness’ fall. I mean, our self-esteem falls right down to the ground. We asks ourselves ‘until when will people stop obsessing over other ones?’
Next time you see a picture, a video or whatever puts you down, remember that it’s almost 100% sure that it has been edited (even if it’s just a simple filter) but still makes a difference.
Don’t let others interfere, let them live their lives. Everyone has their problems and social networks are definitely not where they are going to show it. Start now, live your life and never compare them to someone else’s.
Your life is good and we can only be thankful and grateful for everything we have 😉
Have a wonderful week,
V ❤
Insiders Magazine 