A caged phone represents the break that News Staffer Emily Couch took from social media for four months. For Emily, social media remains a powerful and time-consuming platform, making it all the more difficult yet beneficial for her to take some time away from it. Illustration by Eleanor Robinson
News staffer Emily Couch talks about her experience deleting Instagram for four months and the new perspective she gained from the time away.
Deleting Instagram was one of the most freeing decisions I’ve made.
One may not think that it’s a big deal to delete an app, but it wasn’t a simple decision to make. There were pros and cons that heavily weighed the decision, causing me to feel conflicted and uneasy. I felt like I was choosing between my own mental health and my friendships that thrived through social media.
When the majority of the world uses social media to engage in basic human interactions, deleting Instagram also meant that I might as well have fallen off the face of the earth.
Within those four months that I deleted Instagram, I noticed significant changes. Not only did my screen time decrease tremendously, but there was a clear improvement in my mental health. I was able to worry less about what other people thought of me – something that I always felt was “easy to say, harder to do.”
I now have a better understanding of the flaws in the system, acknowledging that I’ll never find the true self validation and confidence that I need in the number of likes I get on a single post.
Those likes are temporary, not concrete. When the likes start to decrease and the number of comments start to fade, my so-called “confidence” will go with it. But it’s good to give myself a break.
I still haven’t decided if I should be ecstatic about the progression I’ve made with self confidence or be ultimately concerned with the power social media has over my self-esteem.
While I was sucked into the mind-boggling and manipulative algorithm of the app, I was oblivious to how truly deceiving Instagram’s online environment is.
I still haven’t decided if I should be ecstatic about the progression I’ve made with self confidence or be ultimately concerned with the power social media has over my self-esteem.
With the digital world that I live in and the dependability that our society has on social media, I am unable to run and hide from Instagram or other social media platforms altogether. What I do know, however, is that during my time away, I discovered that there can be healthier ways to use Instagram.
Focusing on how to uplift others on the platform, posting pictures that make me happy instead of others, and taking a realistic perspective on the app, are all goals that I strive to maintain. What you see on Instagram does not guarantee the truth of how people actually live, feel and look. Although my break was only temporary, the progress and new perspectives I have gained are not.
So here’s my two cents – firstly, society and the world could always use more kindness. Spread positivity, not hate. It’s that simple. Secondly, sometimes it’s good to take a break.
A much-needed break.
