I'm not sure if many of you have experienced this but if you have, you will understand how horrible this experience is. I am talking about social media anxiety post breakup. I think it is one of the worst parts of the entire process. What I mean by social media anxiety is that butterfly feeling in the pit of your stomach every time you log onto Facebook or Twitter, wondering if you are going to see a post by your ex. In this post he may look happy, he may be angry, or he could even be with someone new. Following my breakup with Max, one day I went onto Instagram and the first thing that came up in my feed was a picture of him and his new girlfriend. It was such a horrible feeling. I truly can't even put it into words. I literally felt like I got punched in the stomach and wanted to die. If this has happened to you, I am sure you understand what I mean. If it hasn't, I really hope it never does.
After seeing a post like that, I really developed an anxiety towards social media. Every time I go onto the computer a part of me got scared. I was terrified of what I could see and if it would break my heart. This is something that I have identified as being very unhealthy. I shouldn't be terrified to go onto my social media accounts. I shouldn't worry about what I may see. I, nor should anyone, feel this way. After thinking a lot about this new anxiety, I knew I needed to do something to get rid of it, or at least do something that would begin to minimize it. Below I have listed some of the methods I used to help my social media anxiety. It isn't gone yet- but just like the rest of the breakup, it is a work in progress.
1. Unfriend Your Ex: This is a very common suggestion. It is the simplest way to immediately remove them from your accounts and you no longer have to worry about what you may see.
2. Unfollow Your Ex on Facebook or Mute them on Twitter: This is the route I went when I was trying to get Max out of my newsfeed. I didn't want to delete him entirely, because that is just a step I am not ready to take. On Facebook and Twitter you can still remain friends with someone and block their content from appearing in your feed. You can still go to their page and look at their content (which takes a lot of strength) but it will no longer appear when you are in the newsfeed, eliminating the risk of surprise when you log on.
3. Go onto Social Media with a Goal: When you go onto any of your accounts go in with a purpose. When I was first starting to work on my anxiety towards social media, I would go on telling myself I would log on and go right to candy crush. This way, I knew where I was going to look, I knew what I was going to do, and while I was in the game there would be no surprises. This was just a very small way for me to get comfortable being logged into my social media accounts again.
4. Ask Yourself How Bad it Could Really Be: Of course seeing a post of your ex is hard and emotional. But, I would always ask myself what was the worst that could happen. For example, if I log on and see a picture of Max and his new girlfriend, what was the worst that could happen? I could get sad, upset, or hurt. But, I have been able to move on from all of those things before, so what would make this time different? Yes, seeing this content can be brutal, and it usually is, but, we can move on from it just like we do from all of the other painful reminders.
I hope that these tips can help you if you have experienced social media anxiety. Remember, take everything one day at a time and we can get through anything in our way. Until next time!
Be sure to connect on Twitter! @trustmeitsnot
After seeing a post like that, I really developed an anxiety towards social media. Every time I go onto the computer a part of me got scared. I was terrified of what I could see and if it would break my heart. This is something that I have identified as being very unhealthy. I shouldn't be terrified to go onto my social media accounts. I shouldn't worry about what I may see. I, nor should anyone, feel this way. After thinking a lot about this new anxiety, I knew I needed to do something to get rid of it, or at least do something that would begin to minimize it. Below I have listed some of the methods I used to help my social media anxiety. It isn't gone yet- but just like the rest of the breakup, it is a work in progress.
1. Unfriend Your Ex: This is a very common suggestion. It is the simplest way to immediately remove them from your accounts and you no longer have to worry about what you may see.
2. Unfollow Your Ex on Facebook or Mute them on Twitter: This is the route I went when I was trying to get Max out of my newsfeed. I didn't want to delete him entirely, because that is just a step I am not ready to take. On Facebook and Twitter you can still remain friends with someone and block their content from appearing in your feed. You can still go to their page and look at their content (which takes a lot of strength) but it will no longer appear when you are in the newsfeed, eliminating the risk of surprise when you log on.
3. Go onto Social Media with a Goal: When you go onto any of your accounts go in with a purpose. When I was first starting to work on my anxiety towards social media, I would go on telling myself I would log on and go right to candy crush. This way, I knew where I was going to look, I knew what I was going to do, and while I was in the game there would be no surprises. This was just a very small way for me to get comfortable being logged into my social media accounts again.
4. Ask Yourself How Bad it Could Really Be: Of course seeing a post of your ex is hard and emotional. But, I would always ask myself what was the worst that could happen. For example, if I log on and see a picture of Max and his new girlfriend, what was the worst that could happen? I could get sad, upset, or hurt. But, I have been able to move on from all of those things before, so what would make this time different? Yes, seeing this content can be brutal, and it usually is, but, we can move on from it just like we do from all of the other painful reminders.
I hope that these tips can help you if you have experienced social media anxiety. Remember, take everything one day at a time and we can get through anything in our way. Until next time!
Be sure to connect on Twitter! @trustmeitsnot