social media sabbatical

two months of surrendering the scroll (or a feeble attempt to anyways..)

Two months ago, I decided an OOO email was needed to bid social media (as defined by: Instagram and TikTok) adieu.

I’ve been sharing parts of my life on social media for the better part of 10 years. (A decade!!?? Um what??? When did this happen??)

I had just graduated college when starting my public Instagram account - a ripe (and vulnerable) 22 years old.

Social media witnessed very formative years of my 20s and early 30s. I’m incredibly grateful for a large volume of reasons: opportunities I never could have envisioned, an incredibly kind and supportive community, and even help getting my first job as a PA.

With work changing and evolving, and taking on a new role at Indigo, I felt the constant push and pull of using social media as a crutch for distraction. It prevented dropping in to stillness during those in between moments, thereby keeping brain waves at a steady thrum of overstimulation.

I made the decision to press pause on posting not just to lessen distraction and overstimulation, but also to think bigger picture. How long do I want to be sharing online for? I’m now in the later range of my early 30s (read: 33). Will I continue sharing…forever?

And does sharing on these apps still align with my values?

Read on for:

• a ‘not all scrolls are created equal’ revelation

• sifting through the constant craving for notification

• grappling with time as a limited and finite resource

• evolving thoughts on the influencer industry

• more goal setting for intentional screen use

The first few weeks - swapping some apps for others

To help ease out of the habit of automatic social media use, I moved the Quizlet app and Insight Timer to where Instagram and Tiktok once were. The hope was to replace the apps I was trying to kick with those I hoped to utilize more. In my mind, I would be a meditation guru and fluent in Spanish by the time my sabbatical had reached its conclusion. (Quizlet has really great flashcards for Spanish!!)

When I first moved the apps away from where they were previously housed, my thumb would hover over the icon of what once was, the ghost of the photo and music note icons.

Though after a few weeks, I was no longer accidentally and subconsciously reaching to click the apps. But I also didn’t get the same dopamine hit when going on Quizlet or Insight Timer. I started feeling itchy - a void.

I therefore started shifting my attention to Zillow and Pinterest. (Is there any more effective way to proudly declare myself a millennial than using Zillow and Pinterest LOL)