Social media jealousy is something that is becoming more of a problem as social media has become such a big part of our lives. Social media jealousy is what happens if you read things others are posting or sharing on social media and it makes you feel envious or jealous. It isn’t a pleasant feeling and is one of the pitfalls of social media. Let’s look at some ways to deal with this problem together.
The first step to dealing with social media jealousy is to realize what you are looking at could very well be a fantasy. It is highly unlikely that most people are going to share that they had a fight with their husband, they got a disconnect notice on their electric bill or that their parents have suddenly separated after 30 years of marriage. What most people share are the best parts of their life and that is okay. It is fine to put your best foot forward. But don’t let that trip you up. Realize you are not seeing their full reality on social media.
Sometimes it is wise to shift your focus to what your own blessings are. Instead of focusing on what others have, focus on what you, yourself, have in your life. We all have trials and face troubles down through our lives. But we all also have beautiful joys in our life. Sometimes all we really need to do is shift our focus to what we do have.
You know, there are just times when you have to roll your eyes at people’s outlandish, bragging posts and status updates. If you can tell they are just bragging and it is solely for the purpose of attention or painting their life as a pretty picture, don’t let that get to you. Laugh at the audacity and ridiculousness of it. You cannot let people like that get to you. They are just trying to fool others, most of all themselves.
There are times when you can sense sincerity in the social media of others and you know they are just sharing the happy things in their life. But their comments still make you feel jealous. It seems everything is going right for others and wrong for you. If this is how you feel, try to boss your feelings into feeling happiness for others in spite of your jealousy. If you can reach a place where you are happy for others in spite of yourself, those feelings of jealousy just may dissipate.
It isn’t abnormal to feel a twinge of jealousy when you see that one of your friends had an awesome day, lost 30 pounds and just went on a huge shopping spree. But don’t stay there. Don’t allow those feelings to suck you in. Don’t even allow your mind to dwell. Just change the scenery in your mind to another subject.
If social media jealousy is really getting to you, sometimes it can help to share how you feel with a close friend. More than likely, they can sympathize with you. They have probably felt that way themselves sometimes. They can also help you to get a reality check. Getting all that off your chest can really make you feel a lot better.
If social media jealousy is really getting to you, it might just be best to stay off of social media for at least for a little while. Give yourself a break from seeing all of the things that are making you feel jealous and discontent with your own life. Social media can be fun and even beneficial in networking, but it has disadvantages, too. If it upsetting, it isn’t worth it to participate. Take a break for a few weeks and then go back and see if it is still a problem for you. Chances are by then you will have gained some fresh perspective.
Social media jealousy is something everyone feels a bit of every now and then. Have you ever felt this way? How do you deal?