Confession: I Was Scared to Give Up Instagram

In early January, I started a social media fast. It was originally part of a 21-day season of prayer and fasting with my church, but it turned into so much more. I realized that social media, particularly Instagram, was causing a lot of anxiety in my body and it took up too much time in my day. It had become a crutch, my go-to when I was bored, or sad, or anxious. But it actually just built more anxiety. I knew I needed to do something different. 

So I went cold turkey and committed to no social media for at least 21 days. Those first weeks were ROUGH! I constantly found myself reaching for my phone to tap the Instagram icon, just to get that dopamine hit. 

I felt lost without my usual 'fix.' Whether I was sad and needed a laugh, happy and wanted to share, or lonely and looking for a friend, Instagram was my go-to. Without that constant connection, I had to figure out a new way to just be.

Without the noise of social media, I slowly realized how lonely I was. I needed more face-to-face time with people. I started prioritizing weekly coffee or lunch dates and texting friends the moment they crossed my mind. I found myself craving real conversations because I was no longer filling that space with pseudo-relationships.

When the 21 days were up I didn't want to go back. I wasn't ready to navigate a new relationship with social media yet. I just wanted to stay on the trajectory of building relationships with my real life friends and family. I was starting to thrive. I could feel it in my body. My anxiety was lowering and my joy was returning. 

Toward the end of February, I decided it was time to dip my toe backinto the social media waters. I started spending just a few minutes a day on Instagram, checking in on the people who truly matter to me while avoiding the extra "noise." It took about a week to feel comfortable and begin trusting myself to maintain a healthy relationship with it.

I’m learning that only I can decide what a healthy relationship looks like with social media. I get to choose how much time and energy I spend here. Social media is amoral; it’s just a tool. It can be used for good or bad, but we are the ones who get to decide.