Implementing a mainstream and social media diet
Have you ever considered how newspapers and social media channels affect our minds? Or have you grown tired of the overwhelming negative focus? How do the endless articles and reports on increased living costs make you feel?
A common thread has been ongoing wars, rising energy prices and rates, skyrocketing food prices, and politicians' need for increased taxes. In the years before that, the main subjects were COVID-19, death, and constantly being bombarded with fear. It has been four years that humanity won't forget anytime soon, as it has impacted all of us in one way or another. For some individuals, this might have been positive changes for the most part - and for other individuals, the impact has been leaving a negative or traumatic footprint in our lives.
A few factors have motivated me to implement a mainstream and social media diet. First, I wanted to remove "external" noise to channel my energy inward and direct my focus on the elements I can influence in my life. When I watch videos and attend Tony Robbins' events, this is one of his fundamental principles: "Where focus goes, energy flows." I also wanted to be more present in the moment, and this diet would be beneficial in achieving that.
Second, I grew tired of the overwhelming negative focus, especially on mainstream media channels. Bomardements of negativity non-stop. I saw a parallel between the news coverage under the Great Depression in the 1930s by reading Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill and what we experience today. I found myself impacted and increasingly more annoyed by being exposed to the toxicity, as I noticed it affected my inspiration and outlook for a compelling future. I saw this as an opportunity to protect my mental health by choosing wisely in terms of the information I wanted to expose myself to.
Third, and most importantly, I wanted to put all my energy into creating this mental health hub. Helping people with mental health is my life's mission and what excites and makes me happy. It has kept me going when I've gone through my darkest times. It has been my "WHY" for fighting anxiety, depression, and PTSD for more than a decade. I don't wish that for anyone. Not even the people who have traumatized me in my past.
Rearranging apps & logging out of social media channels.
Most of us pick up our smartphones without being conscious, as we have wired many habits and social lives to depend on them. Scrolling has become an automated behavior, whether we like it or not. Breaking these old patterns was the most challenging part of implementing the mainstream and social media diet.
The most effective approach for me was to move the applications for the social media channels I wanted to eliminate from my daily usage to the last page of a folder. I recommend moving them out of sight and making them difficult to access to break the pattern more easily. Regarding mainstream media outlets, I've always accessed them through my browser. My preferred approach to this was to sit down and create a lot of awareness, connecting pleasure to the benefits of protecting my mental health from mainstream media. Connecting pain and awareness to maintaining this habit is equally essential. If you have any mainstream media applications installed, use the same approach as social media applications. Logging out of the application is the least effective when creating these new habits on my end.
Relief and realizations.
After putting many social media channels on my diet list, one essential question became more frequent: What's the real value I'm gaining from this platform? I recommend asking questions similar to yours. I started to gain awareness and clarity on what social media channels served a purpose in my life and to discover which ones no longer added any value.
It surprised me that my core emotions were relief and independence from spending time on many platforms, an outcome I didn't expect to experience. I also experienced it to be a lot more present in my life and to embrace the moment more effortlessly. After a while, it felt natural to delete and permanently remove myself from several platforms. It felt liberating. It's underrated, and I recommend it as a step toward a more authentic self.
Less is more.
Three words: Less is more. And it is so incredibly underrated. I feel so much more present in my life in a relatively short time span. What started as a diet is something that I've decided to make permanent. It feels like reconnecting with a part of me that, on my part, has been gone for a long while. There are so many things right in front of us that we're missing out on while being captivated by our smartphones and applications.
By removing a lot of noise, the essential things in life can show their true colors. What are the little things that get you reconnected with yourself?
On my behalf, I've rediscovered the joy of enjoying coffee, spending time in nature, and listening to music lately. Breathing, being, and living.
I'm not writing about this subject to diminish the positive elements of technology that allow us to stay connected and updated. But we need to increase our awareness of how they impact our habits. Human connection is something we're always going to crave. It is music to our souls. Nurturing healthy relationships is essential to our happiness.
