What We Watch is What we Become! - How media affects our social and emotional Well Being

 We have all felt exhausted by the amount of media we consume every day, at least once in our lifetimes. I can't speak for others, but I certainly have felt this endless number of times. Some of us realize it, while others just automatically feel irritated, and don't know the reason. The feeling of just leaving everything aside, switching off the phones, and going away for some time. The fantasy of staying in the forest where no one can reach you for a couple of days, taking a break from this world, and just getting lost into oblivion. If you have ever felt any of these emotions, you're probably going to relate a lot with me throughout this article.

Now for the people who would argue that social media makes them feel more connected and they actually enjoy using it all day, let me ask you a question. Remember the time you were scrolling through your feed, got bored, and kept your phone aside? but then you couldn't find anything interesting to do and so you picked it up and started scrolling again. Well, if you were enjoying it so much, why did you keep it aside in the first place? Because you too felt the exhaustion and bombarding of this endless data boring after some time. It becomes monotonous and annoying. The same goes for TV, laptops, OTT, video gaming, whatever form of media it is that you're spending your time on.

In fact, further my view of irritability and annoyance, what we see on these platforms highly affects our emotional state and well being. There have been many instances when I saw something disturbing and felt disturbed for as long as 2-3 days. I used to watch a show sometimes, where people would be quarreling and shouting all the time for no reason (if you know, you know). I realized after some time that it was making me quarrelsome and more irritable in general. I picked up many of their words/sentences and started using them in my own life- where such arguments weren't even necessary. I stopped watching that show as soon as I realized this, and I could see myself getting back to how I was earlier, a slightly more calm and "chill" person if you will.

Another instance of this is on social media, where we see other people's exciting, happening, happy- basically perfect lives and constantly compare our lives to theirs and end up feeling pathetic about ourselves. I often find myself thinking," these other people have similar backgrounds as mine, I know them, I have seen them, we live in similar situations, yet how is it that their lives are so beautiful and mine is just boring?" Well, guess what I realized. My life is, if not more, equally beautiful as theirs. I do the things that I like, I genuinely enjoy. Some days are bad days, but some days are good too. And these goods and bads exist in everyone's life. That's how life works- with ups and downs. Social media only shows us the good days, and we end up thinking that everyone else's life is perfect without any problems, while here I am with a pile of them. And why did we think that? Well, because Instagram said so- how? Through the pictures! 

 I personally have felt more irritable on days when I use my phone too much. I know this because I frequently leave my phone behind and stay without it for long hours, or even days. Those days felt awesome. I found things that truly interested me and enjoyed them. Therefore in comparison, phoneless days feel better. 

Now I know that it is a necessity these days and we cannot stay away from it. But here's what I do to take my break for a digital detox and feel better. I have this evening slot, where I don't carry anything with me, and just go for either cycling or long walks. I spend at least 2-3 hours outside and it is so rejuvenating. You can do the same. Fix a time in the day when you can afford to leave your phone and everything else and just feel the freedom within yourself, and let's be real- we all can afford it for a couple of hours! Pick up a paintbrush, or a pen or just a bicycle, anything you like and just leave all the negativity behind and have fun!