You can find a way of being online that works for you.

Boredom isn’t a problem; it gives you space to hear your own thoughts.

You don’t have to be on social media simply because you think you should.

Last week, I went on social media for the first time in three months. This was The Summer Experiment I wrote about earlier, when I decided to go off social media. Eight weeks in, I was still loving it. Now the three months were up, and I wanted to find out how it would feel to go back.

I logged into Instagram, my main social media platform. I checked my messages, replied to a few comments, and posted something about my summer offline. And then I promptly logged out again. Why? Because I did not feel good being back there, even if it was just for 15 minutes.

The highlight reels, influencer brand partnerships, and random sponsored posts I never asked to see were all suddenly in my face. It felt so... noisy. Look at me! Look at this! Have you thought about this? Buy this! Every post seemed to be shouting for my attention. Frankly, it made me feel a little sick to my stomach.

I remember the old Instagram, when my feed was mostly friends, beautiful photography, and words from people whose work I enjoyed. Now there are stories and reels and videos and music and advertisements and suggested posts and things the algorithm has decided I might like. It feels so chaotic and out of control.........

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