Day 1/30: I’m addicted to social media, can I quit cold turkey?

I have an unhealthy relationship with social media. My vice? Instagram.

I thought social media would be the platform I’d use to find my voice. The problem is that when I post, my focus immediately shifts from my message to how many likes I receive. Who liked my post? Who didn’t?

It’s a terrible place to sit, the view is awful from here.

A day in the life looks like this:

“Ok. I’m going to post my Reel and then move on with my day. I’ll check how it’s doing once, maybe twice today. I’ll spend the day creating meaning. Work. Hike. Meditate. Read. Savor the day.”

I hit post.

I move on with my day for about 2 minutes. Then, my internal voice takes over, “Wonder if anyone liked it?” I quickly check, “Yay! A new like, but only 1? Stop it, Kris. Move on. Go find something better to do.”

2 minutes pass.

“Maybe I’ll just check it one more time. No one is liking this post! Just give it time.”

2 minutes pass.

“No new likes. Ugh.”

This 2 minute cycle repeats. I check for likes constantly throughout the day and night and get nothing done other than feeling bad about myself. This is not the way my nearly 49 year old self wants to spend my days.

So, today I’m drawing a line in the sand and really switching gears. Is this a planned decision? Nope, shooting from the hip.

Today is the start of my COMPLETE SOCIAL MEDIA DETOX.

Should I tell my audience I’m gone? I’m in CA right now with my son and we’ve been posting fun stories each day. Today is Wednesday. I may post one more story on Saturday when we leave and let that be it!

Can I do this?

Let’s find out. I’m going to share my journey here. I joined medium yesterday. Will this just be another social media platform to get like addicted to? Not sure.

The more pressing question is, can I make it thru the day without social media? One day. I’m hitting post here and then immediately removing the apps from my phone. Instagram and Facebook, my 2 main vices.

Tomorrow, I’ll tell you how it went.

(I just proofed this post before publishing and it’s really a sad state of affairs I’m in. This is addiction. It’s ugly! I sound so hollow. Shallow. But I’m not going back to sugar coat my words. This is where I sit today.)