Instagram's Open Letter

¡Hola! Viviana here. This is my half way reflection on a mild detox I´m taking personally for the month of January, and a research I´m doing about social media and connection (hence two stories I posted in the past weeks and this post, because well… I´m human). I believe in balance on all terms.

The backstory on my desire to dis-connect and RE-connect is mainly the amount of time I noticed I spared while scrolling through Instagram for far too long. This social media app has been a gift, don´t get me wrong; I've connected with a lot of amazing people, and throughout the years while connecting through social media, I've learned immensely about health, wellness and some more. It has also helped me build and organically grow a social community based on all the information I've gathered, and carefully curated to be shared with all of you. 

But I noticed something different about it. I normally favorited posts over stories; probably because I´m more visual and I like to take my time to observe images and read about subjects that interest me. I also follow my favorite accounts which keep me grounded, informed and motivated. And then reels happened… In the beginning they seemed creative, fun and provocative in a way. Like short stories to tell.

And then they became too much for me. I noticed people were invading my feed with blasts of repetitive information, silly dances and some non-sense; I even muted a few (sorry, not personal), because they felt “produced” in a way. Trying to keep up in this fast-paced times we're living in, I feel like Instagram this past year (or two), instead of keeping it´s core intact, while trying to ride “the social media wave”, has deviated it´s spirit. Instead of creating, seems more like REcreating.

Was the app's offer to receive $1,200 dls. for posting 30 reels a month attractive? Absolutely. Would I be able to keep up with the algorithm? First timer, but sure, maybe. Was it worth it? Unfortunately not for me. Personally, I chose the high road; At HealthLab Workshop we much rather present and share curated and outstanding content of interest, which can leave time and space for our community to reflect and connect off the app with the world, than keep them here some extra minutes while scrolling through “fillers”. 

Physical, mental and emotional health are our community´s main priorities. According to Adam Mosseri (Head of Instagram), for 2023 theirs are:

-Inspire creativity

-Discover new things

-Spark connections

Here´s a random idea for your team to consider: How about mental health? Isn´t health more valuable than wealth? Popularity is appealing, I am aware of that; but after the 2020-2021 period, we've all seen numbers rising on mental health issues in all age ranges; and I don´t think social media fast bombarding us all helps in any way. If anything, sets our brains on a saturated downward spiral.

Here is some data to review…

According to the CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention), as of September 2022, provisional data indicate that both the number and the rate of suicides in the United States increased 4 percent from 2020 to 2021, after two consecutive years of decline in 2019 and 2020.

Suicide is the second-leading cause of death among people ages 15 to 24 in the U.S.; Nearly 20% of high school students report serious thoughts of suicide and 9% have made an attempt to take their lives, according to the National Alliance on Mental Illness.

“Teenagers and young adults have the highest rates of suicide compared to other ages,” Dr. Carl Fleisher, MD says; who specializes in adolescent and child psychiatry at UCLA Health. “The things that make them vulnerable are where they stand socially and where they stand developmentally.”

The social media effect has been an ongoing topic; Studies have repeatedly shown how mindless scrolling increases our dependency on dopamine. Dopamine is a neurotransmitter that is released in our brain whenever we feel aroused, motivated, or simply happy. When dopamine levels decrease, we have a natural craving for it. Notifications and absorbing content make us feel wanted, and excited, in the short term. This naturally triggers our desire to continue to scroll on our phones. But then the “crash” comes… and feelings of severe anxiety, fatigue, lack of concentration, loss of memory and disconnection (to name a few), have been mentioned by teenagers and adults as side symptoms of post social media exposure and scrolling.

I understand social media is part of our everyday lives; it has been beneficial in a big way for our society to bring awareness and for some even upgraded success, which I personally admire. But, is it possible to keep it down a notch? Would it be attainable to stay on Kevin Systrom´s path? The more posts is not better. Less is better. Quality content over quantity. I hope this letter finds its way to all of your head team: Adam Mosseri, Kevin Systrom, Mike Krieger, Jeffrey Wisenbaugh and maybe, just maybe Mark Zuckerberg.

Distracting ourselves from life, hinders our resilience. We also need to put down our phones and interact with people around us. Humans are social connective beings, not social media beings. Too much screen time is “eating away” our time. We need to minimize this consumption and be more present in our lives. Instead of scrolling when we feel anxious or bored, we need to build resilience to these feelings and be more in control of ourselves.

We at HealthLab Workshop believe that mental strength builds character, reinforces emotional connection, and needless to say, keeps our physical bodies healthy and present. Let Instagram be a social path opener towards awareness and connection. Please stay classy. 

Thank you for reading.

I´ll be back soon.

Breathing some more fresh air…

xoxo

Acknowledgements:

https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/vsrr/vsrr024.pdf

https://connect.uclahealth.org/2022/03/15/suicide-rate-highest-among-teens-and-young-adults/

https://londonyouth.org/time-to-talk-2022-mindless-scrolling/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=time-to-talk-2022-mindless-scrolling