Published on 12, July, 2020
I have Aspergers, and have been talking to someone I like as a friend (and also secretly fancy!) on Instagram, and it's been going well. I also followed them on TikTok and liked some of their posts, but they haven't followed me back. I have been really nervous about this, and am scared that our relationship is fake or less somehow because of this. I know that they haven't posted again since I followed them, but then I remembered whenever someone follows me on TikTok I'm notified on the home-screen of my phone, so I got scared and thought "What if they have seen my follow and likes, why haven't they followed me back?". I've been trying to separate the anxiety from myself (like labelling it), as I know it is irrational. Do you guys go through similar anxieties, and how do you deal with it?
Realize that it’s all fake. Everything someone posts is there to please: to make themselves look interesting, to boast. It’s a highlight reel of everyone else’s life, and the more you browse it, the more you undervalue your own life.
You should understand that social media never reflects people correctly. Sometimes the main reason people go on social media is to try and get rid of the loneliness and feelings of isolation, the irony being that it only makes them feel more alone, and more isolated because all they’re seeing is the best of everyone else.
Once you realize all of this, you begin to have a perspective on social media: it’s cool to be able to hit up your buddies whenever you want, but it’s detrimental to mental health when overused and painfully addictive.