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in the age of endless access to information, the unknown can quickly become known - though i think we've reached a point where balance is desperately needed. our brains are sensitive and absorbing information constantly whether we like it or not. i recently deleted social media from my phone and now only log on at the computer (love how many pi.fyi recs i've seen on this) - anyways i finally joined the club and see no going back. i don't want to know everything about everyone all the time and on top of that be plagued with intrusive ads (no matter how relevant they may or may not be). being present is crucial, and watching other people's lives on our phones whenever we want can definitely take one out of the present. if i were a true conspiracy theorist, i'd say it almost seems strategically designed to interrupt our normal train of thoughts and give everybody add and make us less thoughtful or make us stray from our true path. i think there's an art to boredom and liminal zones. if you're in a doctor's office waiting room or in a coffee shop waiting for your drink, i think its cool to just be nothing for a moment, limbo is a luxury and giving your consciousness and attention to something every second strips you of that temporary feeling...
if we're homies and not seeing each other in person we can text about our lives. instagram stories have begun to creep me out, i don't like how normalized casual stalking has become. i feel like it makes everyone overly analytical and constantly thinking about social dynamics all the time, injecting way too many forms of micro-anxieties for everyone throughout the day - there's value in time spent alone with our thoughts and i feel like the status quo of social media and internet without boundaries at the moment is infringing on some timeless human functions. that said we need to connect and find out about things and discover each other and using platforms like pi.fyi and instagram allow us to do so, we just need to be mindful about how we go about it. i think it's okay to not know everything all the time, mystery creates intrigue and that's stimulating enough for me...
Jun 8, 2024
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I deleted instagram ages ago and recently started consciously bringing alternatives (books, notebooks, etc) to my phone with me everywhere after noticing how I defaulted to pulling out my phone every time I had 'nothing to do' in public almost like an anxious tic. Ever since then I can't help but notice how sucked into their phones people are in public, especially in the Silicon Valley/Bay Area. It's almost like, just leave if you're going to be on your phone-- because you're mentally removing yourself from wherever you are. Resonated heavily with your words.
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once i got realistic about what type of content i consumed on ig and twitter, i realized so quickly it was not expanding the way i think and in fact was keeping me stuck in the same (oftentimes negative/harmful) thought loopholes. social media is addictive in part because it algorithmically reproduces the way we already think. it keeps us comfortable.
start questioning: what can help expand your life? what other creative and consumptive outlets do you find fulfilling? is there a book you want to read? something you want to draw or write about? or, in general, consider how your older self would have wanted your time to be spent. you are so right that social media makes us feel Bad-- but we don't have to! it is an act of self-care and deep love to work on stepping away from things that hurt!
as far as practical tips, the best things that helped me were:
a) like some others mentioned, deleting ALL social media apps from my phone so i can only access them on my computer. this helps because the online interfaces are a lot clunkier so it reduces some of the quick gratification that keeps you addicted. also you have to be literally sitting at a desk to use it, so the portability aspect/mindless scrolling is largely removed.
b) keeping a journal because it's a much safer space to dump thoughts than a private story
c) prioritizing in-person connection rather than mediating relationships through tech-- meet a friend for coffee! cultivate intimacy rather than superficiality, and notice how irl vs. online connection feels different
d) nervous system regulation and grounding practices to counteract how scrolling can make you anxious/stressed/disembodied!
finally i did struggle a lot with fomo and being behind on trends at first but then i realized it doesn't really matter. trends are fleeting. even without chronic online-ness i am still funny and relatable and i find it much more interesting to hear about people's lives when i haven't been informed about them in an endless information stream online!!
Oct 31, 2024
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i’m definitely not the first person here to make a rec about this, but my tired brain is truly rejoicing. i have a very hard time completely leaving it since i communicate and share creative work through the app, but i think i’ve decided i will only be on it once a week or when i need/want to post. that’s all. as an already anxious person, seeing the same anxiety-inducing general information (as in something i could easily find on google or a news app) be reposted by 20+ people on their stories has become HELL, especially these last few weeks. not only that, but the constant push of personal opinions about such matters (even if i agree with them) just seems to warp your perception of people. maybe i’m just a wimp, but i don’t think humans were meant to see each other in such a way; we’re not so flashy and impulsive face to face. add the endless scrolling onto that, and it’s downright exhausting and kills productivity. there is so much more dimension and depth to humans and life than what is said or done or seen through this screen. can we please go back to flip phones?
Jan 31, 2025
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Social media can encourage us to constantly seek out the novel and makes us feel like we're missing out if we don't.
It's much better for peace of mind, in my opinion, if we let go of the immediate, and use impermanence as our filter for information.
We don't all need to watch the latest streaming show, or hear the latest album.
What needs to find us, and what we need to find, usually finds a way
Mar 13, 2024
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