How changing my social media consumption changed my mental and physical for the best
When the pandemic started I made the conscious decision to delete my Facebook, Twitter and any news apps on my phone. I was in a dark place and the media was saturated with Covid-19 information and my social media was full of scaremongering articles and people complaining about the lockdown, isolation and those breaking the rules. Misinformation was rife across Facebook and Twitter. I found myself spiralling into a darker place emotionally and constantly checking for updates that continued to riddle me with anxiety. I was self-isolating due to an underlying condition. The content I was consuming was not serving my mental health well and I needed to make a change. I was on Instagram and was only following a few people and I had about a hundred followers myself. Then a friend, who knew I was starting a weight loss journey send me a profile from Instagram of Trish Lewis, Trisha’s Transformation was her handle. I clicked follow and really enjoyed her content as it generated positive messages, advice, she shared her story and struggles also that were similar to mine.
From there I began to search hashtags such as #weightlosstransformation, #weightlossjourney and #nutrition and I unfollowed any content that was not keeping with my agenda. I began to document my own weight loss after I watched how people were helping others in the Instagram community. I came across pages shared by other influencers and suddenly I had over 3,000 followers. I could turn off my messages and comments if there were days I needed time to myself. I felt like I was in control. I also felt like I was part of a community that wanted to help each other. I consumed podcasts, books and articles recommended by those I followed and slowly but surely I started to live a better life physically and mentally.
However, If you are struggling and need that extra help there is help out there. The Samaritans and Pieta House are always on the other end of the phone.
In a world where social media can be so detrimental, it can also have a positive effect when used in the right way and taking control of what you digest is so important. For me, there are so many accounts, videos and articles I could recommend that helped me however too much content can be overwhelming. So I have put together some of my favourite and inspirational accounts, videos and some light-hearted content also that I found to have an impact on me personally. Some have made a huge difference to my mental and physical health, others have made me laugh out loud.
Have you any positive content that has changed your life physically or mentally? Please list them in the comments below to inspire others.
