Who Else Feels Like Social Media Is Running Their Damn Life?

I may sound like a drama queen and a hypocrite, but I’m running out of fucks to give like it’s 1999. The more days I have social media up in my face, the more I feel like it’s the devil’s work. In many ways, I do feel like I identify with the millennial generation (we’re a special breed aren’t we?), but love of social media isn’t one of them.

Being a millennial who hates social media can really make you feel out of place.

Read: When I Finally Stopped Giving a Shit About Instagram Likes

For a lot of millennials, documenting life on social media is exciting. But for me? Nahsomuch. Does anyone else feel like it takes you away from your life? Away from being present? Sometimes I think about our parents and grandparents, who woke up in the morning without the instant urge to scroll strangers’ Instagram stories and compare them to their lives. I have to admit, being free of social media sounds idyllic.

Social media makes me feel narcissistic, and it only adds fuel to the fire that is entitled millennials who think their needs and lives are so damn important. Seriously, taking selfie videos alone in public and asking strangers to take photos of me kills my insides each and every time. But here I am, posting photos of cold food and watered down cocktails because that seems to be what the people want. And if getting my message out there means posting about my life, a chick’s gotta do what a chick’s gotta do. Right?

You may be wondering: Taylor, why don’t you quit bitching and cut out social media then?

Read: What Gives You Social Media Envy?

If I could get my message out there and develop a community without it, I would in a heartbeat. Hypocrisy at its finest: Someone trying to get a digital platform off the ground in 2017 doesn’t fancy social media–I know how it sounds.

But I’m convinced social media is also an addiction. This morning, I actively tried waking up and staying off my phone for a solid 20 minutes. If there was a fly on the wall, it’d probably tell you I was twitching about eight minutes in.

And I do like posting when it comes to something I’m proud of and am excited to share, I do. But the rest of it just feels… so… constant. Not to mention the content that’s often praised on social media (forget cold food shots, there’s a slew of butt selfies to get in on).

The best part and the reason I do it is connecting with YOU. Your stories, your arguments, your ability to connect with what I’ve been experiencing makes my life. But if the likes, shares, and numbers weren’t up in our grills all the time, I’d say it’d be a lot more fun, don’t you?

And how do you make your initiatives successful in 2017 without social media?

Seems damn near impossible, right? If you guys have tips for healthier balance, you let me know. For now, I gotta run and prep my Instagram feed. Funny, ’cause it’s true.