Comparison on Instagram

[missep]

Hey guys!

I was on Instagram yesterday looking through my feed and I couldn't help comparing myself to others on the platform! In high school I definitely had self-esteem issues where I compared myself to other girls constantly. I'm so much better now and my self-esteem has grown a lot but I sometimes find myself back in the comparison mindset when I'm on Instagram. 

What do you guys do to make yourselves feel better when you feel this way? 

At the end of the day I wanted to post this so we can discuss ways we can combat feelings of negative (or upwards) comparison! It's so important to remind ourselves that there is only one 'you' in the world and everyone is beautiful and special in their own way  

[gina-RO]

Ooo what a great thread @missep! 

Instagram is defs a breeding ground for comparison and negative thoughts... I'm sure everyone can relate to this. 

When we're scrolling we can forget just what we're looking at-  everyone's 'highlight reel' - consisting of all the best moments, best angles, and best filters! 

For me what's helpful is recognising when social media is becoming a negative factor for me and giving myself social media breaks when that happens - it might be for a day, a week or longer, but breaks can really help. 

Another helpful thing is immediately unfollowing accounts that make me feel bad about myself - I try to fill my feed with body-positive gram'rs, and pretty pictures of nature. That way my feed can be quite an uplifting place! 

Keen to hear everyone else's tips and tricks! 
Happy gramming all! 

[missep]

I really like your idea of tailoring your thread to be positive and foster happy feelings rather than being negatively affected by Instagram/social media.
I think this is so important because social media and the internet are so integrated into our daily lives that it's hard to escape it as hard as we can try so being able to make it work for us in a positive and conductive way is super important.
Great tips @gina-RO!

[letitgo]

Thanks for opening up the conversation @missep - comparison is definitely something I struggle with a fair bit. If it's particularly bad, I'll deactivate my accounts on particular platforms - Instagram or Facebook.

Generally, I try to engage in an activity that takes me out of my head when I notice those comparisons/thoughts arising, e.g. by having a conversation with a friend/family member... 

[May_]

Hey @missep thanks for starting up this discussion! I try to do a similar thing to what @gina-RO suggested - tailoring my feed to things that make me feel good and inspired (Eg it is mostly cute animals, nature, interior decor, artists and people I know in real life). However I find sometimes those accounts that lead me to comparing myself or wanting to buy new clothes etc do creep in and I have to go through my 'following' list and really think about why I am following certain accounts. I definitely struggle with comparison too and do find I have to remind myself that instagram in general really is a highlight reel as @gina-RO mentioned.

[missep]

This is so important to do @letitgo, I do the same thing! It helps to do things 'in the real world' because sometimes we get can get caught up by the way people portray themselves on social media!

[missep]

This is so true! @May_ It's really smart of you guys to tailor your instagram feeds! I've actually done this recently and it's helped so much. I definitely know what you mean about wanting to buy new clothes or things that are advertised on social media. Sometimes I have to tell myself that I really don't need it haha. It's so true, people can basically portray themselves any way that they like on Instagram so I have to remind myself that I'm looking at a highlight reel as yourself and @gina-RO have mentioned

[amywells21]

I can absolutely relate to this, but as already mentioned, sometimes its best to remember that we are only seeing 2% of a persons day on an Instagram post. We don't know what was happening before or after the post. 

Whenever I upload something, I always try and make up a funny caption or something a bit 'clever'. Sometimes though, I give myself a social media break. I find this good to take a breather and concentrate on the 'here and now',

[missep]

so true @amywells21!
I feel like doing your funny captions or something clever makes you relatable
Especially nowadays when people get paid thousands of dollars for posts and get 'instafamous'. Sometimes I really think that money can't buy happiness. I try to focus on happiness

[j95]

This is a great thread! Social media is a great tool but the more and more we use it the more issues that can come from it. I don’t know how true this is so don’t quote me on this but I heard that something like 80% of our thoughts daily and critical towards ourselves or bfstics self talk and that has obviously increased since we have become more and more dependent on technology. I definitely agree that scrolling through Instagram can be harmful for how we feel about ourselves and I know that it can sometimes make me feel pretty crap too.