Instagram Getting Rid Of 'Likes' & 'Views' Count Might Be The Best Decision They Ever Made
Because bettering mental health and self-esteem should be a priority.
Back in April 2019, Instagram made an announcement that they were testing out the removal of Instagram likes/views in other countries around the globe. The purpose of this test was to see if it would remove the pressure off of people who struggle with their self-esteem and mental health. My question is:
WHY haven't they done this sooner?
I say this because social media sets all of these unrealistic expectations for people with low self-esteem. Having "likes" represents the popularity and likeliness of a person, which also comes with anxiety and depression. Let's say you post a picture of yourself that you really thought you looked good in, but after 5 hours, it only gets 9 likes. You get embarrassed, delete the photo and question if you are worthy and valid. You say horrible things to yourself like, "Wow, this wasn't a good photo. I'm ugly." I mean, something like that. The desire for likes may also contribute to body dysmorphia, eating disorders and other mental disorders.
Most of the "Instagram models" you see are women with surgically enhanced bodies and filtered editing, which sends girls the wrong message. It tells those viewers that they must look a certain way to earn likes/views. More and more women are getting plastic surgery and dying on the table just to obtain those followers, which is really sad. People will also do pranks, do crazy and dangerous dares, disrespect others or cause a scene, or simply become influencers. I understand that you have to eat and there's nothing more rewarding than hustling. However, my point is that most people on that app will do anything for likes.
The desire for obtaining hundreds of likes has made us get out of character and feel as if we must put on a face for attention. Just to be clear, there is a difference between confidence and attention-seeking. If you want to post your naked body as a way to inspire young people to love theirs, do it. But if you're posting your naked body only to obtain likes and validation from people who only want THAT, you're losing track of what is important. Behind those likes may be someone who is broken or has low self-esteem and relies on excess filters and Photoshop to feel wanted. This is not okay and I wish Instagram did this sooner.
Now, what about the social media influencers?
Like I said earlier, a lot of people with a big following can be known as "social media influencers," who advertise and talk about brands in exchange for money. I get it, you have to find ways to eat and provide for yourself. There should still be a way for those influencers to make their money, but what matters most is about the mental health of viewers.
Removing Instagram likes will help users not feel so much pressure when posting a photo. What happened to posting a picture for fun? Why do you have to post a picture at a certain time for people to like it?
You can say that this generation is "sensitive" all you want, but the amount of suicide rates are heartbreaking.
Remember this: Your worth shouldn't be determined based off of a like on social media. if you are feeling good about yourself, you shouldn't let other people tell you otherwise. A healthy environment is a happy environment.
Thank you all for coming to my TED Talk!
Don't Be Fooled, Social Media Isn't An Accurate Depiction Of ANY Person's Life
When the snapshots we upload to our Instagram become the placeholder for the everyday interactions in our daily lives and are our only version of reality, then that's when we've hit the depths of just existing.
There is a difference between living and existing. That, I'm sure we all know in theory. Yet, I wish we talked more about how to distinguish between the two, because sometimes you slip from the buzzing, radiant precipice of living, into the mind-numbing, worthless depths of existing without knowing how you ended up there.
I guess we should start with the fundamentals.
How I've always seen it, to live is to experience, to exist is to be experienced. You would think that in your own life, you'd be forced to be an active participant; except, I know first hand that it's one of the easiest things in the world to walk around on autopilot, moving from mundane task to mundane task without a single care for why you're doing it, other than because it fits into the narrow confines of what society has already decided is expected of you. Boredom, disillusionment, and dissociation ensue, and you fade into the background, becoming part of the canvas that those who are actually living paint into the fabric of their lives.
It's empty and apathy becomes routine.
This image of existing is probably the one we're all most familiar with, but it feels too easy. What has been on my mind lately is another form of worthless existence, one even worse yet. The kind where you're alive alright, but immersed in a world far removed from your actual reality. Can we call it living if it's not real?
Essentially, it's like being in the matrix.
Since I've discovered social media, I feel like that's where I've been. I don't mean this in an angsty, "I hate my life so I'd rather live in delusion online," type of way. I mean that I've been fooled into distorting my own reality to fit the ideals of a social media world. I mean that I've been chasing behind likes, comments, and followers as if that somehow equates to tangible success in the real world. I mean that I've been experiencing the world through the pixels of a 6.1 in. screen. The saddest part is that I didn't even know I was doing it, and how far it had gotten out of hand, until yesterday.
I watched an excellent video by Tiffany Ferg where she explains how the normalization of Facetune is contributing to not only unrealistic beauty standards but tricking people into distorting the polished, impeccable bodies and images that they see online for reality. Ferg makes it easy for us to infer how Facetune is contributing to a larger problem with social media: the disillusionment and shame that comes with not 'measuring up' to the standards set online by influencers (not just beauty standards, but ideals of how you should live your life in general), as well as the incessant need to alter your reality in order to live up to these standards.
People think altering your reality is only related to circumstances like taking drugs, but it very well can apply to instances like using Facetune to give yourself "five-minute plastic surgery" or conflating your social media profile and presence with your actual, physical being. When the snapshots we upload to our Instagram — the smiles in every photo, the tiny waist and wide hips we photoshop onto ourselves, the trips that we take twice a year, yet upload to our account as if we vacation every other month, the flawless makeup and perfect skin, the effortless, endless, and constant adventure — become the placeholder for the everyday interactions in our daily lives and are our only version of reality, then that's when we've hit the depths of just existing.
And that's what frightens, disgusts, and angers me the most because everything on social media is fucking fake.
It is a culmination of the most idealized version of our world. It's unattainable. It's perfect. It's empty. I've spent so long trying to make my actual life match my Instagram profile that I've forgotten to live. Social media should be a reflection of our reality, not the basis for it. Trying to craft the perfect outfits, trying to feel excited and happy every second, trying to create a perfect image will get you nowhere expect caught in the storm of confusion and disappointment.
I don't say this in opposition to social media. I love Twitter and Instagram because it's a great source of news and entertainment and it helps us connect with each other, as well as express ourselves.
I say this in favor of waking up.
Waking up to savoring each moment in your actual reality. Waking up to realizing that nothing is perfect and that we should be thankful that it's not. Waking up to chasing fulfillment in real life and not just for a great picture on Instagram.