What I learned from a social media break (as someone who is chronically online)

I am the kind of girl who can be described as chronically online. To the point where if I don’t post on instagram for a few hours I’m getting texts asking if everything is ok.

I love social media. I feel incredibly blessed that I get to work mainly online, connecting with people all over the world, creating content and community. I love posting and sharing my life with people and making new friends, and I really love documenting that perfect cup of coffee every morning. I’ll spend hours designing the aesthetics of my instagram feed. I’m that girl.

And in the days leading up to Christmas, I noticed I was incredibly burnt out. I was creating for the sake of having created something, not because I loved it. I felt like I was being pulled in a hundred different directions and I wasn’t enjoying any of them. So in realizing my life was in desperate need of a slow down, I decided to pull the plug on my internet consumption. Over the holiday break, where I didn’t have to be posting for work or creating content for someone else, I disconnected entirely.

At first it was a struggle to break the reflexive habit of just checking my phone standing in line or scrolling when I had a free second. But as the days went by, I began to notice not only did I not miss it, I really enjoyed the silence. I loved being offline, unavailable, and moving through life at my own pace. I was surprised to find that when I had to go back online, I was a little bit sad about it.

My social media break did give me some really interesting feedback about how I interact, both online and real life, and here’s what I noticed:

1. It was comforting to be surrounded by Canadian voices.

   I love where I live. I also love that I get to connect with people all around the world as part of my job. A normal day for me involves talking to people in at least a few different countries on a few different timezones. One thing I didn’t realize was how much I was subconsciously absorbing all this information and different ways of speaking, and how much I filtered myself to be more acceptable to a global audience. Suddenly the Christmas movies on TV had Canadian voices, I was talking to friends and family in person who all have a similar speech pattern to my own. and I didn’t realize how comforting that was, or how much just having that made me feel at home and at ease (I am excited to connect with my global community again, though)

2. When I connect with what I think/value/want over what I’m hearing from other people via the constant feedback loop of social media, what I do changes.

   While I always did attempt to make sure the first thing I was consuming in a day wasn’t the opinions of other people on social media, I realized when I didn’t hear them at all I payed far more attention to what I wanted. I moved at my own pace. And I felt a lot more permission to try things

3. I started creating again

   I started writing again, for the hell of it. A project that has absolutely nothing to do with anything serious,I just started it because it made me happy. I finished crocheting a scarf. I consumed media critically and let myself be inspired, no longer just searching for that quick fix. I took photos and filmed videos not for any algorithm but for myself

4. I fell in love with the small moments

   I spent more time sitting with my husband watching hockey (which also felt like the most Canadian thing ever and made me really proud). I went for a walk and didn’t bring my headphones. I practiced yoga and browsed the aisles of my local thrift store and baked pie (well I licked the spoon). When the demand to make glamorous instagram worthy moments faded, I rediscovered the truth that my ordinary little life is really beautiful

5. I noticed what gets loud when things get quiet

   This is something I say in yoga all the time. What gets loud when you get quiet? When you stop moving, what happens? Not having the continual hum of social media allowed me to notice what happens when I’m not trying to distract my brain, and can I be with what is? It wasn’t always comfortable, but it was intriguing to notice my patterns. Like the way I love new beginnings but resist endings. Like the things I’m still grieving from the year gone by, and what I’m excited for in the year to come. And the little signals I probably would have ignored through numbing out on social media that is actually my body telling me she needs genuine rest.

I really enjoyed my social media holiday, and it’s definitely something I want to incorporate into my regular routine in 2025. I do love instagram, and my digital communities, and a large part of my life will probably forever be online. I’m ok with that. But every now and then I think we could all use the reminder that there is so much more to life than what can be found on instagram.

May your 2025 be filled with moments you cherish, not just ones you post