Social Media Isn't Your Therapist

There was a 19 year girl in France who began live streaming and sharing her thoughts of suicide, the comment section began taunting, daring and encouraging her to do so, and she did; empathy doesn't always make it through the screens of our devices. It's important to get out our feelings. I am a designated person for a few friends to vent and rant to, and I know not everyone has someone they can safely share their thoughts and feelings with without feeling judged, or even worse, having their business get turned against them. I also have important people in my life that wish I would vent to them more, and I get it, vulnerability is a currency when developing relationships; the more we share, the closer we supposedly get. I don't vent too much to people, I beleive they got their own sh*t to deal with, and unless they have a specific experience, talent, or knowledge base to help me, I can find other ways to get out my feelings. I'm an artist, all the things that bother me make it into my music, and it's usually people that care about me who make the time to listen to it, so it feels decently protected. The challenge with turning social media into a place where we vent our thoughts and feelings is it's not a safe space, because not everyone who will be exposed to our raw emotions are looking to help us. If you got sh*t to get off your chest, try a paper & pencil journal, or going for a walk alone and saying it out loud to yourself. Much of the danger comes from holding it in, but broadcasting our issues can also serve to amplify that danger even more. If you feel you need more help, please seek out a professional, that may cost some money, but your mental health is worth the investment (sell your overpriced phone if you have to). There are also some great folks online like @katimorton1 who have created great communities around mental health to provide some additional support. Social media can be summed up as "picking short term gains over long term insight". It may feel great to put your business out there immediately, but that sh*t never goes away, so share with caution #BLESS