Is Facebook A Rabbit Hole For Your Well-Being?

Facebook is the world’s most powerful engine of communication, and it is, without a doubt, the largest social media platform online. As of 2022, Facebook’s monthly active users are now at a staggering 2.895 billion. The United States comes in second for having the most Facebook users in the world, with a reported total of 180 million.

We All Live in The Facebook Country

I am a citizen of the Facebook country – a digital nation with a population of over 2 billion people. We walk around this physical world, and yet we are still connected to this online platform. Whether we’re waiting in line, on our way to the office, or have just gotten off from work, most of us are on FB doing the usual mindless scrolling down our newsfeed.

That’s because, for a moment, we forget the seriousness of life and escape reality. We see posts that inspire us and raise our vibration. Sometimes we discover something new – a travel destination, a new restaurant, or some cool new gadget. That’s where it all begins – entering the dark world, the addiction, our egos rising, fake influencing. And even though it claims to connect people worldwide, its intentions are breaking because of its dark side.

Facebook Feeds Our Ego

However, it’s not all about garnering your daily posts’ likes and views. You shoot down this online rabbit hole, and with all the scrolling comes the stalking, eventually leading to wanting what others have. That way, you feel validated and that you belong in this upper class of Facebook society. This is a harsh truth, but Facebook does manipulate our brains into feeding that ego of wanting more and more.

Studies show that the use of Facebook affects our ego. The mere knowledge of knowing who viewed our stories, who liked our posts, and the wonderful comments you get for every selfie you post all have a direct impact on our ego. And when things do not go as planned, we often get disappointed, like we live in a virtual world, not a real one. We try to seek approval from people who themselves are in the same loop of Facebook’s dark side.

SEE ALSO: Virtual Reality: Friend or Foe of Mental Well-being?

The Dark Side Of The Virtual World

Some users use excessive Facebook where they post anything that helps them alter their mood. Users with Facebook exhibit compulsive behavior and particular personality traits such as narcissism, high levels of neuroticism, extraversion, and low levels of self-esteem.

So, before it gets this bad, yank yourself out of the Facebook rabbit hole; else, you will get painfully stuck. Below are some indicators to know when it’s time to pull yourself out of this addictive behavior. And people do anything to gain attention. I hope you remember the documentary on Hunter Moore and how he created a website to take revenge on your exes. But people started using it to gain attention and got depressed when they failed to do so.

Similarly, many users on Facebook are trying to post unnecessary or irrelevant material to gain attention. Most of it is fake, but now that you have a habit of scrolling all day, you simply can’t help it. This addiction level will only rise and be destructive if you do not stop today.

‘Look Out’ For The Stars On Facebook

Facebook has given everyone a chance to create an alternate reality. There you, as the director, writer, and star, create an illusion of a perfect life. It seems these days, everyone has the need to record their every move and act like the stars of their own reality TV show. Don’t get me wrong. It’s not all bad to aspire to a perfect life. However, presenting it online with minimal basis of what is happening in the real world is not normal.

Many people lie on the platform and are entirely different from who they really are. Individuals post videos of themselves having lavish lives, going to clubs, or on trips. Some put videos of unattainable beauty standards, exercises, and mental health without knowledge of it. What’s more terrifying is that we, as users believe all this and start applying each detail to our lives.

Real Life vs. Reel Life

Are you one of those people who would start scrolling through the eternal vortex of a Facebook reel and realize that you have been watching the different videos of other people’s lives for hours in one sitting? You get pulled inside this rabbit hole and sometimes feel like you don’t want to get out. When you’re not busy watching these videos, you, in turn, create your own reel and construct a script that would take you ages to perfect.

Facebook is an online journal for most. And it is indeed cathartic when you post something you need to release. However, when your every move depends on how your image will be projected on Facebook, you need to go cold turkey on the platform. When you try to put your real life into reel life, that’s when you are trying for people to accept you for who you are not.

SEE ALSO: Did Social Media Help Mental Health?

Go On A Full Facebook Detox

Facebook need not take over your life. So, forget FOMO and go on a social media detox. Log out and get back to the real world. Our constant need for people to gush over our lives and remain relevant is not healthy. Go offline and reconnect with friends and loved ones over coffee instead. Maybe host a get-together.

Give yourself the chance to refresh your relationship with yourself and the people around you. Exercise and meditate more, and focus on self-control and your mental health. You could still be a citizen of the Facebook country, but you don’t have to make Facebook your whole world. Relearning to live in reality will set you free.

And not just Facebook; any social media platform is harmful to your well-being. You will hang loosely between the two worlds as long as you focus on pleasing the virtual world out there.

I have just one question for you. What if the Facebook world is destroyed? Won’t you be leading a normal life? Hell yeah, you would be. Balance your life before your own world is no more.