In this generation, we often find ourselves falling into a trap—a trap of jealousy and aspiration to be someone else who seems to have a perfect life. Well, I’ve got news for you. No one’s life is perfect.
For example, you're sitting in your bed, laying on your couch or waiting in line at the store. Naturally, you find yourself on Instagram, probably stalking your latest online obsession or celebrity crush. You keep sighing to yourself about how "perfect" he or she is. What might happen next is something along the lines of a screenshot to your best friend accompanied with a message like “OMG goals” or “LOL same” in a sarcastic attempt to express your jealousy. Trust me, by no means am I excluded from doing this, but for real—we all need to stop.
Collectively, our generation is so set on achieving the “perfect” body or taking the “perfect” Instagram photos. Quite frankly, half the time the reason behind our desire for the perfect body isn’t so that we can feel good and be healthy. It’s so that we can take that “perfect” Instagram photo and maximize our likes and comments. Does anyone see something wrong with this? I do.
This is a problem, and it is not going to go away unless we all make the conscious effort to dismiss these thoughts as they come to our mind.
Newsflash—that model you might think has the perfect body with the six pack? Maybe she didn’t eat today. That other model that's a size 00 could have had an eating disorder her entire life. Oh, and that random girl in your newsfeed with the perfect butt? Maybe she used an app on her iPhone to make it look bigger before she posted it. Wait, what about that "perfect" couple you've been stalking on Tumblr? What if he cheats on her every weekend? Her life could be harder than you think, too. The person in the pictures you see could be just as stressed out about work as you. They could be just as heartbroken as you were after your recent break up, or they could've struggled in school just as much as you did. You really just don't know.
Realistically, what we see on social media is what that person wants people to see and know about their lives. If they didn’t want people to know about it, they wouldn’t flaunt it. Do you ever stop and think about the things not posted? Do you ever stop and wonder about the things we don’t know? All of the people you walk by carry their own baggage, have their own stories, and guard their own secrets. Do you ever wonder what those things are?
This is article is not meant to depress you, but rather inspire you to beat the curse on this generation and avoid the social media-based jealousy “trap." We all need to stop wishing we were someone else. Chances are, once the shoes were traded, we just might be wishing for our own lives back.
