If you are a living individual with access to a computer, iPad or any other smartphone, you are more than likely to be one of the 74 percent of Internet users in the entire world that has at least one account with one of the numerous social media platforms. Facebook, Snapchat, Tumblr, Twitter, you name it; you almost definitely have one account, or juggle multiple accounts simultaneously.
Social media is fun, and it is addicting. It's hard not to spend hours surfing all social media platforms as you are able to see what everyone in the world is doing to that very exact moment. Everyone with a social media account has found themselves thoroughly exploring the content on someone's account, like your ex-boyfriend's cousin's best friend's photos from his adventurous vacation through Thailand. However, most of the time this shameless stalking leads you to think, "That's so cool" or "Maybe I should do that," or even "How can I look like that?"
Life always seems like fairytales and roses on social media, especially on those accounts that have amassed an enormous, and devoted following. Though life does seem absolutely incredible on such "social media famous" accounts, the sad truth is that the photos and posts on these accounts are staged silhouettes of an ideal life or lifestyle that trick you, and the thousands of followers, into thinking that this person has the optimal, happiest and healthiest life and does not face any sort of hardship. Realistically, the depicted life is almost entirely fraudulent and the person behind the account is not actually always so happy, healthy and incredible.
Now former-Instagram star Essen O'Neill recently shed light on this social media facade as she deleted nearly 2,000 photos from her renowned Instagram account, (which is now under the handle "Social Media is Not Real Life") and replaced the captions on all of her photos with the truth behind the events each and every staged photo. "Stomach sucked in, strategic pose, pushed up boobs. I just want younger girls to know that this isn't the candid life, or cool or inspirational. It's contrived perfection made to get attention," states one of the now-edited photos on O'Neill's account, which portrayed onto her 612,000 followers that she was "happy" and "carefree" on a beach in Australia.
O'Neill's painfully honest and abrupt retirement from social media serves as an important reminder to us all that what is portrayed on social media is not always idealistic, or that those behind the accounts are truly happy and do not have any hardship at all. It is easy to adhere to the notion that the grass is always greener on the other side, especially as social media accounts portray lives in which individuals are able to provide the latest #fitspo, while being #happy, #healthy, #successful, #trendy, and manage to travel the globe all at the same time.
Social Media is a mask that allows us to be someone we are not or hide our real feelings, real-life dramas and stresses and for those well-known social media names and profiles, to show the world that they are happy and inspirational people and that should be jealous of their life. When you find yourself conforming to such feelings and stalking someone's account, remember that behind that famed, or not so-well known social media account, is a real human-being like you and with real-life dilemmas and emotions. As Essena O'Neill showed the world, social media is a way to pretend to have the "perfect life" in an attempt to convince this to all of its followers to be jealous and continue to follow posts, amass new followers, and continue this vicious cycle.
Next time you find yourself being envious of one's clothing, body, and seemingly-awesome life from his or her social media account, remember behind the sometimes-staged and edited photos lies the life of a genuine human-being who is contriving a life. The real face behind the account is just like yours and mine, with a life full of ups and downs and one that is not exactly perfect, though their social media account may tell otherwise.
