Do you let social media validate your relationship?
The singer, actor, and entertainer Tyrese, posted an important message on Instagram about private moments. In this video he went on to say how there are no private moments anymore, because people post everything from their ultrasound pictures of their pregnancy to their proposals and death. Nothing is sacred, nothing is private. There are no stories to tell because it is all on social media.
Most times you find people posting on these social media sites to get validation. How many likes can I get. Some people put up relationship photos begging for someone to confirm how cute they look together, how great this person is for them, or to brag about all the great things they do as a couple.
A great Netflix movie to watch that really puts technology and social media in a different perspective is, Black Mirror. A must binge watch.
It’s all fake. We base our lives around wanting that in a relationship, not realizing that people only post the good stuff. They post their romantic outings, meals prepared for them, loving gestures that occur, and the most intimate of loving photos just so your social group can tell you well done, you all are so cute together, I wish my love one did that for me, or you have the best relationship without really knowing what goes on in this relationship when the camera is not rolling.
I knew this woman who suffered from low self-esteem and issues with image. She pretty much forced herself into relationships, so that she did not have to be alone to face her issues. She would get into these relationships and post all of this “love” on all of her social media platforms waiting for the positive feedback to boost her self esteem. The one time a person that really knew her would question her relationship or tell her to take a better look at who she is, she would lash out by finding articles or videos on the internet to back her choices. She would distant herself from anyone who did not agree with what she was doing. All of those “friends” in the social media world that told her she was doing the right thing or that her relationship was beautiful, based on pictures and what she shared, she continued to feed them images of false happiness, because in return it made her happy, it validated her relationship.
In the end she ended up getting married and bankrupting her life in order to receive praise from people who didn’t really know her. She accepted advice from people who said to her “you’re doing the right thing” and then behind her back saying “I would never do something so dumb”. She listened to anyone who only knew her through social media. She was so wrapped up in receiving likes and validation that she shared nothing with her family and close friends, everything they learned was from a snap, an Instagram photo, or a Facebook post.
Is this what our world has become. We are not held accountable unless it has been posted for the world to see and judge. Social Media driven relationships are false. They only show you the good, the excitement, and the wow factors. No one wants to look like a failure to new and old high school or college friends. Everyone wants to be popular or great at something so we only show our fake selves.
If you base your life on likes and favorites, you will be forever chasing that acceptance, without ever facing the real you and what you really want and deserve in a relationship. Get off social media and reexamine who you are and your relationship. Love for the sake of loving, grow as a person, and then open yourself to grow with someone else.
