Australian Healthy Food Guide – June 2019

S

ally*deletedherFacebookprofileandopted

outofFacebookayearago.Shehadbeen

amemberforyearsandsaysthatwhileshe

wasn’taddicted,shefoundthemoresheusedit,

thelesssatisfactionshefelt.

“Idecidedtoquitforafewreasons,”shesays.

“Ijustgotsickofitintheend!Thetimeitwas

takingawayfrommylife,theadvertising,allthe

suggestions,notifications,justgottome,whenallI

wantedwastobeincontactwithfamilyandfriends.”

Shealsostartedfeelingincreasinglyuneasy

abouthowmuchinformationFacebookheldabout

her.“Ialsostartedfeelinguncomfortableabout

havingputphotosofmysonontheresincehewas

ababy,withouthimhavinganysayinthematter.”

SallysaysgettingoFacebookwasn’tallthateasy.

“Facebookdoesn’tmakeiteasy!Intheend,Ifound

averygoodYouTubetutorialtowalkmethrough

howtopermanentlydeletemyprofile.”

Sallydoesn’tfeelanyFOMOfromnotbeingon

Facebook.“Ihavenotmisseditforonesecond!I’d

recommend[leaving]toeveryone.IfeelIhavea

muchhigherqualityonlineexperiencenow.”

Sally’ssocialmediausenowis‘minimal’.“Ifollow

familyandfriendsonInstagramnow,anditfeels

likeamuchfriendlierenvironmentthanFacebook.

Also,tokeepintouch,wehaveaprivateWhatsApp

groupjustforclosefamily,whichfeelsamuch

saferandmorerealwaytodothings.”

*Notherrealname

REAL-LIFE CASE STUDY

Why I QUIT

Facebook

Fear of missing out
Have you heard of FOMO, the
fear of missing out? According
to researchers, FOMO is ‘a
pervasive apprehension that
others might be having rewarding
experiences from which we are
absent’. Everyone else is having
fun — and we’re missing out!
Higher levels of FOMO have
been associated with lower
general mood and wellbeing.
Research also suggests FOMO
can predict problematic social
media use, and is linked to
social media addiction. We feel
we can’t disconnect in case we
miss something. Impulsively or
compulsively checking the phone,
the research says, may develop
over time into an addiction.
On the other hand, a world
in which we remain constantly
connected has become the norm.
“There appears to be an inherent
understanding or requirement in
today’s technology-loving culture
that one needs to engage in
online social networking in order
not to miss out, to stay up to date
and to connect,” say the authors
of a 2017 review.
This can create pressure —
partly through the impression
social media posts create that
others’ lives are more interesting,
adventurous or glamorous
than our own. We forget
social media is a
way of presenting
our ‘best selves’
— which is at best
a highly selective
version of our
lives and reality.

JUNE 2019 HEALTHY FOOD GUIDE 21