The holiday season is known for being a time for coming together, usually with friends and family we might not have seen much of all year. But because the season also marks an end, and henceforth, a beginning, maybe we should also take it as an opportunity to take stock of our contacts (especially on social media) and see which people we would we better off not bringing into the New Year.
If blocking is too harsh for you, simply unfollow or mute the offenders. Here’s why you should cut your losses and shake ’em off. You don’t need that negativity in your life.
That friend-of-a-friend who’s deep in the MLM ecosystem
Sounds familiar?
Go block them. You know you want to.
Fake news accounts
“Inspirational” Instagram accounts that only make you feel like sh*t
Your ex
This should be a no-brainer, but too many people still maintain contact with their exes for many reasons. There could be residual feelings. Or maybe severing the connection completely feels too drastic. Or maybe they just want to keep tabs on their ex (which, btw, is never a good idea, at least not when the wounds are still fresh).
Yes, exes can be friends eventually, but here’s the thing. Right after the breakup, it’s just not a good idea to stay in contact. Maybe in a few months you can un-mute your ex, but when seeing his/her photos on your feed feels like a punch to the gut, the healthiest thing you can do is give yourself some space.
And if your ex was a toxic scumbag who treated you like garbage, you shouldn’t even think about it. Block that asshole now and don’t look back.
Your ex’s barkada and family
If it hurts to see your ex’s friends on social media, especially when you think about how you’ll probably never have the same relationship with them again, there’s no shame in unfollowing for the sake of your mental health.
Toxic relatives
Basically, anybody/anything who has caused/is causing you pain
You don’t need to be in contact with that boy who bullied you back in grad school / your former officemate who stabbed you in the back / that rando on Twitter who called you out because of your taste in cake. Why keep them in your life?
To end: some food for thought
There isn’t a one-size-fits-all approach to understand which accounts you should unfollow. If an account is causing you emotional pain and stress, consider unfollowing and blocking. You may end up with a Following count of 0, or take a break from social media altogether, and that’s okay.
But take this as an opportunity of self-reflection as well. If your high school friend’s photos of her vacation to Europe makes you feel like crap, unfollowing her could be the way to go. But also ask yourself why you have this response to your friend’s photos.
Turning inward and looking for the root of these negative emotions can help you understand what else you can do for your mental health. This could be a long process, but for now, understand that there’s nothing wrong in whittling down your social media contacts so at the very least, your time online can feel safe and positive.
Will you be unfollowing some people this holiday season? Why/why not? Tell us all about it below!
