On Social Media Breaks And Self Care In The Age Of Trump And Incessant Angst And Anger

Hi! Happy new year! I know January’s gone and we’re, like, halfway through February already, but I can still say that because this is my first post of 2017. Besides, it’s my blog; I can do whatever I want 😛.

This isn’t a typical first-post-of-the-year, but what is typical about the time we’re living in right now? I didn’t have a New Year Resolutions post in me to kick off 2017, and I still don’t. It’s taken me a while to write anything because… well… I haven’t been feeling very writerly. The only writing I’ve been doing lately is in my journal as I complete (belatedly) an eight-day mediation on Psalm 92 (and related Scripture), which is our Rhema Word of the Year at my church, Christ Embassy.

I have so many things on my mind, but I’ve just not been able to put the words together, you know? One of the main things on my mind that has been troubling my spirit is the clusterfiasco that is America right now, since the election of one Tonald Drump. Why are you so concerned about that, since you don’t live in the US and Jamaica has its own problems? you might ask. Good question, is my answer. I just am, though. I’ve never seen anything like this before. I mean, the ‘greatest country on earth’ was just hit by the ultimate scammer. Joanne Prada is somewhere boiling in jealousy and rage right now that she didn’t think of it first. It’s that ridiculous. Honestly, truly. And everyone knows that when America sneezes, countries like Jamaica ketch flu, because we’re dependent on favourable policies with that country for our very survival. His myopic views and rampaging incompetence will affect us in some way, and soon. Trust and believe.

It all became a bit too much for me, and I had to sign out of my social media accounts except IG for a few weeks. Everybody’s talking about him and the mess he’s making, and apparently I’m liberal-leaning because my Twitter timeline just became one looooooonnnnggggg scream of anger, pain, angst, fear and stress, and taking in all of that on a casual scroll through was causing me to mirror these emotions, which is not productive for me. Not to mention the barrage of news stories with him and his minions spewing their “alternative facts.” What even?! At one point, just seeing his name or pasty orange visage made my chest get tight, so for my health’s and sanity’s sakes, I had to hit that pause button on most social media activity. But that’s not really sustainable for me. I’m part of the media and communications industry, and I often make use of these platforms for work.

My connection to this field is another reason for my stress, because I have to watch my colleagues in the fourth estate being mocked and dragged, and acknowledge that some of the reporting and behaviour I’ve seen suggests that some of them really ought to go find other work. I guess I’ll probably have to go on an unfollowing or muting spree if I’m to have any peace online until this man is either impeached or leaves office in four years. Or eight, since Americans allowed him to win in the first place. What. A. Mess.

I spend far too much time on social media, anyway. I need to focus on dedicating more of my time to pursuits that can actually help me, instead of just taking in a bunch of toxic news stories, constantly checking into other people’s lives or getting into pointless arguments. I’m not going away permanently, though. I have to live tweet upcoming awards shows or television events. That’s a lot of fun. And I have to use my accounts to publicise my blog posts and so on. And I do like to keep up with what my faves are doing so I can know when to saddle up my account to splurge on new albums, books, movies, etc. I’d also be as clueless as Stacey Dash without social media, since I stopped watching the news. I have to at least get a cursory glimpse of the day’s headlines.

So, yeah. I’m back. I promise the tone of my posts won’t be this morose all year. In fact, Feature Friday will be back tomorrow with an uplifting post on visioneering – setting your vision for the rest of the year (it’s never too late) or whatever time frame you have in mind. I’ll also be introducing a new category called Favourite Finds, in which I’ll talk about an artiste/book/place/etc I’ve recently discovered. It’s gonna be fun! This year is going to be a great year for me, a year of flourishing. I look forward to sharing my stories and those of some of the wonderful people in my sphere. Carpe annum! (This may or may not be the actual translation, but you know what I mean.)