Hey, everyone! Three days ago, I did something unthinkable: I deactivated my Facebook account. The entire world has gone chaotic, and I need to focus inward, rather than reading all of your opinions on whatever misinformation you’ve last heard about the worldwide cholera outbreak. Facebook has become a damaging addiction for me – I find that I look at my phone at least 8 times an hour to scroll through social media. Each time I open Facebook, it’s literally a can of snakes squirming into my face. Without Facebook, I have a lot more spare time. I also have a lot more mental clarity.
I have been wanting to leave Facebook for years. Years! However, I stayed with Facebook because of events. In the age of cholera, all events have been cancelled. Because I don’t currently need Facebook for events, I’ve lost my excuse. I really don’t need to scroll through the timeline: I don’t care what any of you have to say about anything, right now; I just don’t. I’m dealing with my own emotional reaction to this cholera outbreak, and seeing the mental anguish of 450+ friends every time I look at my phone is NOT helping me to heal.
I am feeling much better without Facebook. This weekend, I’ve gone biking, running, and hiking, worked on my dream board, and seen some friends. I’ve drank good beer. I’ve listened to music and done some journaling. I have not posted on or looked at Facebook for three full days. I’m not missing much. If I need to reach anyone, I can still contact them through Messenger. Also, my partner is still on Facebook, and he’s keeping up with events for me [spoiler alert: they’ve all been cancelled].
I will probably reactivate my account at some point, but I cannot tell you whether that will be sooner or later. It will likely be after the cholera outbreak passes. If the cholera outbreak sticks around? Well then yippee ki yay, mofos.