It was hard being a user of social media. Especially these days.
I was being introduced to Facebook by my aunt when I was a middle schooler. That time, I did not have any other purpose to use Facebook beside playing the Pet Society and other games inside it. But now, it was just a platform to connect me with my hobbies related to Korea.
Then came Twitter. I created the account on 2010. Been 15 years on Twitter, yet I have not really comfortable using it. Every time I open it, I feel like being forced to listen and understand other's situations. They all talked at the same time. They debate about every single things in that platform. Worlds feel so... stuffy here.
And about Instagram.. people are sharing the best version of themselves. Well, I know that nobody wants to share the bad side of 'em to strangers. It's strange... maybe... at least for me now. Everything seems ok until other's life-styles lowkey affect your mental. Or maybe.. you became jealous.
Sometimes social medias are stressful; nonetheless I am still using it for many things, like having updates from my favorite artists, get some promo in a restaurants, and found some information about.. life. I should just minimize my time in social medias to de-stress myself.
But with the news of the floods in Sumatera, and the news about the blunders of our government elites... social medias became extremely stressful.
Before the catastrophe, my social media feeds were mostly filled with celebrity-related content. Now the information about Sumatra is everywhere.. even without me searching for it. In my opinion, this phenomenon shows that it is not just something eerie on social media. If the news has already penetrated my algorithm this deeply, then it is no longer a small issue.
Every day when I open social media, I feel like I could lose my mind. You scroll through reels and find funny memes, but the next moment you stumble upon news that makes you angry and heartbroken.
On Twitter, most of the trending topics are spam. I often check the trending conversations there, and many of them are nothing more than propaganda written by dubious accounts.
sighs
Now, opening social media feels suffocating. Suffocating to see Indonesians working hand in hand, yet belittled by many officials. Suffocating because I don’t know whether the officials truly hear what the people are voicing through social media. Suffocating because… when will all of this end?
I may not be one of the victims directly affected by this disaster. But witnessing the suffering of Indonesians there, without being able to contribute directly, only adds to this suffocation.
Hurtful words keep spilling from that person. No apologies, no gratitude. Perhaps that is what they will eventually come to feel themselves.
Fri. 19.12.2025