Case
Well-known member
I have no one in my life that I feel that I can turn to about my loneliness. Facebook was once my last refuge for human connection, but in time, it has become a repository of people I once hung out with, people I once lived near or worked with or had relationships with.
Few of these people see me on a regular basis, and most of them never see me at all.
FB became a site I visited where I was desperate for any kind of contact with a human I knew. I would post things about myself solely to get "Likes," and if I didn't get any, I'd descend into a pit of isolation. I always felt that FB somehow made me feel connected. Unfortunately, it's a false connection.
When "Joe" or "Jane Blow" clicks "Like" on my status updates, it's not like they are meeting me for coffee, asking about my day, or telling me about their lives. It's a minimalistic effort, at best, to be a part of my life. To them, it may be enough to maintain whatever friendship they think they have with me, but when we talk about meeting up like we said we would, they're always busy. So, I stopped trying to hang out, and that only makes things worse.
Now, it's the holidays and I see FB friends doing holiday parties, having family gatherings, going to see nieces and nephews in musicals or plays, and all of it reminds me of how little I have going on in my own life. It becomes unbearable, and so I disabled my account.
One part of me hopes that someone will notice that I am gone and try to ring me up or text me and ask me why I'm not on FB anymore. I realize that's a passive cry out for help, but I don't care. To me, the benefits of being on FB were decreasing, and the pain of seeing other people living lives I wish I had a taste of was too much.
Maybe this will help me focus on non-social activities, at least until the New Year. Then, who knows? I may go back on FB and realize that no one missed me.
Few of these people see me on a regular basis, and most of them never see me at all.
FB became a site I visited where I was desperate for any kind of contact with a human I knew. I would post things about myself solely to get "Likes," and if I didn't get any, I'd descend into a pit of isolation. I always felt that FB somehow made me feel connected. Unfortunately, it's a false connection.
When "Joe" or "Jane Blow" clicks "Like" on my status updates, it's not like they are meeting me for coffee, asking about my day, or telling me about their lives. It's a minimalistic effort, at best, to be a part of my life. To them, it may be enough to maintain whatever friendship they think they have with me, but when we talk about meeting up like we said we would, they're always busy. So, I stopped trying to hang out, and that only makes things worse.
Now, it's the holidays and I see FB friends doing holiday parties, having family gatherings, going to see nieces and nephews in musicals or plays, and all of it reminds me of how little I have going on in my own life. It becomes unbearable, and so I disabled my account.
One part of me hopes that someone will notice that I am gone and try to ring me up or text me and ask me why I'm not on FB anymore. I realize that's a passive cry out for help, but I don't care. To me, the benefits of being on FB were decreasing, and the pain of seeing other people living lives I wish I had a taste of was too much.
Maybe this will help me focus on non-social activities, at least until the New Year. Then, who knows? I may go back on FB and realize that no one missed me.