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I've deleted my Facebook and Instagram due to being fed up with Meta and realising that it didn't bring me any joy, just wasting my time. I don't use Snapchat and I hate Tictoc with a passion. I'm happy with my decision.
And this is the problem of course. I am off Facebook and LinkedIn now, but I have to use WhatsApp because that's my mum's chosen app and I am not going to go through teaching her something new to use again.
Facebook became a toxic tool for public and political opinions. Watched close members of my family twist conversations into things they had been reading online. They never had any political leanings before. Dumped it and never looked back. Check on Insta once in a blue moon. Ditched twitter as it’s worse.
Reddit is only social media when used in specific ways, especially using some of the newer features.
Otherwise you would probably have to class a BBS from the 1980s social media as well.
The most useful distinction is when you are posting content about yourself and your life/consuming content about other users, rather than mostly just discussing third hand subjects, like hobbies, etc.
I take photos of day to day life, trips, events, etc, and have been doing so since long before social media. I don't know why it irks me so much but it really bothers me that people assume that's why I'm taking pictures.
Then again, I can't blame them since you're absolutely right.
36, been off Facebook since like 2009, tried instagram for a few years and I’ve been off it for over a year now. Just a group chat with some buddies, Snapchat to keep up with those same buddies and some laughs, and now this little goblin (which I also don’t consider social media). Zero regrets about deleting the others. Facebook was annoying as fuck, and Instagram I think is the single worst thing for mental health right now. It’s just an absolute highlight reel of how awesome other people lives appear and sucking the happiness out of your own. Death by comparison.
Deleted all social media a while ago simply because I don't care about what celebrities are doing, whose at what party, or what people are eating. And these companies just sell your data to third parties for extra income, a good few people have been signed up for shit that they've never even heard of because of it
I'm very happy with my decision, I won't be getting social media again
I'm in the boat of I don't count Reddit as social media, as I don't directly communicate or follow any particular person/people.
I had MySpace way back when, and then Facebook for a number of years when that took over. I deactivated my account around 10 years ago. Never joined Twitter/X, Instagram, any other social media.
I don't regret it at all, vastly helped my mental health.
I don’t class Reddit as social media.
I don’t use it to keep tabs on family or friends or use to it update people on my life.
In my opinion it’s unsocial media.
And to answer OPs question I have no regrets. I’m happier living without having to listen to other people’s drama and can get all my news and interests from places like Reddit.
If people need to get hold of me they have my number. I don’t have to worry about unknown people trying to contact me either.
So have I. But out of curiosity, as a follow up question to this, how old are we?
I found that typically it’s the millennials who are getting off social (hint mid to late thirties/forties) whereas the Zoomers are obviously on + retired folks who are embracing social media with a very different worldview
Not an answer to you question, but a beloved friend of mine who lives in another country deleted all her social media a few years ago. Because of this I have no way of reaching her anymore. I didn't ever imagine losing someone like that in our modern day and age.
I deleted Facebook about ten years ago. Mainly because people I know in person and seemed normal would constantly post nonsense looking for attention. I never missed it once. Technically I am still on X and Instagram. I spend little to no time on Instagram however I do use X just because I like to keep updated on things I am interested in and people who I know personally snd follow don't appear to post much on X when compared to Facebook.
There is a halfway option - remove all app notifications from social media apps. Now you can still see what you want, when you want, without being pulled into it.
Did this years ago and its the best.
Yes, I deleted Twitter. I haven’t deleted fb or insta but I very rarely open them. It was so bad for my mental health. The only thing I miss is following bands/artists and finding out about concerts. The rest of it is just soul crushing nonsense and terrible for the self esteem
Very happy. Got rid of FB and IG at start of the year and have zero regrets. I genuinely don’t give AF what people I haven’t spoken to in years are posting or doing on either platform and I get my scroll on with Reddit anyway so haven’t looked back. It’s actually pretty liberating if you’re thinking about trying it.
Deleted FB and rarely use instagram. My hobby was photography, boudoir specifically…. My accounts were reported all the time for nudity even though I never posted fully nude and they were very tasteful pictures. Unlike the hundreds of OF ads 🤨
Never been happier. It feels like I'm not pressured to have aesthetic life like on Instagram or fun life like on tik tok. It's just so nice to hangout with my homies and live in the moment
Yes, I've still got the accounts for the pictures but don't know the passwords (deleted them in my saved cache). I can look at it via a family member who is my friend if I want the pictures. Now I don't have to see everyone else pretending, get FOMO for things ppl later tell me we're not as they seemed, wo her how everyone loose a stone lighter than they do when I meet them (fake pictures) or wonder why everyone ignores wars and serious global issues like they don't happen. I also used to comment on things I thought needed challenging and this was not helpful with algorithms thinking I wanted to see more...
Deleted Facebook about 10 years ago, never signed up to any other social media (other than reddit). I wouldn’t even notice it except for all the people telling me about the cool shit they get from Facebook marketplace.
I deleted my Facebook account two years ago. I have no online presence on any other social media site other than this one. I don't regret a single thing.
I deleted it because I realized that it was not good for my mental health. Social media can be an addiction that takes many forms. I had to do some deep reflection and came to some unsettling conclusions:
* Despite being a social media website, I wasn't very social on it. The things I posted would get little interaction as well.
* Cultural zeitgeist shifted to Twitter, so content from my friends slowly disappeared and was replaced with content from influencers, ads, and "friends of friends" aka people I don't even know.
* After the 2016 election, content became (and stayed) very politicized and radicalized
* I realized I didn't actually need it for anything and was naturally using it less and less. There were other ways to keep in contact with the people I cared about.
* I was constantly having my thoughts and emotions toyed with.
One and five were the keys for me.
As far as one goes, there is little point to social media if there isn't genuine interpersonal interactions going on (and with the advent of AI, that will be happening less and less). I could post things all day and I would get barely any interaction. One day, I stopped posting and waited to see if anyone would notice. No one noticed for six years, until during a phone conversation about why I don't have Facebook anymore, my father remarked that he hadn't seen any of my content in "a long, long time". And I'm a nerd, not one to post conversation topics that would get me shadow banned, so I have no understanding behind why I was de-prioritized by the algorithm (and me ceasing to post definitely didn't help). But getting exiled from the digital equivalent of town square does nothing to encourage people to be part of the site.
So when I deactivated my account two years ago, it felt like the logical thing to do.
As far as the last point goes, there is no way to consume social media aggregated into a feed without exposing yourself to both positive and negative stimuli, and these algorithms that power the feed have been weaponized to feed you the content that is most guaranteed to elicit a powerful emotional response, because **that's what keeps people sticking around**. This makes the company money. Everywhere I looked, my thoughts and emotions were getting interrupted and supplanted with the contents of my feed. I did not appreciate this.
Another article about religious overreach? Thanks for reminding me that I don't like organized religion. Someone had a kid? Congratulations, happy for you, truly. Someone raising awareness about war crimes in Ukraine? There goes my mood cratering again. Scroll down and another Z-tier influencer is getting exposed again? Spicy. Do I even know this person? The next post is about someone sharing their experiences with sexual assault? I probably just triggered someone. *That's exactly my point!*
When you consume the content of these feeds, you are yielding your emotions to Big Tech. It is not healthy for your emotions to be on a yo-yo, going up and down outside of your control. Everywhere I go, people are always agitated and upset because of something they just recently saw or witnessed online. It's exhausting being in the center of the nexus. It's exhausting being on the outskirts. Ain't y'all tired?
The answer is rhetorical. Of course you are. You're so tired that being tired has become your new normal, and you can't remember the last time you didn't feel tired.
But even more importantly than that, I felt myself constantly prepping responses to questions posed on social media that I would probably never be asked. I had to ask myself why I felt that my opinion was so important that it needed to be shared. A vast majority of the time, I am not a subject matter expert on the topic at hand, and I have little to add to the conversation. I would do better to be quiet and learn. But even so, I found myself psychologically prepping for these moments and I couldn't understand why. Perhaps it's because I feared the spotlight being put on me, with someone forcing an ultimatum over a current event in a public space and I either had to give the "right answer" or face being mocked. Is that even based in reality? Maybe a little of column A, a little of column B. But I can tell you that after stepping away, I found myself "prepping" less and less. I challenged myself to reflect on if my opinion was necessary and valuable to add to the conversation, or if I was just looking for attention and a dopamine hit.
Detoxing was hard, but I did it, and you can too.
Thanks for reading the wall of text.
I ditched FB a few years ago and shortly after Instagram. I do miss Insta a bit but more the old Instagram where it was just interesting and cool photos rather than what it became. I’ve never had any other of the mainstream social media platforms (X, TikTok etc) I genuinely don’t miss FB, fucking garbage fire of a platform.
Happier without. I made the effort to actually email/call/catch up with the friends I valued, and was happy to let go of the rest. It's been about 5 years. I'm pushing 50 for context, and have become slightly better about keeping in touch and maintaining friendships than I was before entering the "social" media void. I Reddit and read the paper online, and mostly avoid screens otherwise.
Deleted facebook, Instagram, had snapchat for maybe 2 weeks, hated it. Everything is gone, and it is so freeing. It's nice not feeling addicted to checking something constantly. It's even nicer not scrolling the lunacy people post. But then I got reddit 🙃
Deleted Facebook, insta, and Strava a couple months ago and have not missed it for a second. They really only served as a way to compare myself to others or put things about myself online to "meet expectations" and it was actively making my life worse. Also deleted my decade old account here because it's all meaningless points, but I created a new account after a couple weeks. Turns out, I don't miss the internet points either, but being able to connect with people in smaller communities to discuss things I'm passionate about was something I missed.
Reddit is the only social I use, I’ve deleted the rest. They were making me deeply unhappy, polarized and furious. It was hard to watch friends and family become polarized, and continue to be. Upside is: everything. Less rage, more time to do hobbies (I’ve read and exercised a lot). Downside is I am missing out on what memes everyone’s talking about. But I’ll take the trade off. Other slight downside is I’m on Reddit more, but I’ve been working on curating that to be interest and learning based, instead of polarizing.
Getting off socials has made me more choosy about where I am receiving news as well. That was a big part about other socials I hated, everyone reposts “news”, but you can’t always see where it’s coming from, and most of the time it’s things that are just not true, or with serious spin one way or another.
I also am tired of virtue signaling on socials. People who say and post things just to feel “in” with whatever respective crowd they’re trying to be in with. That kind of thing is still on Reddit, but it’s different than when you see it on other places. I also find it’s easier to ignore on Reddit, but that could just be me.
So much happier. Instagram is terrible for your mental health. I truly believe there is no healthy relationship with social media. This includes Reddit. I haven’t been able to break off from here yet.
The ONLY thing I miss is finding clothes and brands I like through Instagram recommendations.
Before the 2016 US election, I had started logging into Facebook less & less. Recently my phone died & I realized going back through apps that I have not logged into Facebook At All since 2019. That's how much I don't miss it.
When twitter was morphing into whatever it is now, I turned off alerts & haven't looked at it since.
That being said, I did reactivate my Instagram maybe 6 months ago. So far, the algorithm has been benign; it does not shove irrelevant or political stuff in my face no matter how much they are getting paid, but the comments on Every. Single. Thing. Will have at least one political troll. Considering I limit myself almost exclusively to crafts like knitting, quilting, some cooking, I imagine anything remotely mainstream must be a cesspit
It's probably just a matter of time until they return to a YouTube- type situation where every third thing is something you wouldn't watch for money. Then I will turn that off as well, no regrets.
There is one that I do interact with daily: Ravelry. I used to be annoyed they didn't have an app, but now I think that's probably why it is still functioning as intended.
Yeah love it! It feels like the internet I grew up with - with minimal negativity. Reddit has become my new thing haha - it’s been great so far! It’s been a month.
50/50
I just deleted 1 out of 2 of my main social media apps (TikTok) and I’m doing pretty good. It freed up time for me to start watching shows again and do other things besides rotting. I feel like I have a clearer mind and when I am on social media, I’m a lot more intentional and mindful.
Although I will say, I do slightly regret deleting TikTok since I just bought tickets to Japan for next year. Planning has been a bit more difficult than I expected. I feel like I should just download it again to get recommendations since the content on there is more personable.
Didn't delete them yet, but I barely use them at all.
I quit instagram because there is nothing of value or nothing fun there. Just people taking pictures of everyday meals or sunsets or random attention seeking selfies.
Reels that promote shitty behavior and brainwash people and creates metal issues.
Deleted Facebook and Instagram. And I don't use any apps with social features. No regrets. Can't believe I almost grew up thinking data farming and being stalkable was normal.
Millennial here. Haven’t been on Facebook in 10 years. Quit Instagram about a year ago. Don’t use TIkTok, and use Snapchat sometimes in solidarity with my husband (he works there). I don’t count Reddit as social media.
Quitting Instagram was the best thing ever for my mental health
I never deleted my profiles but deleted the apps. I don't regret it one bit when it comes to people I actually know. I recently went back to instagram to get info on sports and TV shows, and ended up silencing/deleting everyone I know in "real life" because the people I care about are the ones that are actually part of my life and not my aunt who I haven't seen since I was a kid or the dude I worked with on my first job.
The fact that they're not here if they deleted their social media might have escaped you. FYI: this *is* a social medium.
But to answer your question. I deleted Facebook and LinkedIn, kept Instagram and deleted Twitter. No regrets whatsoever. Whatsapp is not a social medium if you use it as intended; a kind of personal messaging service. Youtube isn't either in my opinion; I just watch movies that are interesting. TikTok is as stupid as X/Twitter only more visual so a waste of time, deleted that too.
I kept finding myself getting into dumb arguments with ppl or looking at ex’s too much, both especially while drinking and it just wasn’t making me happy so I deleted it all back in 12/2023. It took a few months but I don’t miss it at all and I feel much more free now
Deleted fb, trimmed down my friends list on insta. Planning on deleting it soonish. I kinda like the targeted ads. Really happy with my decision to delete fb.
Someone hacked my Facebook account during COVID and bought ads in languages I can't even read. I got banned from Facebook and they ignored all my appeals and emails. I had been using it for like a decade. Well I still use Reddit from time to time, I feel a little less burdened if that makes sense
Deleted Facebook after about 6 weeks, back around 2009, and never regretted it. For me, it was mostly old acquaintances from high school, who got mad when I didn't "Like" every picture of their kid. That, and a lot of women in my family making their lives look a LOT better and happier than I knew they actually were.
I found the whole thing to be fake, and a complete waste of time.
super happy with the decision, about to get off reddit too, for good this time (lol) this site promotes pedophilia and domestic terrorism, way too hard.
There is days I miss Twitter. But then I remember all the trash that showed up on my feed.
Fb might be next, but I’ve been pruning people off and kept it manageable by eliminating anyone I haven’t heard from in a year.
Aside of here and the very rare comment on YouTube, I've been off all forms of social media since November 2018.
On here, for the most part when I comment, I drop what I want to say and I'm done with the post, same with YT.
I do miss some posts from family that post stuff on Facebook, but they all have my # and can clue me in at any time if they choose to. Most of it, I don't care for/miss.
Nextdoor is just Facebook for local residents bitching about something, same with Ring - I miss nothing.
Overall, I'm very happy with my decision.
Deleted my FB years ago and just had to open a new one because Kijiji in my area sucks and you can't access marketplace without an account.
And I would like to find a place to live before they tear down my current place.
No Instagram, deleted Facebook a couple of months ago. Don't miss it at all. Also don't have LinkedIn, I get some weird looks when I mention that at work but really don't feel the need to join.
For years I used Facebook an awful lot of. I got rid of it in April 2020 when it was constantly all over my newsfeed about Covid and I just felt like I couldn’t escape it . I was already super stressed about the situation (like many folk) and having it in my face 24/7 was absolutely not helping .. my anxiety was through the roof .
It was hard for the first month or so because I had a lot of online friendships and obviously lockdown was pretty isolating . But after that initial period had passed .. I was absolutely fine.
Over 4 years later and I’ve never looked back .
You couldn’t pay me to get it again now . I don’t miss the constant drama . I don’t miss anything at all.
I still speak to a small amount of people that I made friends with on there and the rest clearly were never ‘friends’ to begin with 🤷🏼♀️
It’s a horrible toxic platform and I wish Facebook .. and TikTok .. was no more
I deleted Facebook about 10 years ago after a friend posted something and I made a joke in the comments that was actually quite offensive and it hurt her. I was actually quite ashamed of myself, not for the joke itself, but for not considering how my joke might upset her. I deleted Facebook that evening. I sometimes miss hearing what my old mates are up to, but other than that, no don’t miss it at all.
I am 1000% happier! No more of those “it’s my birthday month people” no more constantly consoling people when I’m over here fucked up myself, just no more envy of fake shit that made me feel less than!
Glad I got rid of then all besides reddit. The only thing that's inconvenient is Craigslist and offer etc are obsolete by now and market place really took the place for buying used/selling used. Other then that I don't mind it not in my life.
Slightly off topic, but there's a hybrid: delete it from your phone, but don't delete your accounts.
Log on when you're on your laptop, but remove the tendency to mindlessly scroll through SM during the day when you're mobile.
I've done this (including Reddit) and couldn't be happier with the decision. Realize that I don't miss out on much, and have lessened my exposure to all the negative shit SM has to offer.
I stopped using Facebook. That’s the only other social media I used to use regularly years ago. (Never made an Instagram or TikTok or anything like that). I stopped fb mainly because of family who were on it. My family is prone to drama and I got tired of watching it in real time.
At first I just tried blocking the people whose content I often found upsetting. But that led to people getting mad at me because I wasn’t engaging with their posts. For example one family member ended up posting that one of their pets had died. I obviously didn’t see it because I had blocked them without telling them. They then got offended that I had not reached out or anything. When I said I had not been online they called me out saying, “I know you were online because I can see you were posting that day.” That made me realize how petty this shit can be and decided then and there it was better to just truthfully…not be online. Then no one can give me shit about anything anymore.
Honestly it was a great decision. I don’t have to deal with anything now lol
I used in various years Twitter and Tik Tok where it got weird each time in different years.
Influencers would start following and then lifting my tweets or videos for topic ideas, while I was just talking random.
I was stuck in this weird situation where I never did what I did for followers, more for myself, so why should I care if people doing it like a job lifted things?
Yet something in me found it annoying when it was like seeing a mirror copy, like they were trying to be you to get ahead.
I know it sounds paranoid, but it happened quite a few times regularly, wasn't imagining it, back when I was actively posting stuff.
Technically, you put something up publically, you have no say in people lifting off you unless it's blatantly copyrighted stuff.
I think it bothered me not in them doing it as much as the kind of people most were are people I don't like, so it felt odd seeing people I'm not into using me to a uniquely social media type way.
So how do you stop them? You stop supplying content. And if I'm not saying or doing anything, why stay? I actually do have a life. 😄 Not like I was selling anything.
So I left it all in a day, pulled plug, done. I've ditched thousands from channels I used of various alias without explanation.
I've been perfectly content with it.
I always remember how my wife put it. She said they're sad and pathetic people who need to take from others because they can't think for themselves.
They'll always know they're a weaker copy of actual thoughts and personalities of others.
She said wherever I go and whatever I'm doing, it's actually me. Something they'll never know what it's like and who you are at the end of the day is really all we have.
So in the end, where the only online talking I do these days is thinking out loud on Reddit, I'm good.
Keep my humor for my wife. Screw the public. 😁
I got off Facebook, Instagram, Twitter. Was never on TikTok (I live in Hong Kong and it's ironically always been illegal here). Instagram was the most recent. It feels great.
Of course I'm still here on Reddit.
I got with my partner iv now been with for 6 yrs we both deleted our social media after a year due to conflict because of perverts n weirdos best thing we did beit was causing so much trouble in our relationship
I didn't delete anything, I just scaled back my participation to near zero. It's not like having social media accounts obliges you to do anything. Grow up.
I deleted my fb back last year, deleted snapchat in April I used to be on there off and on, but then it got to point like what's the reason of even being on here? It feels great not being confined to how others in this world feels towards you, when you dwelling about how others view ya, you're boxing yourself in with misery. I don't plan on going back to social media for a while, there are others I know who steady click on&off those apps the whole time we're hanging out I'm just like 🤦🏾 for real tho the shhi isn't that serious, steady posting pictures, telling ya plans, mentioning where you're going etc. Trying to impress people is pointless, being a people pleaser extra pointless also.
I deleted all of my social media, apart from reddit, for 3 reasons:
An ex stalked me for a few years and would regularly make fake accounts to contact me or to pretend to be me.
I started working in a specific engineering industry where recognisable social media is considered risky, due to the nature of that industry.
I stopped enjoying it.
These days I’m only on reddit. I miss not talking to people I like, but I can’t really go back on other social media.
Edit: Just made a profile on Instagram, but kept it small.
I deleted my social media and I feel great about it. No regrets. It did not help me keep in contact with old friends, only texting did that. It had doom scrolling. I personally count Reddit as social media, but I just got it. So technically idk.
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I've deleted my Facebook and Instagram due to being fed up with Meta and realising that it didn't bring me any joy, just wasting my time. I don't use Snapchat and I hate Tictoc with a passion. I'm happy with my decision.
Welcome to reddit. Everyone here isn't an addict and we all can quit reddit whenever we want!
no lmao, reddit is pretty addictive.
It’s the text version of TikTok
TextTok!
I wish i could get rid of meta, but outside of the US it’s impossible because everyone uses whatsapp
And this is the problem of course. I am off Facebook and LinkedIn now, but I have to use WhatsApp because that's my mum's chosen app and I am not going to go through teaching her something new to use again.
everyone i know has an iphone and NOBODY uses imessage. whatsapp has a very strong chokehold.
At least that is just direct communication though rather than social media.
Same!
Nearly 8 years clean from Facebook. Don't miss it one bit.On the flip side, I've no idea what anyone is having for dinner nowadays. 🙂
I’m having spaghetti. Be glad to send you a pic when it’s ready!
Facebook became a toxic tool for public and political opinions. Watched close members of my family twist conversations into things they had been reading online. They never had any political leanings before. Dumped it and never looked back. Check on Insta once in a blue moon. Ditched twitter as it’s worse.
there's porn on x now though
The only reason people do things anymore is so they can put a photo on social media, it's disgusting and I don't personally use any social media.
>I don't personally use any social media Proclaims proudly on Reddit...
Reddit is only social media when used in specific ways, especially using some of the newer features. Otherwise you would probably have to class a BBS from the 1980s social media as well. The most useful distinction is when you are posting content about yourself and your life/consuming content about other users, rather than mostly just discussing third hand subjects, like hobbies, etc.
I take photos of day to day life, trips, events, etc, and have been doing so since long before social media. I don't know why it irks me so much but it really bothers me that people assume that's why I'm taking pictures. Then again, I can't blame them since you're absolutely right.
36, been off Facebook since like 2009, tried instagram for a few years and I’ve been off it for over a year now. Just a group chat with some buddies, Snapchat to keep up with those same buddies and some laughs, and now this little goblin (which I also don’t consider social media). Zero regrets about deleting the others. Facebook was annoying as fuck, and Instagram I think is the single worst thing for mental health right now. It’s just an absolute highlight reel of how awesome other people lives appear and sucking the happiness out of your own. Death by comparison.
Deleted all social media a while ago simply because I don't care about what celebrities are doing, whose at what party, or what people are eating. And these companies just sell your data to third parties for extra income, a good few people have been signed up for shit that they've never even heard of because of it I'm very happy with my decision, I won't be getting social media again
I'm in the boat of I don't count Reddit as social media, as I don't directly communicate or follow any particular person/people. I had MySpace way back when, and then Facebook for a number of years when that took over. I deactivated my account around 10 years ago. Never joined Twitter/X, Instagram, any other social media. I don't regret it at all, vastly helped my mental health.
obviously unhappy or they're never going to read this
I don’t class Reddit as social media. I don’t use it to keep tabs on family or friends or use to it update people on my life. In my opinion it’s unsocial media. And to answer OPs question I have no regrets. I’m happier living without having to listen to other people’s drama and can get all my news and interests from places like Reddit. If people need to get hold of me they have my number. I don’t have to worry about unknown people trying to contact me either.
Reddit absolutely is social media
Its a glorified web forum, there is a massive difference with web forums and facebook.
reddit isnt social media the same way 4 chan isnt social media
Deleted fb years ago. Very glad I did!
So have I. But out of curiosity, as a follow up question to this, how old are we? I found that typically it’s the millennials who are getting off social (hint mid to late thirties/forties) whereas the Zoomers are obviously on + retired folks who are embracing social media with a very different worldview
Not an answer to you question, but a beloved friend of mine who lives in another country deleted all her social media a few years ago. Because of this I have no way of reaching her anymore. I didn't ever imagine losing someone like that in our modern day and age.
I deleted Facebook about ten years ago. Mainly because people I know in person and seemed normal would constantly post nonsense looking for attention. I never missed it once. Technically I am still on X and Instagram. I spend little to no time on Instagram however I do use X just because I like to keep updated on things I am interested in and people who I know personally snd follow don't appear to post much on X when compared to Facebook.
There is a halfway option - remove all app notifications from social media apps. Now you can still see what you want, when you want, without being pulled into it. Did this years ago and its the best.
FB deleted, Insta Deleted, Reddit, Youtube deleted many times. Don't hv tik tok or anything else. It's good to take a break form all this nonsense.
Yes, I deleted Twitter. I haven’t deleted fb or insta but I very rarely open them. It was so bad for my mental health. The only thing I miss is following bands/artists and finding out about concerts. The rest of it is just soul crushing nonsense and terrible for the self esteem
Very happy. Got rid of FB and IG at start of the year and have zero regrets. I genuinely don’t give AF what people I haven’t spoken to in years are posting or doing on either platform and I get my scroll on with Reddit anyway so haven’t looked back. It’s actually pretty liberating if you’re thinking about trying it.
Deleted FB and rarely use instagram. My hobby was photography, boudoir specifically…. My accounts were reported all the time for nudity even though I never posted fully nude and they were very tasteful pictures. Unlike the hundreds of OF ads 🤨
Never been happier. It feels like I'm not pressured to have aesthetic life like on Instagram or fun life like on tik tok. It's just so nice to hangout with my homies and live in the moment
Reddit only since 2013. Do not regret it one bit.
Yea feels like i was carrying a weight
So unbelievably happy.
Yes, I've still got the accounts for the pictures but don't know the passwords (deleted them in my saved cache). I can look at it via a family member who is my friend if I want the pictures. Now I don't have to see everyone else pretending, get FOMO for things ppl later tell me we're not as they seemed, wo her how everyone loose a stone lighter than they do when I meet them (fake pictures) or wonder why everyone ignores wars and serious global issues like they don't happen. I also used to comment on things I thought needed challenging and this was not helpful with algorithms thinking I wanted to see more...
And no more time vacuum
reddit is a social media whether you like it or not it's not much different then Facebook or Instagram
Deleted Facebook about 10 years ago, never signed up to any other social media (other than reddit). I wouldn’t even notice it except for all the people telling me about the cool shit they get from Facebook marketplace.
I deleted my Facebook account two years ago. I have no online presence on any other social media site other than this one. I don't regret a single thing. I deleted it because I realized that it was not good for my mental health. Social media can be an addiction that takes many forms. I had to do some deep reflection and came to some unsettling conclusions: * Despite being a social media website, I wasn't very social on it. The things I posted would get little interaction as well. * Cultural zeitgeist shifted to Twitter, so content from my friends slowly disappeared and was replaced with content from influencers, ads, and "friends of friends" aka people I don't even know. * After the 2016 election, content became (and stayed) very politicized and radicalized * I realized I didn't actually need it for anything and was naturally using it less and less. There were other ways to keep in contact with the people I cared about. * I was constantly having my thoughts and emotions toyed with. One and five were the keys for me. As far as one goes, there is little point to social media if there isn't genuine interpersonal interactions going on (and with the advent of AI, that will be happening less and less). I could post things all day and I would get barely any interaction. One day, I stopped posting and waited to see if anyone would notice. No one noticed for six years, until during a phone conversation about why I don't have Facebook anymore, my father remarked that he hadn't seen any of my content in "a long, long time". And I'm a nerd, not one to post conversation topics that would get me shadow banned, so I have no understanding behind why I was de-prioritized by the algorithm (and me ceasing to post definitely didn't help). But getting exiled from the digital equivalent of town square does nothing to encourage people to be part of the site. So when I deactivated my account two years ago, it felt like the logical thing to do. As far as the last point goes, there is no way to consume social media aggregated into a feed without exposing yourself to both positive and negative stimuli, and these algorithms that power the feed have been weaponized to feed you the content that is most guaranteed to elicit a powerful emotional response, because **that's what keeps people sticking around**. This makes the company money. Everywhere I looked, my thoughts and emotions were getting interrupted and supplanted with the contents of my feed. I did not appreciate this. Another article about religious overreach? Thanks for reminding me that I don't like organized religion. Someone had a kid? Congratulations, happy for you, truly. Someone raising awareness about war crimes in Ukraine? There goes my mood cratering again. Scroll down and another Z-tier influencer is getting exposed again? Spicy. Do I even know this person? The next post is about someone sharing their experiences with sexual assault? I probably just triggered someone. *That's exactly my point!* When you consume the content of these feeds, you are yielding your emotions to Big Tech. It is not healthy for your emotions to be on a yo-yo, going up and down outside of your control. Everywhere I go, people are always agitated and upset because of something they just recently saw or witnessed online. It's exhausting being in the center of the nexus. It's exhausting being on the outskirts. Ain't y'all tired? The answer is rhetorical. Of course you are. You're so tired that being tired has become your new normal, and you can't remember the last time you didn't feel tired. But even more importantly than that, I felt myself constantly prepping responses to questions posed on social media that I would probably never be asked. I had to ask myself why I felt that my opinion was so important that it needed to be shared. A vast majority of the time, I am not a subject matter expert on the topic at hand, and I have little to add to the conversation. I would do better to be quiet and learn. But even so, I found myself psychologically prepping for these moments and I couldn't understand why. Perhaps it's because I feared the spotlight being put on me, with someone forcing an ultimatum over a current event in a public space and I either had to give the "right answer" or face being mocked. Is that even based in reality? Maybe a little of column A, a little of column B. But I can tell you that after stepping away, I found myself "prepping" less and less. I challenged myself to reflect on if my opinion was necessary and valuable to add to the conversation, or if I was just looking for attention and a dopamine hit. Detoxing was hard, but I did it, and you can too. Thanks for reading the wall of text.
Excellent post, you put my experience into words succinctly, well done!
18, been off instagram for over 3 years now.
Deleted Facebook years ago. Not missed it one. Luckily never had Instagram etc. Now I just waste most of my time on youtube/reddit.
I ditched FB a few years ago and shortly after Instagram. I do miss Insta a bit but more the old Instagram where it was just interesting and cool photos rather than what it became. I’ve never had any other of the mainstream social media platforms (X, TikTok etc) I genuinely don’t miss FB, fucking garbage fire of a platform.
Happier without. I made the effort to actually email/call/catch up with the friends I valued, and was happy to let go of the rest. It's been about 5 years. I'm pushing 50 for context, and have become slightly better about keeping in touch and maintaining friendships than I was before entering the "social" media void. I Reddit and read the paper online, and mostly avoid screens otherwise.
Happy with it. Twitter was the only one I used outside reddit and I miss nothing and have missed nothing.
Deleted facebook, Instagram, had snapchat for maybe 2 weeks, hated it. Everything is gone, and it is so freeing. It's nice not feeling addicted to checking something constantly. It's even nicer not scrolling the lunacy people post. But then I got reddit 🙃
This is a Bot account. Reddit is over. Report for Spam
Deleted Facebook, insta, and Strava a couple months ago and have not missed it for a second. They really only served as a way to compare myself to others or put things about myself online to "meet expectations" and it was actively making my life worse. Also deleted my decade old account here because it's all meaningless points, but I created a new account after a couple weeks. Turns out, I don't miss the internet points either, but being able to connect with people in smaller communities to discuss things I'm passionate about was something I missed.
Reddit is the only social I use, I’ve deleted the rest. They were making me deeply unhappy, polarized and furious. It was hard to watch friends and family become polarized, and continue to be. Upside is: everything. Less rage, more time to do hobbies (I’ve read and exercised a lot). Downside is I am missing out on what memes everyone’s talking about. But I’ll take the trade off. Other slight downside is I’m on Reddit more, but I’ve been working on curating that to be interest and learning based, instead of polarizing. Getting off socials has made me more choosy about where I am receiving news as well. That was a big part about other socials I hated, everyone reposts “news”, but you can’t always see where it’s coming from, and most of the time it’s things that are just not true, or with serious spin one way or another. I also am tired of virtue signaling on socials. People who say and post things just to feel “in” with whatever respective crowd they’re trying to be in with. That kind of thing is still on Reddit, but it’s different than when you see it on other places. I also find it’s easier to ignore on Reddit, but that could just be me.
Very happy, it was an utter waste of time. Reddit isn't really much better, but the amount of ruSSian propaganda is much less here.
Happy.
Massively happy, only have reddit now... soon will that too. Social media just makes you unhappy, always comparing to others.
Deleted and never looked back. No regrets at all!
Definitely do NOT regret parting ways with social media.
So much happier. Instagram is terrible for your mental health. I truly believe there is no healthy relationship with social media. This includes Reddit. I haven’t been able to break off from here yet. The ONLY thing I miss is finding clothes and brands I like through Instagram recommendations.
Before the 2016 US election, I had started logging into Facebook less & less. Recently my phone died & I realized going back through apps that I have not logged into Facebook At All since 2019. That's how much I don't miss it. When twitter was morphing into whatever it is now, I turned off alerts & haven't looked at it since. That being said, I did reactivate my Instagram maybe 6 months ago. So far, the algorithm has been benign; it does not shove irrelevant or political stuff in my face no matter how much they are getting paid, but the comments on Every. Single. Thing. Will have at least one political troll. Considering I limit myself almost exclusively to crafts like knitting, quilting, some cooking, I imagine anything remotely mainstream must be a cesspit It's probably just a matter of time until they return to a YouTube- type situation where every third thing is something you wouldn't watch for money. Then I will turn that off as well, no regrets. There is one that I do interact with daily: Ravelry. I used to be annoyed they didn't have an app, but now I think that's probably why it is still functioning as intended.
Removing myself from social media is a decision I constantly am reminded of that I did right.
Yeah love it! It feels like the internet I grew up with - with minimal negativity. Reddit has become my new thing haha - it’s been great so far! It’s been a month.
50/50 I just deleted 1 out of 2 of my main social media apps (TikTok) and I’m doing pretty good. It freed up time for me to start watching shows again and do other things besides rotting. I feel like I have a clearer mind and when I am on social media, I’m a lot more intentional and mindful. Although I will say, I do slightly regret deleting TikTok since I just bought tickets to Japan for next year. Planning has been a bit more difficult than I expected. I feel like I should just download it again to get recommendations since the content on there is more personable.
Didn't delete them yet, but I barely use them at all. I quit instagram because there is nothing of value or nothing fun there. Just people taking pictures of everyday meals or sunsets or random attention seeking selfies. Reels that promote shitty behavior and brainwash people and creates metal issues.
Deleted Facebook and Instagram. And I don't use any apps with social features. No regrets. Can't believe I almost grew up thinking data farming and being stalkable was normal.
Nope. Deleted Facebook in 2012. Don’t have tik Tok. Have a fake Instagram to follow girls I meet at bars
Incredibly happy. I'm reading more, and my texts are much better (i like to read)
Millennial here. Haven’t been on Facebook in 10 years. Quit Instagram about a year ago. Don’t use TIkTok, and use Snapchat sometimes in solidarity with my husband (he works there). I don’t count Reddit as social media. Quitting Instagram was the best thing ever for my mental health
Deleted facebook and twitter in 2010 and haven't looked back.
I never deleted my profiles but deleted the apps. I don't regret it one bit when it comes to people I actually know. I recently went back to instagram to get info on sports and TV shows, and ended up silencing/deleting everyone I know in "real life" because the people I care about are the ones that are actually part of my life and not my aunt who I haven't seen since I was a kid or the dude I worked with on my first job.
The fact that they're not here if they deleted their social media might have escaped you. FYI: this *is* a social medium. But to answer your question. I deleted Facebook and LinkedIn, kept Instagram and deleted Twitter. No regrets whatsoever. Whatsapp is not a social medium if you use it as intended; a kind of personal messaging service. Youtube isn't either in my opinion; I just watch movies that are interesting. TikTok is as stupid as X/Twitter only more visual so a waste of time, deleted that too.
Loving it
Got rid of Facebook & Instagram 6+ years, im so much happier
I was till I found reddit yesterday.
I kept finding myself getting into dumb arguments with ppl or looking at ex’s too much, both especially while drinking and it just wasn’t making me happy so I deleted it all back in 12/2023. It took a few months but I don’t miss it at all and I feel much more free now
Zero regrets about leaving FB.
Deleted fb, trimmed down my friends list on insta. Planning on deleting it soonish. I kinda like the targeted ads. Really happy with my decision to delete fb.
Someone hacked my Facebook account during COVID and bought ads in languages I can't even read. I got banned from Facebook and they ignored all my appeals and emails. I had been using it for like a decade. Well I still use Reddit from time to time, I feel a little less burdened if that makes sense
Deleted Facebook after about 6 weeks, back around 2009, and never regretted it. For me, it was mostly old acquaintances from high school, who got mad when I didn't "Like" every picture of their kid. That, and a lot of women in my family making their lives look a LOT better and happier than I knew they actually were. I found the whole thing to be fake, and a complete waste of time.
super happy with the decision, about to get off reddit too, for good this time (lol) this site promotes pedophilia and domestic terrorism, way too hard.
Does Reddit not count as social media?
There is days I miss Twitter. But then I remember all the trash that showed up on my feed. Fb might be next, but I’ve been pruning people off and kept it manageable by eliminating anyone I haven’t heard from in a year.
Aside of here and the very rare comment on YouTube, I've been off all forms of social media since November 2018. On here, for the most part when I comment, I drop what I want to say and I'm done with the post, same with YT. I do miss some posts from family that post stuff on Facebook, but they all have my # and can clue me in at any time if they choose to. Most of it, I don't care for/miss. Nextdoor is just Facebook for local residents bitching about something, same with Ring - I miss nothing. Overall, I'm very happy with my decision.
Deleted my FB years ago and just had to open a new one because Kijiji in my area sucks and you can't access marketplace without an account. And I would like to find a place to live before they tear down my current place.
So happy after i deleted it. I was tired looking at everybody's reel lives. Reminded me of what all i did not have.
A year ago I killed fb and x profiles, kept reddit only and never looked back. My mental health improved.
No Instagram, deleted Facebook a couple of months ago. Don't miss it at all. Also don't have LinkedIn, I get some weird looks when I mention that at work but really don't feel the need to join.
Isn't reddit a social media?
For years I used Facebook an awful lot of. I got rid of it in April 2020 when it was constantly all over my newsfeed about Covid and I just felt like I couldn’t escape it . I was already super stressed about the situation (like many folk) and having it in my face 24/7 was absolutely not helping .. my anxiety was through the roof . It was hard for the first month or so because I had a lot of online friendships and obviously lockdown was pretty isolating . But after that initial period had passed .. I was absolutely fine. Over 4 years later and I’ve never looked back . You couldn’t pay me to get it again now . I don’t miss the constant drama . I don’t miss anything at all. I still speak to a small amount of people that I made friends with on there and the rest clearly were never ‘friends’ to begin with 🤷🏼♀️ It’s a horrible toxic platform and I wish Facebook .. and TikTok .. was no more
Sooooo happy.
I deleted Facebook about 10 years ago after a friend posted something and I made a joke in the comments that was actually quite offensive and it hurt her. I was actually quite ashamed of myself, not for the joke itself, but for not considering how my joke might upset her. I deleted Facebook that evening. I sometimes miss hearing what my old mates are up to, but other than that, no don’t miss it at all.
100% happier there’s not nearly as much negativity in my life. I gotta work my way up to deleting Reddit next but that’s coming soon.
2 years clean from socials and don’t miss it 1 bit! My mental health is slightly better for it too.
I am 1000% happier! No more of those “it’s my birthday month people” no more constantly consoling people when I’m over here fucked up myself, just no more envy of fake shit that made me feel less than!
...they ask on social media
Glad I got rid of then all besides reddit. The only thing that's inconvenient is Craigslist and offer etc are obsolete by now and market place really took the place for buying used/selling used. Other then that I don't mind it not in my life.
Bro who do you think you are asking.
Newsflash: Reddit is social media.
Yep, I've not got fb/snapshot or tiktok. I'm very happy with that decision haven't had Facebook in 8 years.
Slightly off topic, but there's a hybrid: delete it from your phone, but don't delete your accounts. Log on when you're on your laptop, but remove the tendency to mindlessly scroll through SM during the day when you're mobile. I've done this (including Reddit) and couldn't be happier with the decision. Realize that I don't miss out on much, and have lessened my exposure to all the negative shit SM has to offer.
I stopped using Facebook. That’s the only other social media I used to use regularly years ago. (Never made an Instagram or TikTok or anything like that). I stopped fb mainly because of family who were on it. My family is prone to drama and I got tired of watching it in real time. At first I just tried blocking the people whose content I often found upsetting. But that led to people getting mad at me because I wasn’t engaging with their posts. For example one family member ended up posting that one of their pets had died. I obviously didn’t see it because I had blocked them without telling them. They then got offended that I had not reached out or anything. When I said I had not been online they called me out saying, “I know you were online because I can see you were posting that day.” That made me realize how petty this shit can be and decided then and there it was better to just truthfully…not be online. Then no one can give me shit about anything anymore. Honestly it was a great decision. I don’t have to deal with anything now lol
I used in various years Twitter and Tik Tok where it got weird each time in different years. Influencers would start following and then lifting my tweets or videos for topic ideas, while I was just talking random. I was stuck in this weird situation where I never did what I did for followers, more for myself, so why should I care if people doing it like a job lifted things? Yet something in me found it annoying when it was like seeing a mirror copy, like they were trying to be you to get ahead. I know it sounds paranoid, but it happened quite a few times regularly, wasn't imagining it, back when I was actively posting stuff. Technically, you put something up publically, you have no say in people lifting off you unless it's blatantly copyrighted stuff. I think it bothered me not in them doing it as much as the kind of people most were are people I don't like, so it felt odd seeing people I'm not into using me to a uniquely social media type way. So how do you stop them? You stop supplying content. And if I'm not saying or doing anything, why stay? I actually do have a life. 😄 Not like I was selling anything. So I left it all in a day, pulled plug, done. I've ditched thousands from channels I used of various alias without explanation. I've been perfectly content with it. I always remember how my wife put it. She said they're sad and pathetic people who need to take from others because they can't think for themselves. They'll always know they're a weaker copy of actual thoughts and personalities of others. She said wherever I go and whatever I'm doing, it's actually me. Something they'll never know what it's like and who you are at the end of the day is really all we have. So in the end, where the only online talking I do these days is thinking out loud on Reddit, I'm good. Keep my humor for my wife. Screw the public. 😁
I got off Facebook, Instagram, Twitter. Was never on TikTok (I live in Hong Kong and it's ironically always been illegal here). Instagram was the most recent. It feels great. Of course I'm still here on Reddit.
deleted both FB and ~~meta~~ Instagram and fully do not regret it at all id delete Twitter but porn...
Deleted it all around 2016 when it because a political cesspool and haven’t regretted it.
I got with my partner iv now been with for 6 yrs we both deleted our social media after a year due to conflict because of perverts n weirdos best thing we did beit was causing so much trouble in our relationship
I didn't delete anything, I just scaled back my participation to near zero. It's not like having social media accounts obliges you to do anything. Grow up.
If they deleted social media, how would they answer this question? 😜
I deleted my fb back last year, deleted snapchat in April I used to be on there off and on, but then it got to point like what's the reason of even being on here? It feels great not being confined to how others in this world feels towards you, when you dwelling about how others view ya, you're boxing yourself in with misery. I don't plan on going back to social media for a while, there are others I know who steady click on&off those apps the whole time we're hanging out I'm just like 🤦🏾 for real tho the shhi isn't that serious, steady posting pictures, telling ya plans, mentioning where you're going etc. Trying to impress people is pointless, being a people pleaser extra pointless also.
I deleted all of my social media, apart from reddit, for 3 reasons: An ex stalked me for a few years and would regularly make fake accounts to contact me or to pretend to be me. I started working in a specific engineering industry where recognisable social media is considered risky, due to the nature of that industry. I stopped enjoying it. These days I’m only on reddit. I miss not talking to people I like, but I can’t really go back on other social media. Edit: Just made a profile on Instagram, but kept it small.
I deleted my social media and I feel great about it. No regrets. It did not help me keep in contact with old friends, only texting did that. It had doom scrolling. I personally count Reddit as social media, but I just got it. So technically idk.
I’m overall but I do feel lonely without as I don’t have much people to connect to anymore
But isn't Reddit classed as social media 🤷
Nobody here can answer that question because Reddit is social media...
Reddit is social media
I got bad news for you: people who deleted social media are not reading your question on reddit.
Would they even answer this if they’ve deleted social media?
Difficult question to answer as I’m not on here because I deleted all my social media.
Most they do is delete the old one, start a new one months later under a new name.
i dont know anyone who did that, what for? why would i make a new social media under a new name?
What is that based on haha
How are they supposed to answer you?
Reddit is social media.
yeah
Pretty sure those people might never be able to answer this