Alone

It’s really an irony, instruments that were designed to bring people close have actually taken them apart. According to a study, depression in teenagers has increased because of social media platform, Facebook. Remember the good old days, where, as students, we used to write compositions and debate on advantages and disadvantages of technology. I still remember that one of the advantages was that it has made communication easy and has brought people closer. 

But look at society today! Even if some friends are sitting at a table drinking coffee, the majority of their time is spent looking at their mobiles. Isn’t this an irony! Facebook, Twitter, WhatsApp, Video call, and smartphones were designed so that people who don’t live nearby, or can’t talk to each other easily are able to communicate. We know what our friends are doing, what’s the major happening in their life and even though we are miles apart, be part of their life. 

But (and that’s a big but), cases of depression, suicides, and mob firing are increasing. I am not a psychologist, I might be wrong in assuming this, but I believe these cases are a result of people not being able to communicate. When we are not able to express our feelings, our shortcomings or our expectations properly, over the period of time, it builds up to frustration, which leads to various unreasonable actions. 

They say that 90% of the problem is solved once you accept that there is a problem. And my aim of this article is to do just that. To all reading this, remember you are not Alone! In the sea of friends, acquaintances and relatives, that are easily reachable through various means, find someone to talk.

•  If it is difficult to open up to someone known, then start writing a blog. Blogs are a very good way to talk about your feelings and get suggestions and feedback. It’s not necessary to reveal true identity on a blog if that’s what makes opening up that difficult. 

•   Make friends with strangers on Facebook and Twitter, start talking to them on a regular basis, initially just about regular stuff, gradually it would be easy to talk to them about anything.

•  Look for groups, virtual assistants, home-based workers. You can check sites like Upwork and Fiverr where you can talk to people at length, get advice or not, at a very low price. In case going to a psych seems a weird option.

Try, and try really hard, and let’s use the technology to do what they were really designed to do. There is no reason to feel jealous or frustrated from what others are doing. Understand, everyone thinks different. From photographs and status, it might seem that the grass is greener on the other side, but actually, it might not be true. Enjoy life your own way, create time for yourself and do stuff that makes you smile, if not every day, then once every week. 

And it is not necessary that going to an exotic or a remote location would give pleasure, it could be a small activity like taking care of plants, sitting with friends and making stuff out of waste material, taking care of pets, playing an instrument, singing, writing, anything. Realize, React, Rejoice!