https://www.reddit.com/r/minimalism/comments/1i7bfzc/life_without_social_media/
created by Ok-Worldliness-6096 on 22/01/2025 at 13:46 UTC
280 upvotes, 179 top-level comments (showing 25)
Does anyone miss having instagram? I miss sending random things to friends throughout the day. I really havent felt the benefits of deleting it quite yet.
Comment by caitlowcat at 22/01/2025 at 13:51 UTC
260 upvotes, 1 direct replies
Nope. I’ve gotten back on a few times, briefly and it never lasts more than a week or so. For me it’s all the consumption. Constant product pushing in a world full of so much waste. I hate the whole culture.
Comment by Whowhatwhereidk at 22/01/2025 at 13:50 UTC
236 upvotes, 3 direct replies
i dont miss it at all. a few months after deleting it i saw how brain rotted it was. you wont regret it
Comment by grouchoglasses at 22/01/2025 at 15:22 UTC
62 upvotes, 4 direct replies
Reddit is social media! It triggers all the same mental responses as any of the other scrolling based platforms.
Comment by jellokittay at 22/01/2025 at 14:01 UTC
46 upvotes, 0 direct replies
I don’t miss it at all. I send things via text. Get peoples numbers. Have real friendships.
Escape the prison!! Lol
Comment by jerosica at 22/01/2025 at 14:02 UTC
128 upvotes, 7 direct replies
I deleted all meta stuff on Monday and I’m for sure missing it. I know it will get better but I agree, I miss seeing what my friends are up to or posting little things I’m doing on my story. It was like a friendship diary…..but I couldn’t justify it anymore with all this shit happening. So I’m just trying to text people? And actually made a Reddit account vs lurking for the last few years haha so day by day.
Comment by se1m4 at 22/01/2025 at 14:07 UTC
22 upvotes, 2 direct replies
I never had Instagram and I'm so happy because of that.
U don't see any benefits?! Your time not spent on Instagram is a big benefit!
Comment by NateInEC at 22/01/2025 at 14:05 UTC
14 upvotes, 1 direct replies
Feel 100% better without Instagram. Facebook, etc... 😁✌️.
Comment by alien7turkey at 22/01/2025 at 13:59 UTC
13 upvotes, 1 direct replies
I text my friends random stuff you can still do that.
I don't do FB or Instagram etc but I have YouTube and Spotify. ( Idk if Spotify counts as social media) But that's how I entertain myself when I'm home doing endless chores. Lol.
All social media isn't bad depends on how you use it. I could never use tiktok or shorts or reels in a healthy way so I stay away from that type of content.
Comment by Berganzio at 22/01/2025 at 13:49 UTC
35 upvotes, 0 direct replies
After four years of total liberty I can say it's much of a relief!
Comment by Old_Flan_6548 at 22/01/2025 at 13:53 UTC
34 upvotes, 1 direct replies
Been off for 4 years. Life is better! I’m not constantly trying to one up or getting down because of jealousy. Turns out I really like the privacy too. I text or call my closest friends/family to stay in touch, so maybe try sending them random things by text?
Comment by EstimationStation at 22/01/2025 at 14:33 UTC
12 upvotes, 1 direct replies
I finally got rid of FB and Insta earlier this month. I had been wanting to for a while. I don’t miss it at all. I also realized that it’s just a distraction. Only three people reached out to stay in touch.
I’m already reading much more and doing more crafting, so it’s a win for me.
Comment by Thick_Average_5290 at 22/01/2025 at 14:04 UTC
9 upvotes, 0 direct replies
I’m down to Reddit as my only SM source. Deleted all other apps off my phone and had almost immediate impact in my productivity. I don’t use my LinkedIn much, but wil still visit occasionally. Sometimes get sucked to all the comments from the radical left and right.
Comment by PhraseShot868 at 22/01/2025 at 13:59 UTC
9 upvotes, 0 direct replies
I dont miss it. At this point i dislike it a lot when people send me instagram links.
Comment by Hit_Refresh_Banana at 22/01/2025 at 15:33 UTC
9 upvotes, 1 direct replies
With all the ugliness going on in the world, I deleted it for my mental health. Getting away from it was the best decision I made.
Comment by chairman-cow at 22/01/2025 at 16:32 UTC
7 upvotes, 0 direct replies
Not even close, the amount of ads and recommended I see every time I look over my partners shoulder reminds me. With time I have gotten used to having a single channel of communication (my phone) with friends and family. Regarding the posts that would be relevant to me I often find the idea of creating a curated exhibition of ones life a bit sickening.
I do meaningless scrolling on reddit though, so I am not completely out of the foxhole, but my meta accounts have been deactivated for close to 2.5 years and my life is definitely not worse for it.
Comment by mvallas1073 at 22/01/2025 at 13:53 UTC
10 upvotes, 1 direct replies
You know you could just email the random things to your friends, right? Makes it more personal to boot IMHO
Comment by Dependent_Fill5037 at 22/01/2025 at 13:59 UTC
5 upvotes, 0 direct replies
I never used it, so there's nothing to miss. Now, if I could just stop using everything else.... :)
Comment by Familiar_Flower1 at 22/01/2025 at 14:19 UTC
5 upvotes, 0 direct replies
I miss THAT part. I don't miss the part of being forced to view feeds that I don't follow and that outweighs the part I miss for me.
Comment by jomocha09 at 22/01/2025 at 14:33 UTC
6 upvotes, 0 direct replies
No, I don’t miss Instagram. I find my mental health has improved and I’m more grateful for the beautiful things I see every day.
Comment by Jedimastert at 22/01/2025 at 14:22 UTC
8 upvotes, 0 direct replies
Side note: Reddit is also social media.
Comment by lantanagave at 22/01/2025 at 15:15 UTC
4 upvotes, 0 direct replies
I am trying to work up the courage to delete it, not because of minimalism, but because I don't trust or like Meta and I don't want them making money and selling ads off of my information.
Massive FOMO. Sad that this app is changing in ways that range from annoying to manipulative to politically biased towards the right. Outrage that these changes are taking advantage of the history I've built off this platform that started with a simple, easy way to share photos with friends.
Comment by D1x13L0u at 22/01/2025 at 15:35 UTC
4 upvotes, 1 direct replies
I don't miss Instagram at all. It was a time waster. I still have reddit, Bluesky (which I only check every few months), and I do have a Facebook account I check daily, but I added a chrome extension so I only see the private groups I'm in and don't see any timeline, Reels, or any other posts Facebook wants to force on me. All I see are posts from my groups in my timeline there now. That saves me time and I can just check those groups and move on with my day.
Comment by Proof_Cable_310 at 22/01/2025 at 16:52 UTC
4 upvotes, 0 direct replies
text messages exist for a reason. it's more personal, too, to be thought of as an individual, rather than just a subscriber to your personal ego boosting website
social media is an addiction. it does nothing but harm (unless you earn profits). but even then, it does nothing but harm the people who follow you. it's a toxic relationship.
if your friends are your true friends, then you have their phone numbers and you can share something more meaningful via text message, or email.
Comment by Dull_Spot_8213 at 22/01/2025 at 14:20 UTC
3 upvotes, 0 direct replies
No, it’s a freedom from so much unnecessary noise.
Comment by QuetzalKraken at 22/01/2025 at 14:28 UTC
3 upvotes, 0 direct replies
I haven't used my instagram (and very rarely used Facebook) for years, but finally officially deleted them both this past week.
It feels a little strange, and I do feel like I'm missing out a little bit, which is so weird because I didn't use it before. But it's one thing to choose not to use them, and another to not really have the option.
It's just your brain detoxing from the dopamine hunting, though. Give it a few more weeks for your brain to rewire, and you'll feel a lot better about it.