Facebook is a Heartbreaker

I generally do not watch the news – local or national. I hate it. My husband likes to have it on, especially at bedtime, so I’ve learned to just tune it out. If he’s not home and the news is on, I’ll change the channel. Why do I hate it so much? First, it’s incredibly sensationalistic. Second, it’s depressing. The majority of stories (at least it feels this way) are about crime, death or terrible human beings. I have children and a lot of what is on the news is stuff that I don’t want my kids exposed to just yet. Yes, the world we live in can be a terrible place at times; the last thing I want is my kid to become anxious about life while she’s still a kid. She needs to spend as much time being a kid as she can. When I was a kid, I wanted to be grown up. Now that I’m a grown up, I wish I could go back to the days of playing with toys from the time I woke up until I went to bed. Being an adult is nowhere near as much fun as I thought it would be.

Facebook used to be fun. It used to be fun to post silly statuses or just rant about stuff (heck, I still rant). It used to be fun to write notes/quizzes where we answered questions about ourselves 10 or 15 years ago. It used to be fun to leave our friends notes and inside jokes on their timelines.

Now? There’s too much sadness on Facebook. Perhaps it is all across social media. I refer to Facebook because that’s the social media platform I use most. Let me say that I’m 100% for helping people or animals in need. I get onto Facebook to escape reality for a little bit. I use it to take a break from work or from dealing with my kids for a bit. The last thing I want to see, when I’m taking a break, is sad stories. So many posts are about animals that have been harmed by sickos, sick or dying children, or someone that died tragically and left a family behind. Yes, this is life. Some of us have had to deal with it; some have had to deal with it more than others. But, it’s the last thing I want see when I want to have a few minutes of fun time.

When these sad things pop up (especially photos), I will hide the image or story. I can’t bear to read it or see the picture again. I do the same thing with the sad commercials about abused children or animals – I change the channel. I can’t handle the sadness of the situation. What purpose do these sad stories serve? If we’re reminded about how awful the world is, are we called to action? Some people make financial donations – but beyond finances – do we actually take time out of our busy lives to lend a hand? Not usually. I would love to volunteer at a homeless shelter or animal shelter. I’ve gone so far as to inquire about volunteering. I then remember that I am not mentally equipped to take that on. I’m already high strung and stressed about life. I’ve always been that way. I was that way in high school and I didn’t have a thing to worry about then except for grades.

We all have a right to free speech. I’m not saying that you shouldn’t post these things on social media. How you use social media is entirely up to you, so long as you are operating within the confines of the law (where applicable). I just wish there wasn’t so much depressing stuff on there; it makes me way too sad.