CAYA Conversations
Join us as we dive into the real challenges and triumphs of family and student life in the Clarkston area. Our expert therapists and community voices bring their insights to the table, discussing topics that matter most to families and teens today.
Our first season, Parenting Under Stress, focused on supporting parents through the ups and downs of raising kids; covering stress and time management, co-parenting, blended families, and positive reinforcement.
Now, we’re excited to launch a brand-new 6-episode season: Talk It Out for Teens. This series is all about helping teens navigate what it means to grow up in a fast-paced, always-connected world. We’ll talk about managing anger and stress, understanding substance use, building healthy relationships, and reclaiming your mindset in the age of social media.
Whether you’re a parent, teen, or part of our community, these conversations are designed to empower, educate, and inspire.
Tune in to connect, learn, and grow together.
CAYA Conversations
Why The Feed Hurts: Algorithms, FOMO, And Your Mood
Welcome to a brand new season of CAYA Conversations, Talk It Out for Teens! This season, we’re getting real about the stuff that actually impacts your day-to-day life. Each episode brings honest conversations, relatable stories, and practical tips you can actually use, not just the usual “self-care” talk. We're kicking things off with Episode 1:Why The Feed Hurts, a deep dive into how social media shapes what you think, feel, and see every day.
Feeling worse after you scroll isn’t a personal failure, it’s a feature of the highlight reel and the algorithms that shape it. In this episode we dive into the loop that links FOMO, doomscrolling, and anxiety, then map out how to reclaim attention, protect self-esteem, and make social media work for you instead of against you.
We start by naming what really happens to your brain and body online: the perfect snapshots that distort reality, the rage bait that spikes arousal, and the subtle costs to sleep, focus, and motivation. From there, we offer practical, low-friction tactics you can try today: silence nonessential notifications, switch to grayscale to reduce novelty, and move your charger out of the bedroom to break the bedtime scroll. We also talk through replacements for reflexive checking—books, journaling, small stretches, and using curiosity and questions to strengthen in-person moments where a phone often fills the silence.
The heart of the conversation is curation. Think of your feed as a digital garden worth tending. Unfollow, mute, and block accounts that drain you. Use like and not interested to teach the algorithm what to serve. Seek communities tied to your real interests, and reframe excellence online as instruction, not a verdict on your worth. We share quick self-checks—why am I opening this app right now, and what need am I trying to meet—that turn mindless scrolling into a conscious choice aligned with your values.
If you’re ready to swap comparison for inspiration and rebuild a healthier relationship with your phone, this episode gives you concrete steps and a compassionate mindset to start. Enjoyed the conversation? Follow the show, share it with a friend who needs a reset, and leave a quick review to help others find us.
Explore the various services available in our community to support parents and students facing social and emotional challenges at https://chs.clarkston.k12.mi.us/counseling/emotional-support
For Talk It Out episode questions contact David from Giesken Counseling Services - Clarkston at 810-626-5191.
For Parenting Under Stress episode questions contact Trish from Ellie Mental Health - Clarkston at tbrown@elliementalhealth.com or 248-308-5535.
For more information on Clarkston Area Youth Assistance visit https://caya-mi.org/ or call 248-623-4313.
Hi, welcome to another episode of CAYA Conversations. Um, we are here today from Giesken Counseling Services. My name is Max, and I also have David here with me. Today's topic of uh discussion will be social media and self-esteem. So we're gonna go ahead and get started with the first question. So the first question we have today is why does social media make me feel worse sometimes?
David:I think that's a really good start because why is it that social media is gonna be the thing that we want to go to that makes us feel worse? And you know, I think the first thing that comes to my mind is you know the highlight reel that is on every platform nowadays where it's like, look at my best moments, right? Look at how everything's nice, everything looks great. And I feel like a big part of what makes us feel worse is we see these perfect stories, photos, all these things, and we look at ourselves and think, my life doesn't look like that, right?
Max:Yeah
David:So first you see these highlight reels, totally not realistic, but I mean it's just a slice of the pie that makes us feel like we're missing out. And then there's FOMO, you know?
Max:Yes
David:You see everyone having fun, and you you want to be a part of that, and for whatever reason, you're not there. And so you look online to try to feel better because we go on the internet when we want when we're feeling pretty down, and you see more of that, right? It's like this loop, you know, you see everyone having fun, I'm not having fun, and it's just like this kind of this vicious cycle, right? Like that the internet shows us what is happening online and we're missing out on it. And then the other thing too, right? I mean, there's there's all this stuff, right? Like we're feeling worse being online. What's what's the one thing that we know that we get sucked into when it comes to the internet?
Max:Oh, we get sucked into the doom scrolling.
David:Yes, the doom scrolling. I mean, we all know about it, right? But for some reason we just can't stop doing it. And you know, a big part of it is that like that's just how our brains are, right? Our brains are like, I gotta look out for danger. So I gotta I gotta know what's happening out there. But does that really help us? Do we feel better when we do that?
Max:No, of course it never does.
David:Right. And so a really important thing to consider too, and I'm sure we'll get to this, is like the algorithm is gonna just give you what you are giving back to it, right? If you are giving it the attention of like, I'm paying attention to this negative stuff online. What's the algorithm gonna do? Come on, it's gonna give you more and more of that negative stuff. So of course, all this stuff, right? We're seeing people live happy lives, and like we're just getting sucked into Doom Scrolling, like no wonder we're feeling worse and we're online, right?
Max:Yes. We're constantly getting fed the information of our dream life that we want to experience, but really at the same time, it's not exactly realistic by any regard.
David:Definitely. Yeah. No, I mean it helps to recognize that, you know, it's it's not a perfect mirror, right? Like it really isn't showing everything in everyone else's lives, and neither for ourselves, right? So it's important to be aware, like it's gonna suck us in. It's just how it's kind of designed, right?
Max:Mm-hmm.
David:Yeah.
Max:Yeah. So that brings us to our next question. Um, what are signs I might need a break from the screens?
David:Well, there's a few things to think about, right? Like like just just kind of focusing on you know physical stuff, right? Like obviously your neck sore, your eyes, you know, like you just got this like blank stare, you know, the glossy eye that we see, and I think everyone's making the Gen Alpha thing, right? That like I forget what it's called.
Max:The Gen Z stare?
David:Gen Z stare, that's it, not the Gen Alpha one. The Gen Z stare. It's like if we're noticing that like we can't even stay focused, like our brain is just like foggy. Oops. If we can't stay focused and we're just feeling this fog in our brain, like that's a pretty clear sign, right? Like, yes, especially when you've been what doing it for hours, watching something on a screen for hours. I mean, it's yeah, we're gonna feel like this sense like uh this grogginess, right? I think those are some clear signs, like, okay, I think I've been on too long, and I think we all feel that, but you gotta pay attention to that, right?
Max:Yeah
David:How do I feel whenever I'm on my phone for a while? How am I feeling when I'm on my phone for say even like 10 minutes, right?
Max:Yeah
David:Those little moments, those long moments, just check in with the body, right? But then there's also like the mental side, right? The the emotional, how how am I feeling, right? Go into that a little bit more. So, like anxiety, you're feeling anxious, you go online. Does it typically make you feel less anxious?
Max:No, it does not.
David:No.
Max:If anything, it makes it worse.
David:Right. If you're noticing you're feeling more on edge lately, right? And you're you're on your phone and you're just scrolling, scrolling, and you notice that like you're still feeling that edginess. I mean, it could be because of what you're looking at, right? I mean, there's a lot of things online. I mean, there's a lot of rage baiting these days, you know, if it's riling you up, you know, or you're seeing people have bad takes and you want to just get on it, right? Or whatever it is, you know, there's there's something that's gonna create an emotion in you. And right to notice that, like, if you're feeling lonely, for instance, right? Because you're seeing other people are online having having good good times, right? Like they're putting all their happy memories out there, or you're feeling empty. Yeah, right. That feeling that that's a really important cue. Like, okay, like maybe this being online isn't gonna like help with this feeling, right? I mean, I can't think of the last time I was like, I I'm gonna go on my phone. I'm feeling really down. Like, let me go on my phone to like help me feel better. You know, maybe not a lot of people do that, but I think it's just the habit too that we just are we have kind of like tricked our brains into thinking, I feel bad. Why don't I just go on my phone? But yeah.
Max:I mean, there's a piece to that, it just it's so accessible, right? So it's just it's in your pocket and you're willing to reach at it at any second. I mean, so many of us have these computers in our pocket now.
David:Yeah.
Max:And we just have so much accessibility to all that information and stuff that we think, like you said, is gonna make us feel better. But at the end of the day, we're we're trying to uh find the information that we our mind wants to see, whether or not it's something that is actually gonna make us happier.
David:Right.
Max:It's just what's gonna perpetuate the cycle of thought that we have.
David:Right. I mean, I know this is I mean, it's the first thought that comes to my mind, but it's like it's an easy fix for us. Like we feel like it's it's gonna make us feel a little bit easier, but notice that, right? Notice what are you feeling in your body when you're using it? What are your what are you feeling in your head, right? What's your brain thinking? Are you thinking negatively a lot? Is your phone also happen to have a negative feed, right? And then the other thing too to note, right? Not just like the you know, physical, the, you know, how am I thinking, but also like how much time is it taking away from other things that you could be doing, right? Yeah. I think sleep's a really common one. And I'm not gonna lie, I'm I'm guilty of it too. I'm a Gen Z. I I grew up on the phone, and sometimes some nights I do catch myself bringing my phone to my bed, but honestly, right, like how much time is am I scrolling on my phone before I go to sleep, right? There's a lot of science out there that that tells you, right, that like it's it's gonna affect you know your sleep quality. And so how how much time is your phone with you, right? How much time are you on your phone? Like, check your that daily or weekly. I mean, some people are like, I don't even want to look at that. It's like I'm sure it's high. That's important, right? If you really feel like you're spending so much time on your phone throughout a day, right? I think that's a really important sign to notice, right? That yeah, maybe there's an opportunity to try something else, right? To check in with what am I missing out on, right? Are there chores that you're not getting done, or are there maybe people that you're not hanging out with because you're on your phone instead, right? Yeah, maybe you're not even aware of it, but it's just taking taking stock of like how much time does my phone take from me and away from the things I care about.
Max:Yeah.
David:Yeah.
Max:And so that I mean, transitioning into our next question. Um, what can I do when I feel addicted to my phone?
David:Yeah. Yeah. I wonder who who doesn't feel addicted these days. It's like that sense of I I mean I think it's important to like recognize it for one, you know. I mean, you don't have to get the definition of an addiction, but it's like it's hard not to go to my phone, right?
Max:Yes
David:Right? Like I can't live without it. And so what can you do about it? There's lots of ideas. Ready for them?
Max:Yeah.
David:I'm gonna come at you with lots of ideas, lots of strategies. Here we go. First one introduce friction, add friction to your habits with your phone, right? Like, think about this, right? For one, for one, um if you turn off your notifications when you're trying to do something, right? You're not gonna hear your phone buzz, or you're not gonna hear that that ding, right? Or whatever your ringtone is. As much as maybe it might be a cool one, right? And you want to hear it.
Max:Yes.
David:But when you're trying to focus on something and you're trying not to let your phone disrupt what you're doing, turn off those notifications. Do not disturb, right? If you're worried about somebody trying to get a hold of you, well nowadays they have settings on your phone where like if they call you multiple times, it will go through, right? If it's an emergency, right?
Max:Yes.
David:So otherwise, right, if there's apps that want to like get your attention, you turn it on, turn off the notifications. Or you can even like go into your phone and like turn off the notifications for a lot of apps. I mean, you know, they're gonna blast you with lots of them, right? Like they will. You gotta take a look at this. This is important. Here's the newest thing, right? So take away their power of being able to give you those notifications. If you really need to look at it, you'll look at it, right? I I don't think we're gonna forget to check our Snapchat or Facebook or Instagram, whatever. Like, it's not like we need that reminder.
Max:No, no, it's not like it's something that's hiding from us. We know, and like we've been talking about throughout this podcast, it's something that we actually seek out.
David:Yeah, yeah, it's a part of our routines nowadays, right? So add some friction, make it a little bit harder, right? You can even um some people are are are uh bold enough to do this, put your phone a grayscale. Imagine like like actually making your phone boring. I mean, think about it, right? Like our phone, it's got all the colors, like it looks cool, and you know, there's there's a reason why we like to, you know, we we make art with our phones, or we just like to see really cool photos. I mean, I get that. But if you're noticing it's you're addicted to it, well, it's kind of like eating food without salt. At some point, right, your food's gonna be like really bland, and you're like, I'm not really enjoying this. And if you go to your phone settings, change it to grayscale, you know, you it won't feel so captivating, right? You'll yeah, you won't feel so sucked in because it just takes the color away, right? I mean, it sounds like a negative thing, but honestly, it's if you're looking for a motivation to like not be on your phone or a deterrent, that's an idea right there. Yeah. Now, here's another idea though, right? So, like you can do things on your phone to make it where you don't want to be on it if you're trying to be less addicted. But you also gotta set some physical boundaries, right? All right. Where's our phone typically, right?
Max:Like oh, right in the pocket.
David:Yeah, right in your pocket or in your hand, right? Wherever you're walking, so like it's easy to get, like you were saying, it's accessible.
Max:Yeah.
David:So when you have places you want to be where you feel like you don't really need to have your phone, right? Again, take the example of going to bed. Really, we don't need our phones to help us fall asleep. And we use them whenever we can fall asleep because it's like might as well do something while I'm awake. But if we really want to teach our brains that we don't need our phone to be able to sleep, put it in a different room. I know some families they have like a charging station outside their like their bedrooms. And I mean, I won't lie, I don't have that, but I mean that's definitely a really good idea because it's like you actually the the phone has its own bed, right? Like the it's it's somewhere else. I leave it there to charge, and then I go to my bedroom, and what do I do? I focus on sleeping, right? It's it's that sort of I know this is all therapy talk, but it's just like that you're building a pattern, right? Of like, when I go to bed, I go to sleep.
Max:Yeah
David:My phone doesn't need to be with me. So make that boundary, right? Avoid bringing it to the dining table. I mean, I know sometimes it gets awkward sitting there with parents or whoever, right? It's like, I mean, unless they play some music in the background, I mean, if if we're still eating at the dining table, right? I mean, I grew up, we would watch TV when we would eat, but if you want to be really intentional, when you're eating, put your phone somewhere else, right? Let it be somewhere else and like focus on eating, right? I mean, I know it might be really boring, but give it a try once.
Max:Yeah.
David:Give it a try. And and like really focus on the food. Because I mean that there's a lot of other benefits for why that would be really good for you, right? You're you're able to like focus on the food, you feel more satiated, like take a break from the phone while you're eating, right? Or when you're going somewhere and you don't need your phone, right? Of course we gotta have it for emergencies and whatnot, but if you're going somewhere like with your family and you don't really need to have the phone, see what happens if you just leave it home, right? Go go an hour without it. How bad's that gonna be, right? Are you gonna be thinking about man, a year ago I spent one hour without my phone? I really wish I hadn't done that. And so yeah, add some friction, set some boundaries. And here's another thing, too, right? I get it, right? Phones, we we recognize that they're not great, they cause a lot of issues. But what are we gonna use instead? What are we gonna use to replace our phones if we're not gonna use our phones, right? And obviously, there's a lot of other technology, and that's you know, maybe they're kind of doing the same thing, right? Social media, right, is just there's so many kinds of apps and stuff, right? So we gotta find other habits. Yeah. Boredom. Oh, go ahead.
Max:And just interaction itself, just interacting with others and connecting with people. I mean, I think that when there's so much time spent behind a screen, just keeping your face buried in the screen, you lose out on the ability to check in with your loved ones and see everyone around you.
David:Yeah, right. I mean, you miss it the phone. I mean, uh, as great as our phones are, right? It's how we use them. It's how we use them and how they how much time we give to them, right? I mean, yeah, when you're thinking about those interactions with folks, I mean, I I think about like you know, whenever you're going to a place and you're bored, go to the doctor's office and you're like, man, well, I gotta wait here, so might as well go on my phone. I mean, um everyone else is doing it, why not? So when you're going to those kinds of places, bring something else, right? Bring a book if you like to read, bring a journal, bring um a magazine, a comic book, or you could have a fidget, you know, anything really, right? Like something that you can give your attention to. Doctor's office, right? Have you ever sat there and you're like, actually, what is this place? Like, what is the setup here, right? Like, look at the magazines. I mean, just be curious of like what's around you, right? Like you're saying, being engaged. When we're stressed, I mean, yeah, we go to our phones because we're like, I don't want to think about this thing. Let me just go on my phone instead. What else would you do if you're not going on your phone? Try breathing, stretching if you don't like to breathe, right? Like just try stretch, right? Like your body is feeling tense, so you gotta get it out somehow, right? Or maybe write down, you know, trying to figure out your problems, right? Do some pros and cons and all that stuff, right? Like, do something that will help you towards your goals, right? With that stress. Um, yeah, I know. And like you said, with like relationships, if you're feeling awkward, here's what I do. When I feel awkward, right, instead of going on my phone, right? Because obviously that's one way to kill the awkwardness, so you can just be like, all right, I don't want to be here, I don't want to deal with this. I lean on questions. Questions. Ask people questions, right? That's how you kill a lot of awkwardness. It's just bring that curiosity, right? Like you're interested in them, you know. I I feel like that helps me a lot whenever I'm having that awkwardness. Wow, what do I do in this situation, right? Like I don't know what to talk about. Just ask a question, right? It could be a silly one, it doesn't have to be something super serious. What do you think about? I know the cliche is like, well, how's the weather today? But I mean, you know, maybe you find something that they're interested in, right? And and you can ask them about it. And I can help kill the time, right? You have those social interactions that the phone doesn't have to give you, right? Or the phone might not even be able to give you because it pulls you away from connecting with other people.
Max:Yeah.
David:Yeah.
Max:And this, I mean, that transitions right into our next question. How can I enjoy social media without comparing myself to everyone?
David:Yeah, and I'm sure we could get into the ins and outs of why uh social comparison just does so much to us. And I won't get into that, but I mean, I think if we want to use social media in a way that you know doesn't feed into that like self-defeating, I'm not as good as other people, right? If if we want to try to use social media in a better way, think of it like this, right? I like this analogy of a digital garden, right? You have you ever uh made a garden before? Like I I I've tried.
Max:It's difficult, especially in Michigan this time of year, but right?
David:It's like you gotta have good atmosphere, you gotta have the right soil conditions. I mean, anyone knows a garden, right? Like I'm not one of them because I don't I am still learning, but I I recognize it takes work, right? Same goes for our algorithms. Our algorithms are only gonna give us right what we give them back. So what can you do to turn off right or unmute block, right? Maybe those accounts that you know are not gonna be helpful, right? You know, the ones that are feeding into that like uh negative, you know, spiraling, whatever it is, right? Like, how can you like what are some things you can go to to your feed, right, to curate it so that it is focusing on things you care about, right? Maybe there are some people, right, that you know are antagonizing and bullying you online, right? That block button is important, you know, to be able to like turn off that noise so that you can give your feed more of the stuff that you know is gonna be more empowering, right? More interesting to you. I like the idea of um look for inspiration. Look for inspiration in your feed, right? I mean, you don't have to it it doesn't have to be like you know the the perfect feed, right? I mean everyone's got their own unique feed, but like what are things that inspire you? You know, I just saw something the other day, an article and I thought was really interesting. It said, you know, you know, some people don't do meditation, right? Meditation ain't everybody's thing. But if you just take three minutes every day and you watch an inspiring video, like something that's inspirational, maybe you see someone who's fight against the odds, right? And they make something of their life, or maybe you see someone who is like the underdog and they're able to like do something, right? You know, if you give yourself three minutes a day to watch an inspiring video, it has very similar benefits to meditating every day. Like I I was a little blown away at this. I mean, this granted is for adults, but still, like I I think it's uh applies to most people that like when you look for the content that's gonna tell you like you know there's good in the world or that people are compassionate, right? That they're not gonna judge me. Like we're all human. Just doing that adds is it adds more of the things in your digital garden that you want, right? It helps to like grow the roses or vegetables, right? Using that analogy, like you're you're giving it the fertilizer that it needs, you're giving it the care. Just like a garden, right? It doesn't just happen overnight, does it? You gotta take time, you gotta look for that stuff. You gotta you gotta remove the things, the weeds, right, that are eating up, you know, how you're feeling about yourself. You don't need it. Yeah, it's gonna be out there, don't worry. They're not gonna be missing your your follow, right? Like if you unfollow them, that's okay. Focus on the things that you want to get out of it. And you know, another thing too, right? Nowadays they got the not interested button, the like button. That that's that's a very practical way, right? What kind of posts are you liking?
Max:Yes.
David:Use TikTok?
Max:I do use TikTok. Yes.
David:Uh you you gotta think about that heart button. I mean, yes, how are you like using it intentionally? So it's like I want more of this on my feed, right? I want to be able to have that inspiration. Yeah. Or something that's uplifting, right? Or helping me pay attention to important stuff.
Max:Yeah, and I know another big part of the TikTok algorithm is time spent on the video. So of course, if there's something that drags you in that might be a little bit more frustrating, it's important to be mindful of how much time you're spending watching that video rather than you know, scrolling, like you said, or hitting that block button.
David:Right, exactly. Time is important, our time is important, right? Your time is important. Use it where you feel like that that aligns with the things you care about. And so that kind of goes into like this other idea, right? Of like if you want to use social media more without comparing yourself, without hurting your self-esteem, think about the things you care about, right? Maybe it's a hobby, maybe it's you know, some knowledge, right? You want to learn about something, or maybe you just want to like connect with people that that get you, right? That like you don't maybe it's hard to find that community in person. You want to find people that you connect with, but look for those things, right? Find things online that are gonna be like involved with like with your personal interests, right? I'll give you a funny example here. So, like, I'm a Minecraft guy. I I mean I played Minecraft as younger, and I play Minecraft now. And you know, for anyone out there who who knows how to who plays Minecraft or knows about it, right? Like, there's some cool builds, some people with some cool servers. I'm not that great at it, right? I I will if I get catch myself looking at other people's builds, sometimes like I will notice like I can't do it like they do, like, oh my gosh, like I wish I had the dedication to make these huge, grandiose things. But there's there's a there is a way of thinking about what you're seeing online where it doesn't have to be like you have to measure up to that ideal, right? I have to make sure my Minecraft build is as cool as that Minecraft build, right?
Max:Yeah
David:I can do it for me. If I need inspiration and I want to learn how to use redstone, if you happen to know what that is, that's the whole thing in there, right? If I want to learn, I want to like get better at it, then sure. I will use I will watch other people's videos to like make it more intentional. But if I'm noticing that I'm I'm beating myself up because it's not as good as other people's, then I think that's that's important to check in with myself about, right? That I'm it's not be it's not a source of inspiration now, it's a source of comparison, comparing myself, right? And so it's important to be mindful of those things, right? That like the internet has a lot of opportunity for community, has a lot of opportunity for making us feel bad too, right? Telling us that we're not good enough. So check in with that part of yourself.
Max:Yeah. And that's a nice segue into our final question of the day. Um, are there any ways to make social media more positive space for myself?
David:Mm-hmm. Yes. Remember that curating your feed, the what do you call it, digital garden? I just forgot my my point. Well, like a garden, you gotta prune, right? Pruning is like where you're taking the dead leaves and you're cleaning it up. We've got to prune our algorithms like regularly, right? Maybe give yourself like once a month, right? A little reminder on your phone that's like, hey, check my following feed, right? Who who are the accounts I'm following? And like go through all of them, right? Double check, like, do I really want to follow this one? Do I want to follow this account, right? Are they giving me uh are they a source of positivity in my life? Or are they doing something that I do not I wouldn't be okay with other people seeing, right? Like that kind of thing. Like if we notice that it's it's having that negative impact on us, then maybe it's worth considering unfollowing, right? And and finding those other accounts that you know would be more positive, right? I mean, there's plenty of inspiring pages, right? If you want to go that route, or even if you just want to focus on that connection with people you like, you know, that are your that are your friend group. So do some digital pruning every so often. Just check who am I following? Who do I need to take off my follow list so that my feed can be a little bit better? Um, and set boundaries for yourself. What are things that you can do that don't involve social media, right? I mean, it's funny, I saw I saw a funny video the other day where it's like, I wish I had an app that told me like how I was feeling right now, right? Like we've it's important that we can figure out for ourselves how do I feel, right?
Max:Yes.
David:So what are what's a habit you can build? Like what's one habit where you are connected with yourself, right? Is it taking two minutes to just take a walk, right? To do some breathing, maybe just to get a drink of water, right? Water get some flavor water if say you don't like this flavor, right? Like there's little things you can do to check in with yourself, right? And while you're using your social, your your feed, right? Ask yourself this. Why am I using this right now? Like take a pause, take a take a five-second pause, right? As you're using it, maybe you're already sucked in, or maybe it's before you get sucked in, and ask yourself, why am I using this right now? What am I looking for, right?
Max:Yeah.
David:Am I looking for that quick hit of dopamine that's gonna like, you know, make me feel good? Like, I'm I'm glad I was on here. That's just how the feeds work. They keep you sucked in because you keep going and going. But ask yourself, why what do I what am I looking for here, right? Am I just feeling stressed out? Am I feeling sad and lonely? Am I feeling upset? Am I just curious, right? Whatever it is you're feeling, check in with that part of yourself. And maybe just explore what else, what else could I do, right? If say you want to learn something, right? I mean, obviously, yeah, if we get a lot of our our resources from the internet, right? I mean, nowadays chat GPT is gonna give you that answer too, right? I mean, that's a tool. You can use that to intentionally ask like thoughtful questions. You can even ask ChatGPT, like what can I, what are some like practical strategies to you know help me improve my health in this particular way, right? Or to help me with my classes, help me focus better, all that stuff. So yeah, prune your feed, make it make it what you want it to be, right? Set some boundaries for yourself of like how you use your your feed, right? And and look for community, really. Yeah. Because when we are having low self-esteem, right, we're seeing ourselves as different from others, right? That we're somehow less than, and really that's that's not the case, right? Like there are plenty of people who feel what you're feeling, right? That they know that sense of being online, seeing the highlights, and and feeling like there's you know, no one that knows their experience, but there are plenty. And they want to hear that story, right? Just a matter of finding that niche, right? That you know, what is the thing that I want to be connected to? So those are my thoughts.
Max:All right. Well, that does wrap up our conversation on social media and self-esteem today. Uh, once again, we're from Giesken Counseling Services. Um, so if you'd like to reach us or contact us in any way, uh you can catch us online at www.giesken counseling.com or you can give us a call. Our main office line is 810-626-5191. My name is Max, and uh David. That's David.
