Seven months into traveling I through my hands in their air & went on a digital detox.
Simply, I went on a digital detox because I didn’t want to be addicted to my phone anymore. More complicatedly, you can read an unedited excerpt from my personal journal written on March 29th that will help you understand how I was feeling.
“I’m 20 minutes into checking social media & the anxiety begins. It feels like I’m being rushed or I need to do something but I don’t know what. It feels stressful. I can’t explain why I feel anxious on social media, maybe because I worked in digital marketing for 2 years- who knows.
Social media started to become a job for me. I overthought every comment & every post. It became overwhelming with very underwhelming results. I’m taking a break from it to regain a sense of what I want to say, what I want to share & why I am even using social media in the first place.
Sharing my experiences with my friends & family shouldn’t feel like work, but it was. The term, “do it for the Insta” became my life. I started going to certain places or doing activities I normally wouldn’t do for the picture. This is a problem for me. I want to do what I am passionate about & share those experiences, even if those experiences don’t produce the best blog post or perfect photo.”
I was trying so hard to be authentic, that I became fake.
I compared myself to every travel Instagram & blog. All I saw online were these perfectly fake lives & I didn’t want to be any part of it because my life isn’t fake & it’s far from perfect.
During my time away from the digital world, I reminded myself that I am out here growing, experiencing, learning & loving for myself. Not for Instagram or my blog. Those are fun tools that I can use to share these experiences, but “do it for the Insta” will never be a sentence in my life.
I am working toward finding a healthy balance of sharing my adventures and not having my memories ruined by the pressure of social media. Thank you for sticking with me during my digital detox! I am happy to say I am back & I can’t wait to share everything that has happened these past few months with you!
norah tay 
Most of us probably understand what you’re feeling about social media. My own selfishness made me want to read more. The more you posted, the more I wanted to read. For me, it’s living vicariously thru your adventures. You’ve done more that past 6 months than most do in their entire lives. So, you HAVE to give an explanation for your detox or absence from social media. I’m sure you kept your parents up to date on your health and well being, but being a parent and grandparent, I was concerned, too. Reading your posts offered some relief that you’re A-OK. Keep traveling young lady!!
Fourth sentence should have said “you don’t HAVE to give an explanation…..”