Social Media and Mental Health for Polers Part 1

In recent years a plethora of studies have investigated the impact of social media on mental health. Researchers have tested the mental health components of social media from several angles, but most studies have reached the conclusion that social media, particularly Facebook and Instagram, can depending on the situation, create a negative impact on mental health. These findings are a not a surprise to many of us who spend time on social media.

However, social media adds many positives to daily life. It’s possible to see what friends and family are doing each day. Thus keeping connections stronger allowing for better relationships. It’s important to keep in mind a few realities when looking at social media. In general, people only post the happiest, most accomplished and sometimes braggadocio photos and videos. On a regular day-to-day viewing the average Facebook user is bombarded with photos of flawless couples, charming babies, picture-perfect vacations and many displays of wealth that, not unexpectedly, cause feelings of inadequacy and envy. Research in this area has exposed that these perfect posts can cause issues with self-esteem, feelings of insufficiency or depression. If a person is struggling with depression or self-esteem issues, the toll can be even worse.

As polers, Facebook and Instagram offer the chance to see what the rest of the world is doing with pole. It’s fun to see new creative moves, the inside of well-known studios and watch how routines are created. The down side is that social media can become a game of comparisons. When witnessing super difficult moves, sexy and fit women dropping flawless routines and gymnastic polers accomplishing crazy tricks with six-pack abs, it’s human nature to wonder why we aren’t exactly like these other polers. It’s easy to feel depressed when working on a move that everyone else on the planet is apparently getting and posting. It’s not uncommon to wonder why the flat stomach you have been striving for with hours at the studio and gym just isn’t happening, but everyone on Instagram is so fit. It’s in your face every time you open up social media. So what can we do about the game of comparisons?

First off, remember that people are usually only posting the best photos and videos of themselves. Instagram is not showing the struggle and the months of training it took to get a difficult move. Facebook is not presenting the years of dance, gymnastics or thousands of hours at the studio that went into a routine that was taught in a class. Most social posts are the cherry-picked moves and the stellar choreography that a poler finally perfected.

As humans, giving the best impression is a standard desire, we want people to like us. Therefore, of course each of us is selecting the most flattering photos and most impressive videos, this is part of the underpinnings of humans as social animals. It’s human nature to want to belong to a group and to show that we belong. The problem isn’t necessarily always the posts, the problem is how each individual sees the posts and is effected by the barrage of posts each day. Social media is not typically reality, there is not a back story in the presentation. It’s different to watch a poler on Instagram show a move versus experiencing the students in a class struggle until accomplishing the move.

Second, if you are finding yourself stressed out with certain users, unfollow them. It’s perfectly fine to not like someone’s posts and to turn off that outlet. For every crazy hard trick, there is a good chance that poler faced many setbacks and hours training. Pole is a gymnastic sport and sometimes forgetting the difficulty of a sport is part of the issue. For newbies looking at Facebook and Instagram, it can be hard to understand that it can take years to get decent at pole. If one newbie is crushing it in class, chances are she has put her time into gymnastics, dance or related sports. This progression isn’t on an Instagram post, all the moves that were trained before a difficult move manifested are not usually shown.

Third, limit the time spent on social media and check in with yourself after viewing. Are you feeling less than? Western society has a habit of telling people to suck it up and get over feelings and emotions that are not one-hundred percent happy. Basically, pretend negative emotions aren’t real, which is possibly the worst advice ever for anyone. Ignoring problems and stuffing emotions away leads to emotional explosions, self-destruction and self-soothing behaviors that might not be healthy. This isn’t observation, this has been researched.

In pole, this can translate to over training, feeling bad about one’s body or skill set and even turning to unhealthy behaviors outside of the studio – drinking, disordered eating habits, obsessive behaviors like over exercising and constantly feeling depresse