“Bagel Bites never tasted sooooo good.” “Just finished all my applications wooooo!” “I hate my lifeee why can’t I just not have to do anything and sleep all the time… so much work, lib all day :(.”
Those were typical status updates on my Facebook newsfeed last week.
Every day, UConn students scroll through their newsfeed, checking out what their friends have to say. Whether it is funny, informative or depressing, we read it all. There used to be a time when the majority of statuses were short and sweet, a quick and cheery update about a friend’s life. More and more, however, negative statuses are bombarding newsfeeds and bringing down the whole vibe of the Facebook experience.
Having a negative attitude not only brings down yourself, but others as well. Take this status for instance: “My life sucks I have like 17 tests this week and just stubbed my toe and my throat hurts. Oy vay.” Now the reader’s thinking about what work he or she has to do and how to dodge his or her sick friend to avoid getting sick themselves. We go on Facebook to distract ourselves from everything we have to do, this completely defeats that purpose.
When someone posts a negative status such as “my life sucks,” “FML” and “I hate everything,” it often brings about reassuring comments such as “You’re great!” or “Hang in there the week is almost done!” or my personal favorite, the frowning face. It’s almost like the negative status poster is fishing for comments. When someone is scrolling through his or her news feed and reads a depressing post, most of the time they feel bad not commenting.
I can see if you’re having a bad day and just want to vent. We’ve all had a day where you step in a puddle and half of your leg gets wet. But instead of posting something like “OMG I hate my life I want to die,” just say “ahhhh.” We’ll get the point. Because your leg will eventually dry and life will go on.
When does a status cross the line? When should we actually be concerned? It’s hard to tell. If a friend is truly crying out for help, most of us wouldn’t know. I know I don’t personally talk to over half of my facebook friends on a daily basis, and I’m sure most facebook users don’t. If we talked in person to all our facebook friends, it would be easier to tell if something was truly wrong. But since most people probably don’t talk to all their friends every day, it makes it difficult to decipher a serious problem.
Good news like: “I learned how to ride a unicycle!” is the kind of thing a status is intended for. The problem is that a status update is supposed to be fun and frivolous, and when people take it beyond that, it puts the reader in a rough spot and debating whether it’s an actual problem or just a venting from a bad day.
Who knows, if we shift our statuses away from unnecessary negativity, maybe those knee-deep puddles will disappear.