Hi,
Social media can be wonderful for connecting with friends and family, but it can also have a downside...constant comparisons.

It's not good for our mental health but it's understandable with everyone else's photos of vacations, parties, testimonials of love, to want to see how our lives measure up. Plus, there's an actual metric for comparison, the LIKE button!

I admit, I haven't gotten over that my post about my winning a writing award, didn't get nearly the number of "likes" as my friend's posted photo of her dog licking ice cream! The posts aren't even related and I'm comparing them.

The challenge is, posts are a highlight reel and don't tell the whole story. A large gathering I attended had it's share of conflict but suddenly it was group photo time. Everyone came together, put on big smiles––CLICK––the picture was taken and within seconds people were back to bickering. Anyone can look happy for a photo!

Helpful quotes:

Strategies to help:
Remember - Princess Diana and Charles looked like they had it all...but they didn't. It's important to remind yourself of all the people who looked happy and actually weren't, dear Robin Williams, Kate Spade, Anthony Bourdain...
Take a Social Media Break - If all of your Facebook friends post just one happy update a week, you get a continuous stream of "happy" people. And yet it is really just one happy thing per person.
Acceptance - You really are a great person, you are enough just the way you are. Focusing on what you do have makes life easier.