There’s No Such Thing As Overcoming the Instagram Pressure

I’ve been hearing so much about “overcoming the Instagram pressure” lately, especially from fellow bloggers. In this day and age, when social media is so easily accessible and we spend so much time glued to our phones, it’s understandable to feel this pressure.

I feel it every time I open the Instagram app. I follow a lot of real people, but I also follow a lot of amazing bloggers and influencers who are constantly posting these stunning pictures in amazing locations. I’ll see a picture of @travel_inhershoes perched on the edge of a cliff with the most gorgeous sunset I’ve ever seen, or @oliviarink dancing through the streets of Chicago in a ballgown, or even @ashleyrobertson in an everyday outfit that is WAY cuter than the sweats I’m currently wearing. And I feel the pressure. As we all do.

We are constantly surrounded by these dazzling images of these beautiful women doing things that could only happen in our dreams. Only a crazy person wouldn’t feel any pressure from that! As human beings, we are always striving to be better versions of ourselves, to do better, to advance the human race. So when you see these exquisite images, it’s only natural to want to be just like that. Who wouldn’t want to look fabulous while swimming with sharks?!

Faced with all of this pressure to look and be like these images that we all know are highly curated and edited, there’s been an influx of articles and bloggers speaking about how to overcome the Instagram pressure. But I don’t believe that the Instagram pressure is something that can be “overcome.” As long as we have social media, as long as it takes two swipes to open Instagram and be bombarded with incredible images, there will be pressure. There will be pressure on the average Jane to appear a little less average and a little more fabulous. And there will be pressure on bloggers to put out more and more content that fits the Instagram ideal and stands out from the crowd.

I find that the idea of “overcoming the Instagram pressure” is actually just as much part of the problem. We are all supposed to open Instagram, scroll through hundreds of incredible pictures and NOT be bothered by it at all. It’s so unrealistic to ask that of anyone. I guarantee that even the influencers with a million followers open Instagram and feel pressure. You can’t bottle up the pressure you feel from Instagram and pretend to be fine because, we all know, bottled up pressure eventually explodes.

So what can you do if you can’t overcome the Instagram pressure? I think you can find a healthier way of dealing with it. First, by recognizing that you DO feel pressure from Instagram. Then asking yourself why you feel that pressure. Is it because there’s something in your life that you feel you’re currently lacking and you see it in others pictures? Is it because you don’t feel worthy when you see these gorgeous pictures? Why don’t you feel worthy?

Once you know why you feel this pressure, I think it’s also helpful to take bigger breaks from social. As a blogger, I know that I need to be posting often to keep up with my followers and that I need to be engaging with others on the platform. So instead of lingering on the app for hours after I post and respond to comments, I try and log off to do something else. I’ll read a book or watch a movie with Jon. It’s not easy to put down my phone, but I do think it helps.

It can also help to stop getting lost in the explore feed and to pare down the number of crazy aspirational bloggers you follow. If you’re following five bloggers who all post these incredible travel pictures, it can feel like EVERYONE is having these amazing adventures except you. But that isn’t the case. Perhaps if you only followed one amazing travel blogger, you wouldn’t be bombarded with so many images that make you feel overwhelmed.

The long and short of it is, the Instagram pressure is real. And the pressure of “overcoming the Instagram pressure” is also just as real. I’m working to recognize that pressure for what it is and finding a healthy way to deal with it. After all, it is just an app.

Do you feel the pressure to overcome Instagram? Do you have any tips that you feel have helped you develop a healthy relationship with that pressure? Please share!

Xx, Kelsey

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