It's no secret we're a generation completely addicted to Snapchat.
At any given moment, there's an opportunity to Snap.
We're more obsessed with optimizing the chance to upload the moment than we are with the moment itself.
Is this Snapchat story-worthy? Should I send this Snap to that guy I kind of only talk to on Snapchat?
Why did that person choose me when deciding who to send this to?
There's a whole list of unnecessary stressors added to our lives, and with it, a bunch of new ways to be rejected.
There's no drawing a line with Snapchat; communication is far too easy.
The pressure of always needing to get a picture of what you do, deciding who to send it to and constantly seeing updates of what all your friends are doing with their lives make the FOMO more real than it's ever been before.
After I realized I spent more time capturing a moment than I did enjoying it, I bit the bullet and deleted that familiar little, yellow icon.
Here are the things that happened:
1. I stopped comparing.
Spending a Friday night in with a bottle of wine and a film has never been more enjoyable.
There's no pressure to upload a drunken Snapchat story, and there's no FOMO watching someone who's intoxicated in his or her own story.
I started doing things because I wanted to, not so I could have something to share with my followers.
No one knows what I'm up to, and I don't know what anyone else is up to.
With that comes the complete freedom to do exactly what I want to do.
2. I started to communicate properly.
When I could no longer quickly snap a picture to send, the only way to talk to people was by actually talking to them.
I started to have real conversations with people I normally would only receive picture updates from, and I found some quality information about their lives as a result.
Sure, I lost communication with a lot of people, too.
But, I also came to the realization that if we couldn't hold a conversation outside of Snapchat, these people weren't worth talking to anyway.
3. I started to actually enjoy moments.
When you stop worrying about having to capture a moment, you become free to completely enjoy it.
I stopped living life through a lens, and I instead took time to think about how I felt about everyday things.
I got joy in simple things, such as happily diving straight into my food, without salivating while I tried to get the perfect angle of it first.
I actually lived in the moment, and I was able to create memories that would last far longer than a 24-hour Snapchat Story.
4. I lost interest in that guy I couldn't get over.
The trouble with Snapchat is it's half communication.
Someone can make no effort to contact you, but it isn't ignoring you if he or she sends you a Snapchat.
You cling on to that tiny bit of the person reaching out to you, and you take it as way more than it actually is.
We've all been told this 1,000 times: If someone is into you, he or she will make it happen.
Snapchat gives you hope this is what the person you like is doing, when in reality, he or she is making no effort at all.
Without knowing if the guy I liked had sent a Snapchat or not, I was under the impression he wasn't interested.
This made him a hell of a lot easier to get over.
5. I cared far less about what I looked like.
Finally, the pressure of looking picture-ready all the time disappeared.
There was no more feeling crappy when I'd tried every angle and still couldn't get a picture worthy of sending.
Gone was the need to wear makeup 24 hours a day.
I felt no more paranoia after sending something slightly risky.
There's something strangely liberating about not looking at yourself through a lens every five seconds.
I felt much more comfortable in my own skin as a result.
