My new morning routine sounds a bit extreme. After brushing my teeth, I sit down for a 30 minute meditation, followed by 15-30 minutes of scrolling on Instagram. It works extremely well, but it's a slippery slope.
I believe Instagram is a powerful technology that has the potential to change your life for the better. It led me down paths I would not have taken otherwise. Mostly for the better.
But it is really hard to use it. It is extremely addictive, and it does not help that we often reach for it when we are already feeling overwhelmed or disconnected.
The social media algorithms are one of the most optimised pieces of technology on Earth. Instagram learns from what you pay attention to and interact with. Those signals help it predict what you’ll find interesting and what you’re likely to engage with next. But keeping my attention and making my life better are two different things.
There are two states I tend to enter Instagram with.These days, I’m more aware of what brings me there, but I still catch myself reaching for it when I’m tired, restless, or disconnected from the people around me. I reach for it in the middle of a work meeting, while standing in a queue, or whenever I’m bored. Sometimes I can feel how unsettled I am. Other times, I’ve already opened the app before noticing.
When I’m feeling dysregulated, I am looking for content that is going to give me something immediate to react to. The real world does not feel engaging, or I am scared to face my inner world. I want to get away from the world around me, and the algorithm is there to help me.
In this state of mind, I am giving a certain signal to the algorithm. I am giving my attention to outrageous videos, creators who speak to my insecurities, conspiracy theories that make me feel superior to others, wars that happen in faraway places, or women with minimal clothing.
I went to Instagram to escape my reality, but in the process I ended up feeling worse. Suddenly the world feels like a horrible place, I feel angry, lonely, and my insecurities are amplified. Great, how can I climb out of this mess now?
Eventually I put down the phone, and try to come back to the 3D world. But I am feeling worse than before. What is happening? Instagram was supposed to bring me joy. But instead I feel worse, and I subconsciously bring all that negative energy to the world around me.
I snap at my friend, and we get into a big fight. I wanted to call my parents, but I have no energy for that. Or I numb my loneliness with porn. Suddenly I am back on my phone, and scrolling till late at night. Now my sleep suffers.
It is a self perpetuating loop. I start in a mildly dysregulated state, and I dig myself into a hole that is very hard to get out of.
But what if there is a different way? What if I went to Instagram with a nervous system that is regulated, at peace and curious to explore the world? Would my experience change? Would the type of content I receive be different?
That's why I meditate first thing in the morning before opening Instagram. I check in with myself. What is going on with my body today? Is there any fear? What am I excited about? By the time I am finished, I feel centred, confident and energised.
Mornings are when I do most of my creative work. It is important to start with a clear mind, but I also like to get inspired to go after my dreams. That's where Instagram comes in.
I love my feed. It is full of wholesome content, and I worked hard to get there. People talking about their inner worlds, spirituality, dogs, street interviews, psychology, hiking, cooking, music, kids, and more.
But I need to be ready to feel something for that content to reach me. Some of those videos are longer, so I also need the energy to focus on them. That's why the order of my morning routine is important: I come to Instagram with a calm nervous system.
By the time I finish scrolling, I might have discovered two new songs, found out about a secret hiking spot, found a recipe for lunch, become curious about a different culture, cried after hearing a vulnerable story and read a poem that deeply touched my soul.
Meditation helps me to connect to myself, and Instagram helps me to connect to the world. This morning routine wakes up my heart to feel and my soul to create. It is a special mix of energies, and I love to create from this state of mind.
From the outside, both of the situations described look the same. I feel something, I open Instagram, scroll for 30 minutes, then come back to the world. But they produce wildly different outcomes.
Instagram changed my life many times. It showed me worlds that I did not know existed growing up in a small Romanian town. It inspired me to start creating. I discovered products I use on a daily basis. I met incredible people, and it helps me to stay connected to my friends from all over the world.
But it acts like a multiplier. Whatever I am feeling when I open the app, I bring that with me to the feed. That feeling influences what I pay attention to. And what I pay attention to helps shape what Instagram shows me next.
The good news is that there are parts of this loop I can change. But that means paying attention to what sends me to the app in the first place.
If I keep opening Instagram because I’m lonely, that loneliness needs my attention too. If I’m using it to avoid something in my inner world, there are questions waiting for me when I put the phone down.
Meditation gives me some space to notice what’s going on. What I do with that awareness matters beyond the next 30 minutes of scrolling.
Next time you open Instagram, notice how you’re feeling. Then check in again when you put the phone down. Did those minutes leave you wanting to engage with your life, or keep scrolling away from it?
See you next week,
Robert.