How Is Instagram Promoting Narcissism and False Lifestyles | by Nathan Chen | Jul, 2023

Dive into the Picture-Perfect Reality, One Filter at a Time

Oh, hey there! Grab a cup of coffee or whatever beverage tickles your fancy, and let’s have a heart-to-heart. I want to talk about that app on your phone – yeah, that one, the square rainbow one. No, not Candy Crush, the other one: Instagram.

Now, before you eye-roll and claim, “Nah, it’s harmless,” let’s dig in and dissect this a bit. By the end of our chit-chat, you might start viewing that innocuous app differently.

Listen, I don’t mean to get all existential on you, but seriously, who are you? Are you that ‘woke up like this’ person with perfect hair, skin, and a sunny background? Or the ‘humble-bragging’ jet-setter, casually showing off your travels to the most exotic places, implying “Look, I have my life together!”

In reality, we both know that’s not the complete truth, right? None of us wake up looking like a Hollywood star unless we’ve accidentally slept in our makeup (which, trust me, isn’t advisable). And those exotic vacations? Let’s just say, they don’t exactly show the panic packing, the missed flights, or the jet lag.

See, Instagram, my dear friends, is where we become masters of disguise. We hide our Monday blues behind motivational quotes, and our 9 to 5 lives behind impromptu beach pictures. But isn’t this promoting a kind of narcissism? Aren’t we all creating a version of ourselves that is more about the ‘likes’ and comments than about being real?

I mean, c’mon. We’ve all seen them, right? Those people living a dream life, so perfect that it hurts. They seem to be living in a perpetual state of bliss, with the perfect body, perfect home, perfect job, and the perfect partner. It’s like they’ve got the cheat codes for life.

But let’s be brutally honest here. That’s just their highlight reel. We don’t see the late-night anxiety attacks, the arguments with the partner, or the struggle to pay bills. The perfect body? Well, it comes with…