HACKER Q&A
📣 throwaway_acc_7

How do you cope with depression when feeling left out


Hello Guys,

I have been using LinkedIn for a while but sometimes it makes me depressed as I see people bragging about their achievements and that makes me feel like I’m loosing or left behind

Even though I might be doing a lot of things but not sharing those as achievements on social media but when I see others doing it Instantly end up comparing myself

My question is how do you deal with the feeling of being left out

  👤 jvalencia Accepted Answer ✓
2 Thoughts FWIW:

1: Counseling is super helpful in dealing with emotions. I think everyone should see a counselor for at least a little while in their lives. Do not let any stigma stop you. No one really teaches you how to deal with depression and disappointment, but counseling helps you sort it out.

2: Identity issues of who you perceive yourself to be vs. what the world says you should be are a real source of discouragement when they don't match. Accept who you are and then strive for who you want to be. That's really all anyone can do.

👤 yuppie_scum
Super easy solution. Just stop triggering yourself by going on LinkedIn. Ask yourself: what are you actually gaining from going on there? By and large it’s a useless social network. Nobody, and I mean Nobody will ever be offended that you don’t like or read whatever they are posting on there. They won’t even notice. In fact, the more “likes” or “comments” a post gets.. the less they will notice that any particular person didn’t engage. You aren’t going to miss the career opportunity of a lifetime by not going on there. The recruiters are just spamming people based off keywords (put the word Kubernetes on your LinkedIn page and see how many clueless recruiters instantly message you). I barely go on it and my career continues just fine. Chances are you will hear about the important life events of your actual real friends through some other channel such as email, text, or even, gasp by talking to them in real life. PS, you can do this for any social network.
👤 brutus1213
I think social media makes us feel bad. I have personally reduced my consumption of it. Frankly, if you think about it, the best time to post on LinkedIn is when you are ready to make a career move (due to being unhappy with your current gig). Also, some people are really good at selling themselves, and this may not match reality.

This is FOMO .. and it is what it is. We defn need better resources as a society to cope with it. Defn agree with the other poster who said seek help (and don't worry about any stigma). Or just go for a walk, watch some TV and stress out less. I play video games or engage in a hobby or just relax watching documentaries.