Opeyemi Omidiji

The need for self-control made me do it. The first time I heard social media fast, it didn’t seem like a thing to me. Just as you might be wondering what this means. I never thought I would have a need for a social media fast. Alas, that day came and I needed to choose between my mental wellness and social media. One thing I noticed was that the need didn’t arise in a day, it was a result of accumulated stress and pressure.

Unknowingly, things that seem normal and basic are taking charge of our lives. A day to day activity, if not checked, can become an addiction. You wouldn’t even know.  Things that are necessary will then begin to suffer because other things are eating up your time.

How it started

Mine started with a piece of simple information I heard: to grow your Instagram page, you have to consistently post and also engage. Coupled with the fact that my old Instagram account got hacked, I felt a need to grow the new one. That was it for me. I’ll spend so much time trying to look for IG worthy content, visit several pages because I was looking for ideas, spend so much time on Instagram trying to engage posts and stuff. It became hard work. Lol… the amount I have spent on data nko. Oh my God.

I wake up to the thought of Instagram and I sleep off there literally.         

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That fateful Friday, I woke up to find out my data had finished, which meant I could not go on Instagram. I was immediately disturbed. The plan in my heart was that I would not touch the money in my account until another one comes in, I was spending too much on data but I was not faithful to the plan. I became restless on top social media o. You won’t believe I actually forgot to pray.

The question now is, is Instagram bad? No. What is bad is the fact that I had placed too much priority on it. I lost my ability to take charge.

At a point, I got angry at myself. I mean, why would anybody become restless because you can’t just go on Instagram for the moment. Not like there’s anything that important to do there o.

I lacked self-control

By myself, I told myself that I lack self-control. What then could I do? I remembered the social media fast and I decided I was doing it.

So that it won’t seem like I went on the fast because I didn’t have data, I did my subscription and turned off my data. Guys, it was not easy. I would have picked up my phone like 50 times to check IG and Youtube. Youtube, because I intend to start my channel soon (not a good way to break the news but then. Hope you’ll subscribe lol)

So while ‘I was social media fasting’, it was amazing that I had enough time for other things. My siblings actually told me to my face that ‘thank God we are seeing your face downstairs’.

So why did I give you this gist?

I gave you because unknowingly or knowingly, you might be going through this same thing. You have not just concluded that it’s not okay to feel this way. I’m here to tell you that it’s because we lack self-control. It’s not the nicest for someone to tell you that you lack self-control, I know. But it is what it is.

You didn’t lose it willingly, what seemed important just took it from you.

For clarity, self-control is the ability to control impulses and reactions and is another name for self-discipline. It is believed that self-control if used wisely, it becomes one of the most important tools for self-improvement and achieving success. You have mastered self control the moment you are able to say ‘NO’ and ‘enough is enough’ to yourself without feeling regret. Self-control is vital for overcoming obsessions, fears, addictions, and any kind of unsuitable behavior. It puts you in control of your life, your behavior, and your reactions.

Do you see why I needed this fast? I needed to take control of my social media life. You also need self-control. Just that yours might or might not be social media.

How then can you develop self-control?

1. Identify

The first thing I did was to identify that there was a need for me to gain self-control. You also need to identify what areas of your life need self-control. Where do you find yourself lagging? Is it spending money on bags, or eating junk food, or overworking yourself? it could even be your emotions that lack control such as anger and resentment.  You need to first search out where the problem could be.

2. Think

Nobody had to tell me I needed to put a check on this thing. After identifying the problem, I sat down to think about my life, my time, and my money. I have not stopped thinking, every day, I devote like 15 minutes to think about things I could be doing wrongly due to lack of self-control. You also need to devote time to think. Think about the reasons why you do the things you do, what are the things suffering because of these things, are there consequences, can I do without these things, and so on.

3. Act

When I was done thinking, I began to act. I wrote out the things I lacked self-control on and I started exerting self-control. You should act too. When you are done thinking and you are clear about the problems, you should start working on yourself. Tell yourself you are in control of yourself, you have the power to choose your emotions and thoughts, you are in charge of your behavior, you are in control of your emotions.

Let’s not forget I had an accountability partner (my younger sister). That helped me so you could get one too. It gets better by the day so figure things out, and with time, you’ll see progress. Prioritize things that need priority.

I hope you found this blog post useful. Talk to me in the comment section about your struggles. Let’s learn from you. Do well to also like and share this post.

With love,

Opeyemi Omidiji

Read Also: Unhealthy Habits I Struggled With – Progress Update

10 Responses

  1. Wow, nice one dear. Mine is anger and I have been working on it since I found out it’s getting hold of the better part of me. I have been seeing lot of changes though but this post will also help me get Better. Thank you.

  2. Ope, don’t tell me that’s why you posted on WhatsApp you’d be off social media till Monday..😂😂😂
    Such a drama queen. But yeah. I agree with the self control thing. Social media has become so much of an addiction for me that I find it difficult to be productive. As in, you are staring at your to do list like this, one would rather be on social media. Not like social media is bad like you said. Self control la need. Beautiful content dear. Thanks for these tips. And please, I can’t wait to have you on YouTube guyyyyyyyyyyy.❤️😍😍😍😍

  3. Thought I was the only one, sometimes I switch off my phone just to get a grip of myself and concentrate on some necessary stuffs. You see that thing called Instagram, it’s a time sucker🤣🤣,most times, when I plan on checking something crucial, maybe an info, once I open the app, trust me I get carried away and forget the thing that I wanted to do, and sometimes I end up forgetting what I wanted to do in the first place. But I’m working on it, by just ignoring ☹️☹️

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