You open Instagram or TikTok and the screen of your mobile phone is filled with images of people traveling to paradisiacal places, wearing an apparently perfect appearance and expensive clothes, eating in luxury restaurants with the most appetizing dishes or showing off a series of admirable (and enviable) personal and professional achievements. Inevitably, you compare your life to what you see on social media and feel a sense of dissatisfaction.
If this scenario sounds familiar to you, you should know that it falls under the so-called chronic dissatisfaction, also known as the perfect moment syndrome. A condition that is encouraged by social networks and that significantly damages your perception of yourself, your self-esteem and your well-being.
From the Parquesol Psychological Center blog they begin by explaining that dissatisfaction alone does not have to be bad, but rather it can help you feel motivated to overcome goals and solve problems. However, when we talk about chronic dissatisfaction, it goes further and is accompanied by negative thoughts, such as “I am not valid enough”, “I could have tried harder” or “no matter what I do I will never achieve anything”.
“Effort and work will never seem enough,” they state in the aforementioned blog, adding that this type of thoughts “increase levels of anxiety, frustration, negative thoughts, low self-esteem and can lead to the appearance of disorders such as depression or anxiety.”
They point out that on social networks we see “ideal lives that can make you believe that yours is empty and that you are not living it fully: you tend to base that comparison on external things instead of focusing on the tranquility or calm you feel with yourself. ”.
From the aforementioned psychology center they recommend some tips to deal with chronic dissatisfaction or perfect moment syndrome, the first being reducing the time we spend on social networks. They also advise practicing relaxation techniques and setting realistic goals.
Another guideline is to be grateful for what you achieve during the day, for example, writing down three daily things to give thanks for. Also, try to focus on the present, practicing mindfulness.
On the other hand, it is advisable to learn to manage negative thoughts, assume that not everything is under your control and be open to changes. Finally, psychological therapy will help to understand and manage this dissatisfaction.
