Selena Gomez doesn’t regret taking a break from social media.
The singer talks to InStyle about her decision to take a step back from social in 2017, telling the magazine of how it plays a role in her self-confidence: “At one point Instagram became my whole world, and it was really dangerous. In my early 20s, I felt like I wasn’t pretty enough.
“There was a whole period in my life when I thought I needed makeup and never wanted to be seen without it. The older I got, the more I evolved and realized that I needed to take control of what I was feeling.
“I wanted to be able to look in the mirror and feel confident to be who I am. Taking a break from social media was the best decision that I’ve ever made for my mental health.
“I created a system where I still don’t have my passwords. And the unnecessary hate and comparisons went away once I put my phone down. I’ll have moments where that weird feeling will come back, but now I have a much better relationship with myself.”
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Gomez describes the past two years for her: “I became aware that my little world is complicated, but the picture is much bigger than the stuff I deal with. I have problems with depression and anxiety, and I found it difficult for me to be me.
“I didn’t want to post anything on social media because I realized that I was in a situation where I was extremely blessed. What could I possibly post or say? Then I had the idea of inviting multiple people to be on my Instagram to tell their stories.”
Elsewhere in the interview, she talks about setting boundaries, telling the publication: “I’m a big believer in therapy, and I always feel so confident when I’m taking care of myself. If I’m not in the best headspace and my friends invite me out, I won’t go.
“I’ve lost my sense of FOMO, which I’m proud of. Sometimes I push myself too much, and it catches up to me. But I try to balance out everything as best as I can. I like to be there for my friends and celebrate everyone. But I have to make sure that I’m OK, you know? Because if I’m not OK, I can’t be OK for other people.”
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Gomez says of what she’s ambitious for: “Changing the narrative of mental health and creating a curriculum that hopefully can be implemented in schools or a system for resources that are easily available. [Mental Health 101 can be found on Gomez’s Rare Beauty site.]
“I’m just so passionate about that, and I think I will continue to be for the rest of my life. Especially since the pandemic, there are so many people I know who craved help but had no idea how to get it. I have big aspirations for that field and really want to implement more education behind it.”
