Make (Good) Trouble’s Beren, 19, has decided to ditch social media for a month, “to make this experience of lockdown more positive”. With the enforced pause in many young people’s lives due to lockdown, many have taken the time to reflect on their priorities and what they want from life.

Here Beren discusses why he’s switching off, and what the first few days have been like. 

Day 1

Today I have felt a massive shift in my motivation to do things that I usually wouldn’t do. For example, reading books, making a vlog and thinking of how we can create a world of happiness and love. 

In our day-to-day lives we never stop for a minute to think about what we really desire. Most of our actions are conditional and unambitious. This first day has given me a moment of stillness and a pause, from the fast-moving world around us, to think. I have thought about what I would like to happen in my life and what I want to do, as well as how this affects other people. I want to inspire people to do something different that makes a positive change in their life. Social media is so amazing but only if it is used in a positive way to network and bring people together. The images we get from social media are normally fake and inspire people to look a certain way. Social media should inspire people but not to change their appearance. It should be a place where we encourage a healthy and exciting lifestyle. We shouldn’t rely on this privilege or we cannot be our true selves. 

Day 2

I have realised that we humans can have such a good time being productive and be in a really good headspace. But when one thing goes badly or stresses you out, our mental health goes downhill very quickly. Feeling stressed made me feel sick and like I was getting ill and I suddenly felt really tired. So I think social media is good sometimes to get our minds off things but can suck a lot of time out of us. Now I have to sit with my thoughts and I’m going to read a book to destress. I hope it works. 

Day 3 

Today has been such a good day. I recorded my vlog for yesterday. From this day I have had more time to think. Our daily lives are what we make them to be and will be as productive and exciting or as boring and lazy as we set out then to be. If we are unmotivated, we will be so lazy and fall into bad habits. But that little bit of effort to make a good routine will fulfil all the desires we have daily. 

What I’m trying to say is that thing that is a little harder than doing nothing may just fill you with joy and happiness that will last days, instead of that minor joy from social media which only lasts the duration. 

Also, today I realised I have been more connected with love for things around me. Such as nature, animals and my family.

You can follow Beren’s adventure on his vlog.