Navigating The Digital World from an Authentic Space

Your eyes glaze over as you mindlessly scroll through an endless feed—newsflashes, viral videos, and updates that blur together in a digital whirlwind. One second, you’re witnessing global chaos; the next, you’re swept up in a flawless morning routine or the latest meme. It’s overwhelming, addictive, and oddly comforting. Our culture is hooked on the constant drip of information, and nowhere is this more obvious than on social media. We consume this content at lightning speed, rarely pausing to reflect, and it’s changing not only the way we see ourselves and each other but also how we experience reality itself.

To have a disturbing mix of inhumane political regimes, mukbangs, and tone-deaf social conversations entering your brain daily makes your head spin after some time. At least, that’s how it is for me. As someone who values knowledge and connecting with others, I will never deny that I’m “chronically online.” I love social media memes, keeping up with my Twitter mutuals, and making new connections with people I would not have met out in the wilds of Arkansas. Social media makes it possible to find and create community with people who are like-minded in an instant. It is a great tool for activism, spreading information about corruption, and highlighting the voices of oppressed minorities all around the world.

However, too much of anything is harmful, and social media has consumed people’s minds like a digital parasite. According to Mudasir Ashraf’s 2024 study on the Impact of Social Media on Gen Z Mental Health, “75% of participants experienced negative mental health impacts from social media” (Ashraf, 2024, p. 4). It’s become its own world, its own sphere of reality to people. I’ll call it the Media Macrocosm, where people are unable to disconnect themselves from endless instant gratification and entertainment. Their sunny days and starry nights are filled with never-ending TikTok lives, using ChatGPT for therapy, and battling deep issues with their self-identity. It is a time warp meant to trap its victims in an incessant need to keep scrolling for eternity until their brains turn to mushy soup.

The fundamental problem here is that people become unable to distinguish the reality of people from curated personas as they become more mentally intertwined with the digital world. They create their own worlds, personalities, values, histories, and morals just to maintain the house of cards that is the Media Macrocosm. This raises the question: Is it really good for us to consume so much information digitally without reconnecting with physical reality? Can social media become so consuming that you can’t distinguish the sky from the grass? Is digital burnout becoming harder to avoid? Everyone has heard someone say, Go touch grass, but I think its solid advice.

With this in mind, I want to share some methods I’ve been using to avoid digital burnout and actively navigate the online world with authenticity. Let’s step out of the digital whirlwind and rediscover the beauty and calm of the physical realm, exploring how you can move between both worlds without losing your fucking marbles.

The Beauty of The Physical Realm

Everything is digital now. I remember when people carried pens everywhere, just in case they needed to sign something, but even signatures have gone digital. It feels like you can’t escape the constant dinging of notifications, everything reduced down to a pocket computer with a smooth screen.

I realized how tired my brain was from processing so much information through a digital lens and how it left me feeling mentally overwhelmed. I felt like my entire existence was linked to a screen in my hand or a buzz in my pocket. I couldn’t find a way to feel grounded in my own vessel, and I began to experience deep digital burnout. “Digital burnout is essentially overwhelming exhaustion (emotionally, physically, and mentally) from too much time on digital devices” (Ashraf, 2024, p. 1). This desperate need to take back my time forced me to think about other ways to feed my brain that didn’t involve anything digital. How could I disconnect from a universe that had integrated itself into every part of our lives? Hence, my love for physical media spiked back up.

When it comes to physical media, to me, it’s more about being able to connect with the material world using your senses. To interact with something created from labor and love, from the working hands of a human somewhere on the globe, existing in the same timeline as you. The feel of a new book and the way the smooth paper glides beneath your fingertips every time you turn a page. The intimate act of opening a vinyl, placing it on the disc, and swaying to the soft music as it begins. Opening a magazine or newspaper, black ballpoint pen in hand, ready to play Sudoku on a slow Sunday morning. Even physical art forms allow you to experience the beauty of the world through the lens of another. Engaging with physical media can add a sense of romanticism and intimacy to life’s simple moments. You may find yourself noticing the beauty around you, realizing there are more meaningful things to interact with than a screen.

Research shows that “taking intentional breaks from screens can help lift some of that heavy mental load” (Ashfar, 2024, p. 3). That sense of relief you feel when your phone dies or breaks isn’t random—it’s your mind craving rest from constant digital stimulation. Instead of waiting for a forced break, take control: schedule intentional time away from social media and give your brain the space it deserves.

Interact With Your Surroundings

There are numerous ways to participate in your community, whether that be going to community social events or participating in local activism. One of my favorite ways to interact with my community, as well as physical media, is by going to the public library. My most cherished third space as a child was the public library. I would spend hours combing through each shelf, opening each book that caught my eye. (Usually, the mangas) The public library is a haven for those who want to interact with the community, but may be more on the introverted side. I was a very introverted kid, so even though I didn’t make many friends at the library, I found myself curled in a bean bag with a book in hand and feeling oddly included. Sitting in there and taking in the smell of history without an overload of interrupting or anxiety-producing social interactions. The library often offers classes, events, and diverse forms of physical media to explore, and it’s all for free.

Another way to participate is by volunteering. Volunteering at your local nonprofits will truly get you in touch with the roots of your community. By giving it your energy and time, you develop a deeper sense of belonging with your surroundings or even just with yourself. When you start putting your boots on the ground, the appeal of the whirlpool that social media brings will dissipate.

Ways To Interact With Your Community

• Public Libraries
• Local Social Events
• Museum Events
• Local Classes – Art Classes, Cooking Classes, ETC
• Volunteering/Activism

If you live in Arkansas, check out my page of community resources!

Start by asking yourself, what do you value, and how is that reflected in the way you consume media? Are you consuming content that aligns with who you are? Understanding your values and morals as a person will help you be more conscious about moving with intention online. You’ll begin to evaluate what parts of social media don’t align with you and consume content that doesn’t completely overwhelm you.

Creativity is #1 on my personal values list, so the most accessible way for me to disconnect is to create. Experiencing flow state as a creative feels like bliss. You lose track of time, and you’re so deeply consumed with the process of creating that it’s the ONLY thing on your mind. So, create anything you can. Throw yourself a sip and paint, chuck that phone under the bed, and connect with your inner self. I don’t know how to paint, but sometimes I’ll throw on some music and paint BMO from Adventure Time and Sailor Moon absolutely terribly. Take a book you’re reading and write an alternate ending, or write what you wish would’ve happened. Write down some writing prompts and use your imagination to create new characters and worlds.

You can literally do anything you want; the absence of limits is what connects you with your most authentic self.

Ways to Connect With Yourself

• Journaling
• Physical Movement/Working Out
• Collages/Scrapbooking
• Photography
• Massages/Spa Days
• Drawing/Painting
• Take a local art class!

We’re all just trying to navigate this rapidly changing world in the best way that we can. Don’t beat yourself up if you do find yourself experiencing digital burnout, or if you can’t incorporate all of these tips. Be gentle and give yourself grace. I hope this post inspires you to explore new ways of embracing your authenticity while navigating the digital world with more confidence, agency, and self-awareness.

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Sources/Research

Agathi, Argyriadi, et al. “Digital Stress Scale (DSC): Development and Psychometric Validation of a Measure of Stress in the Digital Age.” International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, vol. 22, no. 7, 2025, pp. 1080. ProQuest, https://www.proquest.com/scholarly-journals/digital-stress-scale-dsc-development-psychometric/docview/3233219501/se-2, doi:https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph22071080.

Media, DAR Sports. “The Days of Physical Media.” Medium, Medium, 26 Jan. 2025, medium.com/@DARSportsAndMedia/the-days-of-physical-media-d1a8b083c03c.

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Resources