Social media and my semester abroad

Real life is pretty dope. I think we can all agree on this. But what about what we see on our electronic devices? We must admit, fortunately or unfortunately, depending on the perspective, that phones and especially social media make up a lot of nowadays’ interactions. This topic has been on my mind the whole time since I arrived in Munich. Personally, I have a really active relationship with social media, I love taking pictures and posting them on my stories or on my feed. What I also like is creating reels and video editing. I like sharing my experience abroad with my online friends and family. I feel lucky because I was never pressured or influenced by what Instagram or other social media platforms are. I would just enjoy what I was doing and follow who I felt that could bring me value.

During my semester abroad I was really active on social media because I liked documenting my experiences here in Germany, and I also felt like I was communicating and expressing in a beautiful and raw way what I was doing here. I have been travelling a lot and visiting many new places, and posting on social media helped me stay connected to my friends and relatives.

On the other side, not only it did help me with staying in touch with my friends and family, for which I mainly used WhatsApp and Instagram, social media also worked as a buffer, since it allowed me to truly immerse in the new culture.

For instance, the Erasmus Network here in Munich (@MESA) is a really active one on social media, the organizers also have a website where they communicate every new social event and I found this really interesting and helpful, especially in the very first weeks, since I did not know that many people and it really came in handy, having plenty of options where to meet other exchange students and why not, also local students.

But it is not all roses. Sadly, it can happen that social media if mis-used, it can lead to traumatic experiences. There are some studies indeed, that have found that study abroad students are starting to shift from no longer prioritizing enjoying the experience of being in a new place, but rather locating where their next photo on social media could be. This is why I feel like it is important to stress this fact: We need to live first! Nobody says that immortalizing these moments is bad (I recommend it actually, it is great to look back on those memories afterwards) but we should all be present, which means that the post on social media or updating your Facebook status can wait a day or two!

Also, let’s not forget that social media does not equal real life. Most people post only the highlights of their lives, which can make others feel like they are not doing well or they are not enough, when in reality each and everyone of us has struggles, especially students abroad! No matter how easy it may look online, it is not! So, do not let Instagram posts tell you how to live your life, and remember you are doing just perfect, take your time and stop comparing your real life with others’ ONLINE life!