7 Helpful Tips When You’re Struggling With FOMO

Do you hate missing out on activities? Have you heard about FOMO?

People experience FOMO a lot these days. In 2013, the word was added to the Oxford English Dictionary. FOMO is the fear of missing out. Most young adults are known to experience this feeling sometime in their lives. FOMO is not a great thing to have in your life. You can get into unhealthy habits. You may end up checking social media constantly so you don’t miss out on any information or news. Checking social media may help alleviate anxiety, but often it doesn’t. FOMO can be a problem in your life. There are ways to deal with FOMO and here are 7 helpful tips when you’re struggling with FOMO.

1. You Might Not Be Missing Out On Anything

Social media is a real trigger for FOMO. When you look at it closely, social media is about how you want to portray yourselves, rather than showing who you are. If you are comparing yourselves to others, you will never match up. What you are witnessing online isn’t true reality.

2. Avoid Spending A Long Time On Social Media

Social media may be the root of your problem. Social media is a fantasy world. People often post fantastic pictures on social media. These posts only show the best parts of their lives, not their whole lives (the ups and downs). These posts are not realistic. In a simple solution, avoid spending long times on social media. People now spend hours on social media per day. Narrow it down to taking a night off or reduce the amount of time you spend scrolling through Facebook, Instagram and more.

3. Don’t Be Hard On Yourself

Sometimes, you just need to stay in. You need to take a break from it all. It is vital to have some ‘me time’ during your day or week. Many people don’t know how to enjoy ‘me time’ without having guilt. Give yourself permission to relax without thinking about what you can be doing with that time. It is good for you and you slowly won’t care about what are other people are doing.

4. It’s Ok Not To Do It All

There are only a certain amount of hours in the day for you to do all the things you need. Don’t feel worried you can’t do it all. You need to pick and choose what you want to say yes to. If you tried to do it all, you would never have time for friends and family. It is important for you to find a balance between work, socialising and relaxing.

5. Practice Gratitude

FOMO is the fear of not having something aspirational or idealistic. Instead of trying to chase these dreams, practising gratitude will help reduce your FOMO feeling. By practising gratitude, it allows you to deeply appreciate what you have rather than what you lack or desire. Gratitude allows you to appreciate what you have in your life.

6. Practice Mindfulness

A way to reduce your FOMO feeling is by experiencing mindfulness. Mindfulness is a technique to make you aware and focused on the present experience and being non-judgemental. Rather than trying to know everything, mindfulness can help you with those FOMO feelings.

7. Is Your FOMO Feeling About Something More?

When you say no to parties, are you just annoyed or do you get angry and jealous? If your mind goes into deeper negative emotions, there may be other problems causing your FOMO. Consider whether your FOMO feelings are just feeling left out or are you feeling generally unhappy with your life or with your insecurities? There may be something more to your FOMO. It is key to get closer to why you feel those emotions.