Anyone else feels way behind in life after opening Instagram?

[Ankita]

Hi all,

I stopped using Instagram, but I sometimes open it in the browser just to see what everyone else is doing. As soon as I open it even for 5min, I feel I'm way behind in life. My friends, colleagues and people I know look prettier, go out on weekends dressed up for dates, take international trips, have friends for treks and fun activities. Is it just me or does anyone else feel this way?

[Ira]

I feel the same, yaar. Have you tried scrolling LinkedIn? It's even worse than Instagram.

[Gauri]

Even I feel this way. 1.5 yrs ago I deactivated my account and I'm not in the mood to reactivate it. People important in my life are already in touch on WhatsApp. I share interesting stuff directly on WhatsApp or call. I even muted a few statuses on WhatsApp that affect my mood. So I'm protecting myself from all that. You could call me weak, but that's who I am.

[Sandeep]

I feel the same and deactivated my account. It started feeling like another rat race. You have to travel, post, have good pictures. If you're not doing that, what are you even doing?

[Saritha]

This hits home, not just about vacations or weekends, but also career and looks. Everyone seems to have a high‑paying job, great figure, good looks, everything. I wouldn't say I have low self‑esteem, but it's depressing to see all that. My life feels miserable compared to theirs, and with the recent post‑rehab depression, I truly feel behind everyone when they're succeeding at 18‑19 and I'm almost 20.

[James]

I saw a reel where the girl said, "How can you be behind in life when it's YOUR life?" That really shifted my mindset. Now I compare myself only with my past self and notice the growth. We all post our best moments on Insta, so of course we see people at their best. Try not to compare too much - easier said than done.

[Amitabh]

I feel exactly the same. I deactivated my main account and created a fake one just to scroll random reels when I'm bored. It's helped my mental health.

[Niraj]

Influencers buying luxury cars and bragging about how far they've come... gosh, being pretty really pays off these days.

[Pavithra]

Haha, I feel the same. Everyone seems to be having the time of their lives, making memories, having fun, going out with friends all the time. And I just sit at home feeling stuck.

[Ranjit]

Bro!! This is so relatable. I haven't deactivated my account, but I use a Finsta where I only scroll reels and avoid everyone I know. If I see their reel, I block them. I also stopped watching WhatsApp statuses because seeing people travel made me sad. My mental health is everything.

[Lakshmi]

It's also very hypocritical! It feels like every reel is a challenge to see who can rage‑bait me the most. Someone throws out an opinion as if it's a fact, and people adopt it as their personality in the comments. That's it. It's the most painfully aware and detached I've ever felt, and it really confused my emotions.