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6 Things Not To Believe On Your Social Media Feeds This Spring
Skylar Hunyadi
April 14, 2025
April 14, 2025
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Although the transition from winter to spring is generally something to celebrate, it can also be a tough shift — the anxiety of pulling out your warm-weather clothing or being reminded of that one closet you desperately need to organize. Any swift change, seasonal or not, can bring up insecurities and leave us susceptible to comparing ourselves. Social media is an obvious aggravator, where all the beautiful and seemingly perfect spring content churns out before the snow even melts. Think of freshly arranged tulips on a pristine wooden table or a five-hour-long deep clean condensed into a 10-second Reel. Is it inspirational or shame-inducing? This depends on your mindset.
It’s a good preventative measure to practice regular reality checks when you, like myself, spend a lot of time online. The risk of having editing features at our fingertips is that it can warp reality into something augmented or, in some cases, completely artificial. Ask yourself: what’s the truth behind that beautiful spring selfie? What are you not seeing in the corner beside the ultra-organized desk? Is it fair to compare when we know social media is often just a showcase of our best moments?
Before I proceed, here’s my disclaimer: If you follow me on Instagram, you know that I post cute stories, put together aesthetic carousels, and generally create “inspiring” content. However, this is NOT the whole picture. And I’m just as susceptible to an aspirational spiral triggered by an ungodly organized pantry as anyone.
So, here’s your spring social media reality check:
Lie: Everyone is embracing "spring cleaning" like a pro.
Truth: While some people thrive during this cleaning and decluttering season, others might find it stressful or don’t have the energy to do it all. Don’t let anyone’s perfectly organized closet make you feel behind! The average person likely doesn’t have a whole day, let alone a weekend, to fully deep clean their space — most fit in these projects all year round.
Lie: Everyone is happy now that it’s sunny out.
Truth: The “Seasonal” in SAD can also refer to springtime or even summertime. People struggle with mood and general contentment all year round. While a walk in the sun with iced coffee in hand can boost dopamine, it’s not a cure for poor mental health. Depression and mood issues can even worsen in spring when people expect their mood to improve.
Lie: Everyone is seamlessly fitting into and liking their wardrobes.
Truth: Transitioning your usual rotation of clothes can be annoying and time-consuming. Bodies change. Styles change. Preferences change. It’s okay to donate clothes that no longer serve you and invest in items that bolster and make you feel more you (within your budget, of course).
Lie: Spring means instant productivity and a fresh start.
Truth: A fresh start can happen whenever you want and realistically happens in phases — it doesn’t need to happen in spring. If it feels right to embrace the newness of the season, great, throw the proverbial windows open and embrace your mile-long to-do list, or don’t and continue at your current pace. You’re exactly where you need to be.
Lie: Spring is all about getting fit for summer.
Truth: You don’t need to change anything about your body just because the weather is warmer. Let me be very clear: cellulite, thighs and arms of any size, hips, and whatever else you may be trying to fix or hide are allowed to exist in the warmer months. Are diet culture and body shaming still alive and well? Yes. But know that you don’t need to exercise your spring away for the sake of a skinny summer.
Lie: That all relationships are picture-perfect.
Truth: All relationships, both platonic and romantic, have their behind-the-scenes, even the healthy ones (believe me, I’m a therapist). No one is posting their disagreements or gripes on their Instagram story. Just because they look happy in that moment doesn’t mean they are always happy.
*****
Social media can feel like a landmine when you realize it’s untrustworthy. What’s on your feed is not necessarily fact. Fortunately, there are people online who prioritize authenticity. However, this gets increasingly harder in a world where a seemingly harmless filter can change how someone perceives your life. Personally, I won’t be quitting social media anytime soon, so I choose to scroll carefully, viewing my feeds as inspirational, not entirely attainable, and certainly not the standard.
For more from Sky, join her on Substack! Subscribe here to receive her personal essays and poetry right to your inbox. This newsletter is a cozy corner of self care, reflections, and other small pleasures. All are welcome <3
Skylar is a licensed clinical mental health counselor who talks about self-care as the foundation of a prosperous life. She has a deep love for yoga, vegetarian cooking, and religiously organizing her Google calendar. Follow her on Instagram for more self-care and mental health content or on LinkedIn for the more ~professional~ stuff.
Denim button-downs. A staple piece I always love for summer is a good denim button down. There are the standard chambray tops (very Ina!), but then there are ones like this, which to me feel equally multipurpose while a bit more interesting.
Lip balm. NARS Orgasm lip balm has been my go-to for years, and probably will be forever. It's just so good!
Striped linen tablecloth. Nothing to me screams "festive summer dinner" quite like a striped linen tablecloth. I basically always have one out in the summer, and it makes my (very much indoor) NYC apartment feel like a magical garden.
831 Stories. I read Big Fan in one sitting and absolutely loved it, and now I'm working my way through the rest of the collection. Smart, sexy, easy, breezy.
📣If you’re feeling anxious about all of the current recession talk, we’d love for you to join us May 20th for a totally FREE workshop: Recession Prepping Your Finances. This workshop is all about financially (and mentally) preparing for a recession, in partnership with our friends at Aura. While we can't control the economy, there's plenty we can do to weather the financial storm. Join TFD creative director Holly Trantham and an expert CFP for this 90 minute workshop. Replay available if you can’t join live but you must register ahead of time for access!
💌Speaking of recession prepping, there are many financial resources available across the internet and social media, but not all of them are created equal, which is why we fully recommend signing up for friend of TFD, Money With Katie’s newsletter. Her newsletter explores money, how the economy affects you, and ways to live richer. Sound advice and hot takes that aren’t boring. Check her out!
🛍️Check out our April guidebook, A Low-Spend Guidebook For The Anti-Consumerist Curious. Written by Holly, this month’s Premium guidebook is a dense 21-page guide to help you audit your consumer habits, and make meaningful change in order to both help your budget, and be a more thoughtful and sustainable consumer. Join The Society at the $9.99 tier for access.
💰Join us for our April Society workshop! We're excited to have bestselling author and financial counsellor Jessica Moorhouse join us as a guest host this month! Jessica will be hosting Everything but Money: Breaking Free & Finding Financial Fulfillment. In this presentation, Jessica will walk you through how to dig deep into your relationship with money, uncover the unhealthy lessons you learned about money growing up, the role trauma and generational trauma may play in your current financial situation, and how to break free so you can find fulfillment with your finances. Join The Society at our $4.99 or up tier for access!
🎙️We have a few new episodes of The Financial Confessions dropping this month! Check out Chelsea’s recent conversation with Morgan Debaun, founder and CEO of Blavity & Afrotech, for a conversation about being a founder, a working mom, DEI, and more. Stay tuned for more episodes dropping soon!
✨With the current economic chaos, we highly recommend checking out the replay of our latest Society workshop, Your Money Under Trump, which was hosted by Amanda Holden last week. Amanda covered everything from recession-prepping to the future of Social Security. If you’re feeling unsure about how to navigate these times, Amanda shares level-headed advice in this workshop.
🎥 ICYMI: Our March video essay, You’re Being Gaslit By Generational Wealth, is now live over on our YouTube channel. This one is a must-watch! Reminder that $4.99 and up members of the Society at TFD get the ad-free extended version of this video, and all our video essays!
💸Check out our latest capsule series on YouTube, The Budget Fix, co-hosted by TFD creative director Holly Trantham and financial educator Berna Anat. In this series, Holly & Berna are dissecting real-life budgets from members of the TFD community in order to help you better reach your long-term money goals! More episodes dropping soon!
🎥And don’t forget to check out our other new YouTube capsule series, Asked & Answered, cohosted by Chelsea & Erin Lowry of Broke Millennial. This is a 6-part series dedicated to answering your personal money questions, from budgeting and investing basics, to navigating the financial headlines of our current political climate. The full season is available now! Due to popular demand, we’re coming back with season 2 of Asked & Answered very soon! Do you have a question you want answered by Erin & Chelsea? Email your question to [email protected]!
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