No and no! Asking for help when you need it, sharing a story when things seem insurmountable, apologising when you make a mistake. Each of these things are in our nature, hard-wired into our brains, part of our common traits.
There is no doubt that people have become increasingly isolated with the advent of social media, the very thing designed to bring us closer together. The missing part of social media is of course, face-to-face conversations.
Messaging back and forth may work on occasion, talking with someone on a phone is okay, video calls are second best, talking in person is the ultimate method when communicating with others.
'Moderate' users of social media use the service sparingly across the day. 'Regular' users tend to use social media first thing in the morning, maybe during a break, and then last thing in the evening. 'Heavy' users are on social media for a large portion of their day. Research tells us moderate use is the best for us - we enjoy it more, it doesn't dominate our life, we have increased contentment, and we don't become isolated.
The three most important things that you can do for your wellbeing are; socialisation, exercise, and sleep. Get these three simple things right and our lives tend to become more balanced.
Using social media can be a part of the socialisation process, yet an unintended consequence is that, the more we use it the less likely we are to talk with actual people. From that comes increased reluctance to ask for help when we need it most, stemming from fear and/or embarrassment.
There is no shame in falling over, there is no shame in making mistakes, there is no shame in not achieving what you set out to do. The shame is actually not feeling we are able to ask, share, or apologise.
Never ever be afraid to ask for help, never ever be afraid to share your story, never ever be afraid to apologise. Most importantly, never ever be afraid or embarrassed to talk, no matter what the reason.
When we converse with others in person, we are participating in a centuries-old practice - sharing, caring, helping, listening, telling, laughing - the very things that make us who we are as humans.
Let's talk!