Ranting online about your problems is good
March 24, 2019
FOR:
Nowadays, it seems like everyone’s relationship problems are on social media platforms like Facebook, but this shouldn’t necessarily be viewed as a bad thing.
The phrase “air out dirty laundry” has a bad connotation, but we praised Beyoncé when she released her “Lemonade” album. Everyone said her exposing her cheating husband was empowering, yet when we see social media posts of the same nature, we cringe and scold the person who posted it.
Instead of viewing online relationship posts about problems as rants and dirty laundry, the narrative surrounding the issue needs to change.
Social media shouldn’t filter out negative emotions to make the only thing left of our lives resemble a greatest hits reel.
Painting a 24/7 rewarding and joyful illusion of life and promoting that system won’t help, especially when it comes to society’s views on relationships.
The goals of talking about relationship problems online are acknowledgement, reflection and education. Yes, this can be done in private, but let’s not tear down others who do it publicly.
Emotional outbursts and rants are not welcomed, but thoughtful, logical reflections on social media are no different than writing a blog post or book about the same struggles.
It’s important to acknowledge that problems do occur in relationships because promoting a “fairytale” or “happily ever after” story is not good. This leads to internal pressure and external pressure from society to maintain a perfect relationship which is impossible.
Careful reflection is also important before sharing details about how a problem was solved. No one likes dirty laundry thrown at them. It should be cleaned and neatly folded before shared with everyone.
It’s the same with emotions. Raw or unfiltered emotions can taint one’s intent, and that’s just annoying.
And no one is saying any of this has to be done online, but for some, this can be therapeutic or empowering.
The last reason discussing private issues online should be promoted is because education is one of the most powerful tools in the world.
Discussing issues in the public eye can benefit others if they have a similar problem or even the people who initially had the problem. When done right, these posts receive support and who doesn’t need support?
Remember that all of this should be done with consent from the other individual in the relationship right now.
And yes, I know private things are private for a reason, but at the end of the day, no one is alone in this world. There’s someone that has gone through what you have or may go through it if they never see a warning sign.
AGAINST:
Do you smell that? It smells like someone is airing out their dirty laundry. Well, maybe not literally, but you can see the dirty laundry being spread out all over Facebook.
We all know what dirty laundry looks like. Someone sharing all the gruesome details of her and her baby daddy’s breakup.
We’ve probably even waited for more details while popping popcorn in our mouth and slurping on a drink like we are at a movie theater.
While this may all seem like fun and games, the reality is that this “airing of dirty laundry” is not healthy and should not be supported. So ladies and gentlemen, keep your dirty laundry to yourself.
By dishing all of your personal issues on social media, most people aren’t going to tell you the truth. Many people on Facebook will comment saying things like, “You go girl!”, “OMG they are the worst,” or my personal favorite, “They’ll get what’s coming to them.”
Whether you want to admit to it or not, you always pick a side when those fights occur. You believe one person over the other and you jokingly fight with your friends on the other team about how your team is right.
But this isn’t and shouldn’t be a joke. It shouldn’t be a “I’m team Edward,” or “I’m team Jacob,” fight. These are real people with real lives. Every person involved is hurting, angry or upset about the situation at hand. Each person involved in the situation has feelings. Other people’s feelings shouldn’t be used as entertainment for you.
The last reason you shouldn’t put all your personal issues on Facebook is you’ll eventually regret it. Most dirty laundry posts are made when the emotions are very raw and fresh.
The emotions hit you and you just want to rant so everyone will know what type of person they truly are. But eventually, that will come back to bite you.
You’ll be embarrassed by how crazy and obnoxious you sound or the other person will see that post and become angry which will only make matters worse.
Either way, you end up losing and it also damages your credentials as a person. People will create a certain image that they associate with you after they see your post. Potential employers do go through your social media accounts and I don’t think many employers would like to have someone who is constantly ranting about something at work.
If you have some personal issues going on and feel like you just need to rant, talk to your close friends. By talking to your friends, you are able to get perspective on the situation that you probably didn’t think of.
And I get we all go through things and need to rant, but trust me, social media is the last place you want to rant. So, call up your mom, talk to your friends or go see someone at the counseling center. Whatever you decide to do would be a better option than ranting on social media.