Social media can make wellness look perfect, aesthetic, and effortless… but real health rarely looks like that. This is my honest take on Instagram wellness culture, why it frustrates me, and how I try to maintain a healthy relationship with social media while protecting my peace.
Let’s Talk About Social Media
The realness of it.
The fakeness of it.
The obsession with it.
The way it can make you hate yourself.
And how we’re all somehow supposed to have a “healthy relationship” with it.
The most toxic relationship I’ve ever had in my life has been with social media.
The amount of times I have deleted, deactivated, reactivated, unfollowed, removed, blocked, followed back, stalked, stayed up until 1 a.m. scrolling…
See what I mean? Toxic.
And I know I’m not the only one.
Truthfully, I hate it. I really do.
For me personally, there are very few benefits social media brings into my life. I constantly go back and forth wondering if it’s even worth having. On one hand, I feel like I need it for my business … to share what I know, build an audience, reach women who might need the help I offer.
But on the other hand, I hate the attention.
The pressure.
The criticism.
The feeling of opening yourself up to the entire world … a world whose energy often feels far from loving.
There’s this weird balance between protecting your peace and proving yourself.
Between not caring what people think… and somehow caring way too much.
And the only way we justify social media’s worth in our lives is through likes, views, and validation from strangers.
It’s honestly crazy when you step back and think about it.
Social Media in the Health & Wellness World
Now let’s talk specifically about social media in the nutrition, women’s health, and wellness space.
The cool thing is that there are incredible creators out there who genuinely care about women’s wellbeing. People making thoughtful, educational content that can actually help someone.
But there’s also a lot of generalizing.
A lot of diagnosing strangers through a screen.
And a lot of people building entire careers off something that worked for them personally… convincing everyone else it will work for them too.
And that’s just… not how bodies work.
Maybe the carnivore diet saved someone’s life. But it could be the worst thing for your body.
Maybe that detox smoothie changed someone’s morning routine. But maybe it doesn’t fit into your lifestyle at all.
Health isn’t one-size-fits-all. And social media tends to forget that.
The Part That Makes Me The Most Mad
The biggest thing that drives me crazy about social media in the health world is how performative and aesthetic it is.
And honestly? It makes me angry.
Because I want to make content.
But I might not have a matching workout set on.
I might not have a perfectly decorated kitchen.
I might not have beautiful ceramic bowls or perfect lighting.
I don’t have a professional camera.
And sometimes I’m just… not smiling and glowing while I do things.
Social media makes it seem like you can’t go to Pilates unless you’re wearing an Alo set, holding a green juice, and carrying a brand-new workout bag.
Meanwhile, my chia pudding might be in a plastic bowl because I was rushing.
Sometimes I catch myself at home spending 20 minutes making my dinner bowl look pretty enough to post .. just so someone might actually read about the ingredients.
And that’s when it hits me.
This isn’t about a healthy lifestyle.
It’s about a pretty lifestyle.
One worth having on the outside.
And that makes me so mad.
How I Try To Have A Healthy Relationship With Social Media
Here are a few things I personally do to protect my sanity:
- I remove people freely (and maybe too often)
If someone isn’t part of my real life, they don’t get my mental energy through my phone.
I unfollow people, pages, and topics that don’t align with me and I truly don’t care if it annoys anyone.
If something makes me feel insecure, drained, or irritated, it’s gone.
This also includes politics.
Social media politics is one giant negative energy field.
Get your news somewhere else.
- I take breaks.
Delete the app for a week or two.
I promise you the fake world will still be there when you come back.
Let yourself live in reality for a while.
- Post… and then leave.
When I post something, I immediately get caught up in who saw it, who liked it, who viewed it, who commented.
It’s human.
We’ve become obsessed with external validation.
But here’s the funny thing: half the time when I’m scrolling, I’m barely paying attention to what I’m seeing.
Which means people might be doing the same thing to my stuff.
So now I try to post and then leave the app for a few hours.
When I come back, I care so much less.
- No social media in the morning or before bed.
These are the few sacred moments of your day that belong entirely to you.
Morning is when your brain wakes up into your life.
Night is when your brain processes and reflects on your life.
That time should be for you, not the internet.
- Remember it’s a highlight reel.
Maybe the couple posting the perfect photo had a massive fight before taking it.
Maybe the athlete who just won a championship had crippling anxiety the entire week before.
Maybe the person posting their dream city life secretly hates where they live.
We all know social media is fake.
But for some reason we still forget.
The Truth About Social Media in the Health World
Let’s be honest for a second.
• The person claiming they lost 100 pounds from two Pilates classes a week and a flat tummy tea?
They’re probably on a GLP medication.
• The aesthetic morning routine with matching sets and the perfect breakfast?
It probably only looked like that for the video.
Real life is me throwing on whatever is in my closet, going for a walk to wake up my body, and quickly throwing together a yogurt bowl before running out the door.
• The girls promoting 12 supplements that “changed their lives”?
The supplements didn’t change their life.
Their paycheck from promoting them did.
And by the way, a weekend holistic nutrition certification online does not make someone a health professional.
• The perfectly styled hair and makeup for an “at home workout”?
There’s a good chance the workout didn’t actually happen.
Meanwhile I’m doing a 30-minute Pilates video on YouTube in my pajamas on a mat that barely fits in my room before a busy day.
• The perfect family meal prep that looks like it came straight from heaven?
Reality: most of us are lucky if we have time to roast a few vegetables.
Remember — for many of these people, this is their job.
The health message often becomes secondary to the paycheck.
What I Actually Want Women To Know
Sometimes I feel like people won’t listen to you online unless they want to be you.
And that’s not my message.
I don’t want women to want to be me.
My message is for every woman I work with to become obsessed with their own power.
To become obsessed with who they are.
Not trying to become some “health girlie” on Instagram who spends more time editing her life than actually living it.
Real health is messy.
It’s plastic bowls.
Pajamas during workouts.
Vegetables thrown in the oven.
Walking outside without documenting it.
And honestly?
That’s the version of health I trust the most.
Now, go let your feet hit the grass, or listen to the bird, or hug a tree or something. It’ll help.
-Olivia Jade
Jaded By Olivia Jade 
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