Social Media is making a lot of us sad. That's a trend I've had an intuitive sense about for some time, but a study released in August put data behind it. I couldn't help but think of Brené Brown's excellent work on shame and vulnerability as I read various summaries and ultimately the original work. People hide those things we fear will separate us from others and that drives us to share the very best parts of our lives via social media. Others see these idealized versions of life and their own shame is amplified as they compare themselves to a life that doesn't exist.

From this springs a culture of envy, bitterness, sadness, loneliness, and cynicism. Even genuine posts regarding significant life events can be viewed with cynical detachment, as illustrated by this comic from The Oatmeal. Cynicism and deconstruction can be useful, but I'd rather think about steps we can take to make people less sad by our attempts to share our life experience.