What I found on the other side of the scroll…
My life is guided by four simple words: Inspiration. Hope. Wonder. Joy.
I’m inspired by the beautiful things in life and the quiet, everyday things people do to make the world a little better. I’m filled with hope, knowing that chaos always precedes the creation of something better than what existed before. Wonder finds me in a cloud formation, a sunrise, a sunset; nature’s way of asking, how could you not feel this? And Joy, Joy is the foundation. The things we’re capable of creating from a place of joy are genuinely beyond words.
That’s the lens I try to live through. And it didn’t happen by accident.
It’s been nearly ten years since I disconnected from social media. I still enjoy short videos on YouTube or TikTok that inspire me or make me laugh, but I stopped posting and reading posts for two reasons.
The first was my mental health. I know social media algorithms feed me more of whatever I focus on — I could choose to curate a feed full of positivity and inspiration. But my decision went beyond that. It was the overall energy I felt from social media, not any single post.
The second reason was simpler: I objected to becoming the product being sold to advertisers. The degree to which some platforms “personalize” ads is, frankly, creepy. Case in point: a few years back, I was evaluating an app for work. Within a week, an ad for that same app appeared in my husband’s Facebook feed.
He had nothing to do with the app. I hadn’t posted on Facebook in four years. He still got the ad.
Like I said, creepy. That’s not personalization. That’s invasion.
Full disclosure: I don’t miss social media at all. I’m much happier for it. Am I out of the loop on a lot of things? Yes, but I don’t mind. I call or text the people who matter to me rather than liking their posts and hoping they reciprocate. I’m engaged, not just connected. There’s a difference.
So why am I telling you this? Because the path back to Inspiration, Hope, Wonder, and Joy often starts with something deceptively simple:
Go on a social media diet. Turn off the news. Do something you actually enjoy.
You’ve probably heard some version of this before, and I know it can sound easier said than done. But here’s the thing: the entire business model of media, social or traditional, is to hook your attention, sell you outrage, and turn you into a product they can sell to advertisers. Fear is the hook. Urgency is the bait.
And the solution they offer? “Buy this! It will make you look better, feel more attractive, and be more successful than you ever imagined!”
Meanwhile, the desperation quietly grows. People can be connected to thousands online and genuinely know very few of them. I know people who feel profoundly lonely despite all their connections: people chasing the next trend, the next purchase, the next hit of FOMO relief.
This isn’t a judgment. It’s what I observe.
External validation is a drug. It feels good for a while, and then you need another fix. The likes aren’t enough, the supportive comments don’t feel supportive enough, and somewhere in the noise, the trolls show up, spreading fear, hate, and separation, which only drives the hunger for more validation.
What I see and feel all around me is a deep, desperate search for connection, fulfillment, and meaning. In other words, the very things humans are wired to seek.
Here’s what I’ve learned: the things that truly fulfill me were already inside me.
When I was chasing likes, subscribers, and every scrap of external validation I could find, it was never enough. I kept comparing myself to others, wondering why I couldn’t be as successful, as followed, as seen.
It took shadow work, therapy, and a lot of honest introspection to see what I already had. I’m not just a unique expression of All That Is… I am All That Is. (I realize that might sound like a lot if you’re hearing it for the first time. Sit with it. It has a way of opening something up.) And so are you. Each of us is.
What gives me hope is that I see humanity beginning to shake off the fog of fear. We’re rejecting the stories that kept us locked in cycles of separation. We’re starting to see the Illusion for what it is, and we’re waking up from a collective bad dream.
Personal transformation is the key to experiencing peace, not just within ourselves, but everywhere we go.
What did that look like for me? Setting boundaries (something I always struggled with). Listening to my intuition. Saying what I really think, kindly, of course. Saying no to anything that didn’t feel right. And above all: learning to love myself.
That last one was the biggest. I’ve embraced myself with all my imperfections, and I’ve made peace with being a work in progress for the rest of my life.
And that’s the invitation I want to leave with you.
What does your personal transformation look like? You don’t have to answer right now. Just ask the question and let the answers come to you in quiet moments. Listen to your heart. Be guided by what emerges.
That will be your path.
With great love,
Appio
