FOMO: The cycle of exhaustion explained

Being a student in times like these is extremely challenging. It should be both acknowledged and addressed. It is particularly hard to question the globally accepted saying “Grab every opportunity”, unless we recognize that not every opportunity has to be availed by everyone. Collectively, we aim for success and not fatigue. Now that mental health has so much public attention, it is important to identify our centres of stress and anxiety and manage it.

 

After all, dealing with roadblocks leads to character building and then we can approach problems differently.

 

 

Image from Unsplash.com by @tonikoraza

 

Understanding FOMO basics

 

Before delving into the problem at hand, it is important to understand the problem itself. FOMO, Fear Of Missing Out, in a nutshell is “Am I doing enough? Are not the others doing more?” 

 

It is so prevalent that it officially made its way in the Oxford English dictionary in 2013. The range of this fear could be from as trivial as missing the notification of a social media post to missing an important deadline. What stays common is how Przybylski et al. (2013) puts it, the “pervasive apprehension that others might be having rewarding experiences from which one is absent”. The problem stems from one’s unhappiness and leads to anxiety and unhappiness creating a toxic cycle. The fact that it is trending as a hashtag on every social media platform today in 2021, does not mean the phenomenon is new. The phrase itself was coined by Dr. Dan Herman as early as in 2000.

 

So, what is the real problem?

 

Awareness about the activities of our peers is beneficial in several aspects but it also acts as a double-edged sword.

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Author:

Jeny Jose

Assistant Editor

at GiLE Journal

of Skills Development

Jeny Jose Assistant Editor at GiLE Journal

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The opinions expressed in this article/publication are those of the authors. They do not necessarily reflect the opinions or views of GiLE or its members.

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