I've been very hesitant to share myself with the social medias, like Facebook and YouTube. It's not only the lack of privacy that keeps me away but another more disturbing feature.

Why is it so important (on YouTube) to say whether or not someone "likes" or "dislikes" something? You could be having a really bad day and can "tune in" to your channel and find that a handful of people dislike a photo or video you dared to share. What's the point of that? So that you can feel even worse than you already do? It's difficult not to take stuff like that personally. Those of you who partake of all that, how do you deal with the negativity? I know, you can keep your channel private or you can "turn off" that comment area but that's not the point!

I'm an artist, so constructive criticism has been a part of my life since my teens. In fact, I miss that give and take of ideas and improvement you get in a creative environment. But "dislike" is not specific or helpful! Or nice.

With so much animosity in the world, wouldn't it be better to support instead of judge? Can you imagine what it would be like here if people put up a "like" or "dislike" of your posts on this forum? I shudder at the thought. That's why I love the "thanks" option. I probably don't use it enough.

I'm not certain I have the energy to keep up with any sites like that anyway. I barely keep up with my dishes. When you can't socialize much due to this disease, it would be a nice way to share things but how do you deal with people who simply want to tear you down? Geez, it's like being in high school again! I dared to enter a video contest - first time ever and only my 3rd video - and it was brutal. Because of MG, I couldn't "shoot" actual video and had to do illustrations on photos instead and create a movie from that in iMovie. I didn't want to reveal that I was "sick" and couldn't do that because then everyone treats you differently. Do people really lack the ability to be compassionate?

No wonder people are afraid to share of themselves, virtually or in real life. We could use a LOT more kindness in the world.



Annie