Selena Gomez has opened up about social media and the impact it has had on her life — and the lives of millennials.
“The biggest challenge is separating what you see on your phone from what is your life,” she said. “I see a disconnect from real life connections to people, and that makes me a little worried.”
Gomez, who has a whopping 126 million followers on Instagram, told Business of Fashion that social media is a good way to stay connected and allows young people to reach others all over the world, “but sometimes I think it’s too much information.”
The 25-year-old star also spoke about the importance of speaking out about mental health issues.
“I think it should be a part of middle school. You know how in kindergarten they teach you the smiley face and the sad face and the angry face — ‘these are the feelings you’re feeling.’ I love that, but I think it should be more sophisticated and brought into middle school and high school because it is something that we need to figure out.
“People are struggling with something every day and they think, ‘Oh it’s just high school, or I’m not great enough, or it’s because I’m so great.’ It’s all about learning. I hope we are the generation that gets to bring that up a little bit more.”
Gomez said young people should listen to older people they respect but surround themselves with like-minded people.
“You are who you surround yourself with — 100 percent,” she explaiend. “If you’re around people who think that stuff is dumb, that think it’s ridiculous but you don’t feel that way, then maybe it’s time to reevaluate that.
“It’s a lonely journey to really figure out where all this stuff is coming from. And to detach from it. It becomes an addiction, it becomes a habit, retraining your mind to not go to these negative places when you say something wrong, do something wrong, when you wear a certain thing or represent a certain culture. But it is lonely, I had to lose a lot of people in my life to get there.”
Gomez said she struggled to figure out the people around her. “I feel like I know everybody but have no friends. I have like three good friends that I can tell everything to, but I know everyone.”
These days, Gomez knows how to take care of herself. “I will say no when I need to say no, and I will make sure that I will not overdo everything because I feel like if I don’t accept everything that’s happening then maybe it seems like I’m ungrateful, or I’m not doing enough,” she told Business of Fashion.
“I just have to take care of myself. Therapy, faith, hard work, kindness. That’s it.”