These days, we are open books. It seems people air everything on Facebook
From what they ate for dinner to fights with their spouses, to political opinions, to their weekend plans. But how much is too much? Is it healthy to share your dirty laundry regarding your romantic relationship for the word to see? Could it be hurting your relationship?
It may be tempting to take an argument online to get support from your friends, but it can quickly backfire. Once you have made up with your spouse, the public is still left remembering all of your private details. By then, they have formulated their own opinions that you may not want to hear.
“I am sick to death of my husband’s attitude, if he doesn’t stop, I am taking the kids and moving to my parents. And I am telling his boss that he stole cash from the petty cash jar and we haven’t had sex in six months and he has five unpaid parking tickets.”
“Why doesn’t my girlfriend return my calls? She is out again binge drinking with her old boyfriend. I'll slash her tires if she doesn’t call me in ten minutes. I also don’t think our kid is mine. I want a DNA test!”
Ouch. Such intimate details used to be considered too embarrassing to share. But on Facebook and Twitter, some think nothing of it. Do we really need to know all of that? There is such thing as over-sharing. Many people aren't funny, they aren't insightful, and they share way too much. Who cares if you were born with an extra kidney? Or that your boyfriend still sleeps with a blankie? Or how about those over-the-top sexy bathroom photos people take of themselves? Really? We didn’t need to see that much skin, but thank you for sharing.
It’s true, that as human beings we all have a need to connect and build relationships. Perhaps there are just better ways to go about it. Some have even lost jobs or gotten in trouble over Facebook posts. Business relationships can be affected. Like a teacher from Massachusetts, June Talvitie-Siple who lost her job after posting derogatory remarks about students on her Facebook page, and not making them private.
Angry people over-pushing their political agendas can also be a bit much. So can endless spam and sales reps repeatedly asking for your money and your business if you’ll just try the next best lotion, potion, hair care product or Tupperware container. Thankfully, we do have the option of unfriending or unsubscribing.
Another phenomenon is cyber-bullying. Some people hide behind the anonymity of a computer and use Facebook to spout off comments about people that they would not, under normal circumstances say to their faces. Facebook recently started an anti-bullying campaign. On this page there are plenty of resources and links for anti-bullying.
Be careful to not post your address or other personal information that thieves or cyber stalkers can use on you. Make sure your privacy setting are set to where you are comfortable. There are good things about Facebook sharing, photos of our kids that we can exchange with friends, our latest business venture or life triumph. We can find support when we are going through hard times. There is just a fine line. Use your best judgement and be responsible for what you post about yourself and others. When in doubt, share less. Less is more.
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