Did you ever scroll through your Facebook feed out of boredom and then instantly regret doing it because you are now super jealous of random stuff? I do this all the time. And here’s the main culprits.

(And none of these points pertain to any certain person or group. Because I know Facebook status paranoia could be a whole other blog post!!)

1. I missed something important, like a birthday or anniversary. I see the person’s status thanking everyone for their well wishes or whatever it may be and I feel bad. And you can’t really comment on that status, it’s kind of after-the-fact, and a cop-out, so you just feel like an ass and go on with your day. All the while thinking that person obviously realized you missed their event and are now mad at you. In reality, we can’t possibly keep track of everyone, but none-the-less, when you’re the one that forgot, YOU know.

2. People’s vacation/cruise/road trip – you name it – statuses. These are especially annoying if you’re sitting at work or at home and get  jealous because “everyone is having more fun than me.” If I’m not at the beach and I see a picture of sand and the ocean and pretty drinks with umbrellas, of course I’m going to get a little mad. Or if I see spontaneous weekend trips by couples with no kids, I get mad because I can’t do that!! We have a 2-year-old, we don’t get that perk anymore. It could be as simple as a check-in at a Pirate game on a Monday night, and your brain starts moving, thinking about how long it’s been since you’ve been to a game, and why the heck don’t you go more often. It’s funny how you only care because someone else is doing it. Before all of this, we had no idea what everyone did. We didn’t know our lives were so boring, because we were unaware of how exciting everyone else’s was around us (or seemed anyway). And then of course, when it’s your turn to do something fun, you forget to post about it, and you get mad at yourself because you could’ve been the one making someone jealous. So sad, but so true. When we post something, it’s because we WANT people to see it and think we’re über cool. Why post it if we don’t care? The more likes and comments we get, just gives us affirmation that we must be pretty awesome. It’s human nature to want to be liked. We become 5 years old again, attention seeking little kids…

3. The do-it-all people. The people who create elaborate theme birthday parties for their kids, or who bake apple pies and still find time to work out and read books and yada yada. Otherwise known as “The Pinterest People.” I love Pinterest, don’t get me wrong, I just have no time (or I think I don’t) to actually work on all the projects I want to do. I think these people are just good at not getting any sleep. To do as much as they do in a day, they must have super powers, and the rest of us feel incredibly lazy, even tired, just reading their posts. I wish I could be like these people, so once again, the jealousy beast rages on. Damn Pinterest. Who else hates/loves this website?

4. The “why didn’t I think of that?” statuses. Someone announces they are having a boy or girl with the cutest idea, or posts a really awesome wedding photo, or really sweet status. Someone posts a really funny comment regarding something in pop culture, or starts a new business venture. And you think about the next time you have to post something and how you can do it in an awesome way, too. You don’t want to be the boring person in everyone’s news feeds, you don’t want the dreaded “hide” coming your way. There’s pressure every time you look at that blinking cursor.

We had enough ways and reasons to be jealous of people before, and now with Facebook, we have a million more. I’ve heard of people actually getting into fights over a post and “un-friending” each other in the real world. It’s insane, but we all know it happens.

We are humans and as confident or great as we think we are, we are all still affected greatly by input from others. So just because someone is at the beach and you’re not, if you love their picture, give it a nod. Let’s appreciate and celebrate along with everyone. Life is about being happy for others, just as much as our own happiness. Don’t be too jealous of everyone else, someone out there is just as jealous of you.