Getting RealEvery Time Selena Gomez Has Gotten Real About Social Media, Instagram and Taking Internet Breaks: Quotes

No Social Media Apps On Her Phone

“I don’t have it [social media] on my phone, so there’s no temptation. I suddenly had to learn how to be with myself,” she told Elle Magazine in August 2021. “That was annoying, because in the past, I could spend hours looking at other people’s lives. I would find myself down nearly two years in someone’s feed, and then I’d realize, ‘I don’t even know this person!’”

“Now I get information the proper way,” she continued. “When my friends have something to talk about, they call me and say, ‘Oh, I did this.’ They don’t say, ‘Wait, did you see my post?’”

She credits her time off Instagram with allowing her to feel more present. “This tiny little phone that had 150 million people on it—I just put it down. That was such a relief for me.”

Social Media Break Was the ‘Best Decision’

“At one point Instagram became my whole world, and it was really dangerous. In my early 20s, I felt like I wasn‘t pretty enough,” Gomez told InStyle in January 2022. “Taking a break from social media was the best decision that I’ve ever made for my mental health. I created a system where I still don‘t have my passwords. And the unnecessary hate and comparisons went away once I put my phone down.”

On Her Four-Year Social Media Break

Selena revealed why she took a four-year break from social media during an interview with Good Morning America in April 2022.

“I understand how powerful the internet is, and in so many ways it’s done the best things for the world,” she began, before revealing that she removed herself from social media as to no longer feels plagued by the intense scrutiny that Instagram, in particular, placed her under.

“I woke up one morning and looked at Instagram, like every other person, and I was done,” she recalled. “I was tired of reading horrible things. I was tired of seeing other people’s lives. After that decision, it was instant freedom.”

‘Waste of My Time’

She opened up about where she stands with social media in an interview with Vanity Fair from February 2023.

Explaining why her assistant mostly posts for her on social media now, Selena revealed that she “went through a hard time in a breakup” and didn’t want “to see any” of the feedback and people’s opinions at the time.

“People can call me ugly or stupid and I’m like, ‘Whatever,’” she told the outlet. “But these people get detailed. They write paragraphs that are so specific and mean. I would constantly be crying. I constantly had anxiety … I  couldn’t do it anymore. It was a waste of my time.”

Why She’s Taking A Break In 2023

“I’ve been taking a break from social media because my heart breaks to see all of the horror, hate, violence and terror that’s going on in the world,” Selena wrote on her Instagram story in October 2023. “I’m sorry if my words will never be enough for everyone or a hashtag. I just can’t stand by innocent people getting hurt. That’s what makes me sick. I wish I could change the world. But a post won’t. Love, Selena.”

‘I’m Off Social for a While’

New year, same Selena! The singer has found herself already starting off the new year with another social media break. What’s prompted this departure? On January 7, 2024, Selena was seen chatting with Taylor Swift at the Golden Globes. Fans were convinced the “Wolves” songstress told Taylor that Kylie Jenner had denied her a photo with Timothée Chalamet.

A few days later, Selena put the rumors to rest by claiming that she wasn’t talking about the couple, but instead explained in an Instagram comment, “I told Taylor about two of my friends who hooked up.”

However, all the media attention that she garnered has seemingly left the actress wanting to take a step back. She wrote in an Instagram story a few days later, “I’m off social for a while. I’m focusing on what really matters.”