FOMO stands for "fear of missing out". It refers to the nervous or anxious feeling a person gets when they realize they are not attending a social event either because they weren't invited or they just didn't feel like going. This belief, in tum, can create anxiety and a sense of inferiority (自卑). FOMO bothers most teens, especially if they're often online.
One way for teens to deal with FOMO is to practice what is known as reframing(重塑) thinking. Here are some tips on how teens can start to reframe their thinking.
Track negative thoughts and replace them with reasonable ones. One thing teens can do to deal with FOMO is to track their negative thoughts and feelings in a journal. Then, they can change their thoughts and replace the negative thoughts with something positive.
Encourage teens to recognize that they have limited time and cannot possibly be everywhere and do everything. So, naturally, there will be social events that they cannot attend. But this does not mean that they're necessarily missing out on something.
Turn off the technology and do something else. Turning off the technology seems like a natural cure for FOMO. But just switching the phone off does not erase the feelings that FOMO causes.
The key is to occupy yourself with something else entirely, like reading a book or baking cookies - anything that allows them to focus on something other than social media.
A. Be realistic about availability.
B. There are some negative consequences of FOMO.
C. Realize that no one lives a perfect life as described in social media.
D. It's a mental exercise designed to help them look at situations differently.
E. In general, FOMO causes people to assume that they have a low social rank.
F. Teens may still worry about missing out even if they're not in social media at all.
G. This allows them to observe how often they're feeling negative about themselves.
