Drinking a peach ice tea and lounging in the sun (really I mean the shade) is my current activity. I then get out my phone, click on an Instagram story and someone is doing a big BBQ party. I then see a snapchat of someone getting ready for a night out. I have only been on summer break for a few weeks yet every chill moment is filled with thoughts. My mind is always thinking ‘shouldn’t I be doing something more exciting?’. I texted a friend recently saying it is hard having so much uni work then suddenly endless time. And yes, I have a part-time job but I am also wanting to balance that with my social life. It doesn’t help that my favourite TV shows include ‘The Summer I turned Pretty’. This showcases young people falling in love and lounging by the pool all summer, seemingly never worrying about adult issues apart from their love life. But how much pressure do we as young people face to have the perfect summer?
Social media is filled with lifestyle aesthetics of how to envision our lives. It is like viewing your life as a literal Pinterest board with trends such as soft girl summer, Grandma summer, feral girl summer and delusional summer. If you aren’t familiar with these terms I will break them down, as you have probably (sensibly) deleted TikTok:
Soft girl - the person who prioritises self care and feels liberated with a simple daily routine
Grandma - usually this represents someone staying in on a Friday night to read a book and drinking some red wine by themselves (a tempting lifestyle)
Feral girl - the act of being carefree and not caring about the consequences (within reason)
Delusional summer - ignoring your friends advice and blindly not seeing red flags as everything is for the summer plot
This isn’t a quiz where if you picked mainly option ‘A’s this is who you are. The aesthetic you choose is entirely up to you! They aren’t necessarily toxic terms but there is a pressure to fit a certain style. It is important to note that a lot of the videos showcasing these trends are people that are full-time influencers. Therefore, their job ‘creates’ trends such as these. Part of me wants to be all these aesthetics at once and the other half doesn’t really care. I admit I enjoy the fashion element by using a trend to inspire my outfits. However, the daily routines of the type of 'girl' to be should be taken with a pinch of salt. I think creating your individual aesthetic is more exciting.
I love following influencers on my Instagram. Sometimes I enjoy mindlessly scrolling on a story about their day at the new ‘PLT launch’ and the fancy hotel they are staying in. On the flip side, it can be hard sometimes seeing influencers jet off all the time to Ibiza or Greece. These holidays are super lavish and never seem to end before they are back home again and off on another holiday. I may sound like an influencer stalker and you might ask why don’t I just unfollow these accounts? The reason is because I then feel drawn to wanting my summer to be full of travelling as well. I do think travelling is a great thing to do while you’re young but is frustrating as a student. Financially, more than two holidays (unless I pay to join my family and ten year old brother) is not looking highly likely. Therefore, over analysing other people’s summer plans is not always the best move. Truth be told, some of my Instagram photos were taken on days I mentally felt awful. It is a cliché statement but Instagram is truly not all it seems.
The summer pressure cooker can feel like 2-3 months (for uni students mainly) of not knowing whether to be at home, with friends, travelling or working full time. There is a transition from exams to suddenly having free time looms upon you. Surely the hottest time of the year is to relax? The meaning of ‘to relax’ is to unwind and de-stress. Yes, a holiday can be perfect for that but the luxury of your own garden or balcony can work as well. Some of the things that also unwind me are going for a walk, to the pub, watching Love Island religiously at 9pm and treating myself to a coffee. So essentially I don’t need the lifestyle of an influencer or the TikTok girl aesthetic - so I am removing myself from the pressure cooker.