Selena Gomez, Queen Of Instagram, Calls Social Media Break ‘Refreshing’
Selena Gomez has slowly returned to the spotlight after she was in rehab for her mental health symptoms associated with lupus. The “Hands to Myself” singer has since opened up about her journey to health and admitted that she was without her phone for 90 days.
The 24-year-old pop star sat down for a special question and answer interview with Thrive Global. Gomez revealed that she managed to stay off social media since she was without her phone.
“I recently took 90 days off. During that time I did not have my cellphone,” she said. “It was the most refreshing, calming, rejuvenating feeling. Now I rarely pick up my phone, and only limited people have access to me.”
Selena revealed that she felt burned out exactly “three months ago, before I took a hiatus to take care of myself.” Now that Selena feels like she’s in a better place, she’s 100 percent focused on “staying healthy (mentally, physically, emotionally) and learning new things” because those are the things that give her the most joy and energy in her life. Selena was in the middle of her Revival World Tour when she announced to fans and the media that she needed to step away from the spotlight for the sake of her mental health.
She has revealed in the past that she will give up social media completely one day when she no longer feels a need for it. Gomez previously explained to W magazine that the reason why she can’t give it up is because of the app’s demographic and she wanted to fight back at the constant rumors about her.
“I’m utilizing social media right now because of my age and because, to be honest, everybody else in the world was talking about me, so I wanted a f***ing say,” she bluntly told the publication. “In a few years. I’ll give all of it up.”
Though Selena is not as addicted to Instagram or her phone these days, she still hasn’t stopped ruling the social media app. Instagram shared its 2016 Year in Review, via Entertainment Weekly on Dec. 1, which proves that Selena is still the queen of the app. In addition to having the most-liked photo and video, Selena’s also the most-followed celebrity with a resounding 103 million followers. Selena also has eight out of the 10 most popular photos, including her Coca Cola promo photo which racked up 5.9 million likes.
She is joined by her BFF, Taylor Swift, Ariana Grande, Beyoncé, and Kim Kardashian in the top five list. The most popular male on Instagram is not her ex, Justin Bieber, but Portugal footballer Cristiano Ronaldo, who takes the No. 6 spot.
While Gomez did take three months off from Instagram as she focused on her mental health, she made her brief return to the app on Thanksgiving when she shared a photo of herself with her fans.
“I have a lot to be thankful for this year,” she wrote in the caption. “My year has been the hardest yet most rewarding one yet. I’ve finally fought the fight of not ‘being enough.’ I have only wanted to reflect the love you guys have given me for years and show how important it is to take care of YOU. By grace through faith. Kindness always wins. I love you guys. God bless.”
Gomez’s big Instagram return came just days after she made her first post-rehab appearance at the American Music Awards in Los Angeles. During the show, she accepted the award for Best Female Artist: Pop/Rock. Gomez spoke out about feeling “broken” and urged her fans to take care of themselves when they feel the same way.
“Thank you guys so much,” Gomez said, via E! News. “All I can say is I’m so grateful that I have the opportunity to be able to share what I love every day with people that I love. I have to say thank you so much to my fans, because you guys are so damn loyal, and I don’t know what I did to deserve you. But if you are broken, you do not have to stay broken. That’s one thing you should know about me: I care about people. And this is for you.”
