Sharing Overload: Are Parents Sharing Too Much?
With easy access to all sorts of social media, every little moment involving our kids becomes “share-able” but how much is too much? Today Show looked at the possibility of over-sharing and told pregnant women and parents to “Beware of the Over-share.”
Recently, Today Show correspondent Clair Diaz-Ortiz took to Twitter to “live-tweet” her own labor and birth, an act that many people thought was just too much. It seems as though lately, “seemingly everyone puts seemingly everything online for the world to see.”
Sarah Maizes, a parenting expert and blogger, stated “We end up sharing so much of ourselves, even more than what other people are truly interested in seeing.” She also added “There is no one more narcissistic than the pregnant woman and the new parent.”
Today: Annoying Parents Over-Sharing?
The Today Show looked at the act of over-sharing on Social Media and asked the question, how much is too much?
A Today Show survey asked viewers “Does it annoy you when other parents over-share?” 60% said yes/sometimes and 40% said no.
Thomas Farley, an etiquette expert at Mister Manners, said about social media, “The nice thing is that you can restrict the circles you share to, so I really advise that.”
One good thing about technology these days is that if you don’t like what people are sharing or think they are sharing too much, you can hide what they’re sharing or hide their posts so that you don’t see it. This also keeps the person from getting offended, as they won’t know their posts were hidden by you.
But “there’s a fine line between posting and boasting.” Correspondents on the show suggest keeping gross stuff off of social media. Very few people, if any, want to see your dirty diapers or your baby spitting up. Even live-tweeting childbirth can be too much.
Today Show: How Often To Post Baby Pictures Online
A Today Show survey asked, “How often is too often to post a picture of your child?” and viewers responded by saying:
- 50% – Once a Day
- 22% – A Few Times a Week
- 11% – Once a Week
- 11% – Less Often
I have to admit, as a new mom, I am guilty to sharing my journey through pregnancy and parenthood on social media. But like discussed on the show, I believe if its occasional its okay but if you’re sharing every time someone does something it can be annoying. I try to limit myself to around one post a week but sometimes I just can’t help it!
Thomas Farley stated that some sharing is okay but “don’t spend too much time looking through the screen that you’re not looking at your child.”
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