Thread by @millennialprof

Folks who know me know that I've been trying to quit Facebook and Twitter for yeeears. At first, it wasn't any concrete; I just FELT bad after being on them. And then I saw the @Netflix doc #TheSocialDillemma that explained that they were set up to work like addictions. 1/x

@netflix So using the sites floods your brain with happy chemicals, so you start using those sites to the exclusion of other things -- like positive relationships -- that release the same chemicals but require more work. The cycle leaves folks with a vague sense of shame/depression. 2/x

Which can be alleviated by--you guessed it--getting back on the sites that flood our brains with happy chemicals. And round and round we go. The key to the whole thing is a computer algorithm designed to create an experience that will flood your brain with happy chemicals. 3/x

The reason I've been almost evangelical about moving to Mastodon is that this is finally a site that allows for the connections but doesn't hijack our brain chemistry with algorithms. If I had to guess, I'd guess this is why so many find it uncomfortable and unfamiliar. 4/x

As an alcoholic in recovery, that Mastodon feeling was all too familiar. It was the same feeling I had when I replaced alcohol with a program of recovery. It didn't feel quite as good, didn't feel familiar, didn't feel like it would be as fun. 5/x

And with Twitter, unlike alcohol, it's unlikely that the folks I engage with regularly on Twitter will be able to hit anything like a "rock bottom" that would compel them to overcome the discomfort of moving to Mastodon. So I offer only this: I'm happy to help if you . . . 6/x

. . . want to break free of the algorithms on Twitter. DM me and I'll schedule a Zoom session to walk anyone interested through the process and show you how I'm creating a community there. Even though it's not the same community exactly, it FEELS better. 7/x

I notice I don't get the same vaguely icky feeling after being on Mastodon for a while. I find it's easier to stop after whatever limit I set for myself in advance. I feel better about MYSELF after a visit to Mastodon because no algorithm is manufacturing a sense of FOMO. 8/x

There's also an ethos of civility that I've never found on social media. From the use of # to help people find things to the reminders to use content warnings and image descriptions to help everyone make their own decisions about what they consume, it's just more considerate. 9/x

There's no evangelist like a convert, so please forgive my steady drumbeat about Mastodon. I've not cut the cord on Twitter or Facebook, so I understand the pull. But moving away from them feels like holding on to the positive but releasing the negative. DM if I can help. 10/10.

@threadreaderapp unroll, please