FOMO
Noun
“Fear Of Missing Out”.
The fear that if you miss a party or event you will miss out on something great. – Urban Dictionary
I live in constant FOMO. I love to party. I want to go to all the parties and have all the fun.
But this FOMO is getting more serious. It’s infiltrated into my entire my life.
It is crippling.
I stay home to rest because I’m exhausted, but can’t sleep because all I can think of is the good-times-sexy-fun I’m missing.
I head out and think ‘I should be writing so I can make it as a freelance writer and maybe get where I want to get’.
I stay home to write and think ‘I don’t know enough about this topic I want to write about; I must read absolutely everything about everything to do with anything ever to do with it ever’.
I sit down to read and think ‘I’m wasting my youth, my breasts aren’t going to be this perpendicular to my body forever. I need to take a walk in the sunshine’.
I can’t commit to anything in case something better comes up. Sometimes I have trouble confirming ‘attending’ on Facebook invites. It seems too final.
I just want to know everything, read everything, understand every side of every story, go everywhere, experience all different kinds of culture, feel every emotion, eat everything and watch every talking animal clip.
I also need to simultaneously condense it all into 140 character updates and take stylized pics with Instagram/Hipstermatic/whatevercameraappcomesnext. All the while recording every action in a journal so I’ll have nice memories for when I’m too old to remember doing it in the first place.
IS THAT SO MUCH TO ASK?
I can’t take it. It’s overwhelming. I can’t’ sleep for fear of missing the next Dwitanic or Llama Del Ray. I can’t write for fear of offending someone. If I get a fact wrong or say something really stupid I could become the next ridiculed suburban white girl who doesn’t know anything. I AKTUALLEE DYE WEN I SEA I DUNN A SPEELING MISTAEK!
It’s all too much. I want to do it all, yet can’t because I’m constantly worried I could be doing something better. This fear has me so contained all I can do is think about everything I’m not doing and not do anything constructive.
…
See that? That pause? I just went to check my Facebook. I creeped a few friends pics (I didn’t click ‘like’ though as I don’t want them to know I did it). I also noted where my friends are (yes it’s Friday night and I chose to stay home, but now I’m wondering if I’m missing the best Friday night ever with tacos and mermaids and other cool shit). Then I checked my WordPress: no new comments. Better make my next post awesome. But it isn’t. It won’t be. I should have just gone out.
THIS IS WHY I DON’T GET SHIT DONE!
I meant to write something funny or poignant or just plain awesome. Perhaps I could write an article that makes a positive difference to the world? Something in which people could learn from my myriad of mistakes? Best brands of soup for one? Something? ANYTHING!
And all I wrote was this crappy blog.
I’m sorry.
Update: I wrote this Friday night but didn’t bother posting it until today. That’s how bad it is. Please send help.
the blank notebook 
I don’t know if I can help but I definitely relate to the feeling. At some point you have to decide to let your fear of not doing something great go and just do it. It might not be perfect, it probably never will, but practice certainly makes better. As for the great nights out missed, we have a tendency to forget the good nights we actually had and focus on the ones we missed. It should be the other way around.
Anyway, I like your blog!
Thanks Anlena, appreciate your kind words. You are right I should focus on all the good times & not dwell on what I’m missing!
Cheers,
Miranda
LOL, I loved this very much. You had me rolling on the floor laughing my ass off. Great blog. Thank-you for making me smile. I really needed that today, yesterday, last week and this last month.
I am so happy I followed your blog until now. Now I will wonder if I am missing something better by reading this. Or if not reading, what would I have missed? So I watched a little TV, checked my facebook, checked a couple of other things, I hoped to get comments on, and here I missed this story. Sigh.
Haha I am glad you enjoyed, I hope you didn’t miss the best thing ever by reading! 😉
And cheers for the reblog too!
I had to reblog that, which is the first thing I have ever reblogged in my whole blogging life. Which is when I started this a month or two ago.
Reblogged this on savageindian and commented:
This blog post made me laugh. I remember being like this at times. Always wondering if I am missing something, do something else, and thinking the thing i cancelled ended up being more of a blast than the one I am at now.
Great Post “The Naked Envelope”
I think everyone struggles with this on some levels. But, there is a quote that regularly helps me. “My life has been the poem I would have writ, but I could not both live and utter it.” I too really enjoy writing, but so often feel as though I can’t “wrap it up” in a sufficient way because I either don’t know enough or people don’t know me well enough to respect my opinion on the matter. I have the same issue with my amateur photography. I just do it for fun. But, I’m so afraid of the judgement. I encourage you to think about the quote. Don’t forget to live. Because in the end, living means going to parties, taking time to be alone, learning, and inspiring all together. It’s not just one of those things. Find your balance and rock it!
Love the poem – might stick it on my wall 🙂
Thanks for sharing!
What did you do on Saturday night? LOL
Haha… umm… that is a whole new post right there 😉 #staytuned
Don’t stop what you are doing, it’s fun, informative & keeps us all amused 🙂
Thanks for your kind words 🙂
A post that makes people laugh is making a positive difference. And you made me laugh, so thank you! And thank you for giving one of my key afflictions a diagnosis. Now I know: I too suffer from FOMO. A party is a terrible thing to miss…
Maybe we should start a support group? I think there could be a lot of us! 😉
You should draw out a schedule to organize days to party, to write, to read random Internet articles… and then ignore it hahaha!
Haha great idea – love it! 🙂
I totally know what you mean. Except about the partying and that’s only because I hate partying. I’m an introvert, sorry. Right now I’m hesitating sending this comment because I’m afraid that I’ll think of something better to say. You’re right, it sucks.
Oh the curse!
At least we are not alone 🙂
I know what you mean! I hate making spelling mistakes and fear that if I accidentally forget to capitalize my i’s people will think I’m stupid.
Btw, I really like your blog 🙂
Thanks MissFourEyes! May we both never make spelling mistakes again! 🙂
This made me laugh. Lots.
May your breasts forever be perpendicular to your body.
xx
Thanks Mazza, I hope so too! 😉
Love your post… it’s more or less the story of my life these days…but in the end we should stop worrying and just enjoy the present moment.
You are quite right! 🙂
No worries! This IS an awesome post! And I so understand your decision to stay at home instead of being out in the world. Don’t blame that on yourself, but rather the fact that there aren’t enough hours in the day to do all that we want or need to. I don’t make it a point to go out much simply because after working all week, I want to celebrate my days off by going on a date with cable television and my comfy bed!
Like your blog. Honesty, humour, thought and a little bit of fun always gives them a bit of random structure.
Keep it up and may nothing too much change!!
Thanks! Very kind of you 🙂
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