But there are some good things about it, too, as I touched on in a recent newspaper column as well as a previous VIP article, the latter of which detailed how I've learned some invaluable tips from YouTube over the years, including the "five-minute rule" on house projects, which helped me get through a kitchen decluttering task I had been putting off for quite some time.

READ MORE (VIP): The Simplest Solutions Can Be the Most Effective Ones

Perhaps the area where social media excels the most, however, is in response to calls for prayer.

I've lost count of how many times I've requested prayers over the years, with the requests increasing in the last year of my dad's life as his health was deteriorating, as well as the timeframe right after we lost him in the summer of 2022 where we were working towards finding out what was going on with my mom's health, which unfortunately turned out to be Stage IIIB colon cancer.

After that, I posted prayer requests probably once every other week or so, calling on prayer warriors to do their thing. And after she completed the chemo treatments in March 2023, it's probably been every other month or so that I have put in requests, mostly ahead of mom's follow-up appointments with her oncologist and the CT scans, but also when I've had a particularly challenging day and could use some prayers, positive vibes, and general encouragement.

SEE ALSO (VIP) -->> Caregiver's Diary Part 20: The Power of Prayer

Every single time, the response has been overwhelming. People who don't normally comment or react to my posts respond, either with the emoticon reactions or by posting their well wishes (or both).

Though I don't have the time to spend on social media that I used to, a lot of my interactions are related to prayer requests put in by other Twitter/X and Facebook users whose posts are in my general timeline.

I know from my own experiences how having in mind that people are praying for you helps in immeasurable ways, and I respond to such requests from others in part to "pay it forward" and in part because it's the right thing to do.

For the past six months or so, I've been seeing more prayer requests on Twitter thanks to the "For You" tab on the main page, which includes tweets from people you may not be following but who Twitter thinks you might be interested in reading. 

For whatever reason, the "For You" tab for me is primarily comprised of prayer requests as well as announcements of good or bad news. I admit that when I first started seeing it come up, it frustrated me because there were days where I couldn't take reading the bad news because it made me remember things I try not to worry too much about right now, like mom's CT scan appointment in July and her bloodwork/scan results appointment that will follow that.

But the more I saw that tab and its contents, the more I came to realize that, whether due to the algorithm or just a twist of fate, these things were coming up so I could see them and use my voice on social media to try and help someone else in a small but hopefully significant way. Not only that, but it reaffirmed to me all over again that I wasn't alone in my battles, my inner struggles, my fears, and my life experiences.

I've had the same happen here as I've documented my caregiving experiences. Commenters will respond with their thoughts, which have included not just kind words and prayers (which I appreciate) but also things they've gone through in life (and may still be going through) with their loved ones. It means so much to me, and if I haven't said "thank you" before to everyone who has read and participated in the series so far, I'm saying it now.

In closing, while there is a lot of negative on social media, there are many positives, too. It’s easy to lose faith in humanity when you log onto the Internet, but if you go looking for the positive and block out the negative instead of letting it get to you, you’ll be much better off in the long run, and maybe even a much better person, after all is said and done.