In today’s episode, I am joined by my friend Amelia Hruby. Amelia is a feminist author, educator, podcaster and founder of Softer Sounds podcast studio (who used to edit this podcast too!). I brought her onto the podcast today specifically because of her amazing podcast ‘Off the Grid’, which is a podcast for small business owners who want to leave social media without losing their clients.Even if you don’t identify as a small business owner - there’s something about what Amelia shares about leaving social media in this episode that transcends it all and will leave you feeling inspired to explore your virtual presence.Amelia opens up about the impact that leaving social media has had on her life and makes the beautiful connection between her patterns of anxious attachment and how that showed up in her virtual presence too.Tune in to hear more from us on:The loneliness that can arrive when leaving social mediaThe struggle of finding community outside of the virtual landscape and finding a sense of belonging without itThe need of being seen in this day and ageHow personal and emotional well-being can be so attached and influenced by our online presenceHow our seasonal and hormonal cycles can impact our relationship with social mediaHow the platforms are designed to lead us down a path of misinformation, toxic algorithms and capitalismResources + LinksAmelia Hruby’s podcast ‘Off the Grid’, her website AmeliaHruby.com and her podcasting studio Softer SoundsAmelia’s membership ‘The Interweb’, dedicated to support small business owners move their business off of social mediaThe Off the Grid episode with Nicole Antoinette: ‘How much is Enough: Money & Social Media’ membership ‘interweb’My book, Root and Ritual: Timeless Ways to Connect to Land, Lineage, Community, and the SelfConnect with me on Instagram @beccapiastrelliTimestamps[0:00] Introduction [11:01] The Decision to Leave Social Media [13:16] Anxious Attachment to the Online Sphere [16:37] Life after Leaving Social Media [19:56] Creativity in Business w/o Social Media [20:56] Loneliness and Virtual Community [24:34] Running a Business outside of Social Media [27:27] Finding Community outside of Social Media [29:00] The Need to Feel Seen [36:44] Curation Online [40:40] Aggravation of Wounds of Belonging by Social Media [48:36] The Harmful Ways the Algorithm Preys Upon Vulnerabilities [52:46] The Impact of Culture and the Joy of the Internet [53:41] Bringing Intention, Awareness and Agency to the Virtual Landscape [54:16] Choosing a Different Path and Finding Liberation [54:55] Main Takeaways [56:36] Amelia’s Work and Offerings