What you don’t see.
They say a picture tells a thousand words…
but a picture only shows so much.
A picture shows what happened in one second of that day, it doesn’t tell of the other 23 hours, 59 minutes and 59 seconds.
Instagram is a highlight reel, what you don’t see about my adventures to Hawaii is the fact that the morning I was meant to leave I almost cancelled and didn’t go.
The day this photo was taken I could hardly move from my bed. I made it out for a drive and this was the only stop I could get out at.
Of course I was happy to be out and seeing something beautiful but what you don’t see in that moment is the pain, sickness and the fact my body was flaring 3 invisible chronic illnesses.

So before you compare yourself to others on this app or in life remember you only see a tiny portion and things aren’t always as they appear.
I’m not sharing this in any way to get sympathy or attention I just want everyone to be mindful of others because you never know what is going on. Thank you to @chronicallyfatiguedmaka for the inspiration for sharing what you don’t see – you can see her post here: https://www.instagram.com/p/B9bR-VvgYjM/
Hope you’re all okay and be sure to check on your loved ones during this time. I love you all lots

28 COMMENTS
Caz / InvisiblyMe
3 years agoI’m sorry for how awful you felt on the day of that picture, and on so many days generally, but you’ve shown so well not just how social media portrays a certain story but how invisible illness is often overlooked simply because someone looks ‘fine’. Absolutely excellent post!
Sending gentle hugs your way.xx
sadminray
3 years ago AUTHORThank you so much for your love and support! We can definitely overlook and easy forget things when it comes to social media, I think sometimes we just need the reminder ahah
Hope you are well xx
Ellis James Designs
3 years agoDefinitely agree with this!
Sorry to hear you felt awful on this day…
sadminray
3 years ago AUTHORThank you <3 Hope you are well!
Rena
3 years agoYou are so right with your words and I’m so sorry you felt that bad on this day. The picture is beautiful but it is true it show only one second of one day. We definitely should stop to compare as we never know the full truth. Please take care <3
xx from Bavaria/Germany, Rena
http://www.dressedwithsoul.com
sadminray
3 years ago AUTHORThank you for your kind words <3 Yes I completely agree! Hope you are well Rena!
Rena
3 years agoYou’re welcome and it is wonderful we have the same opinion. Thanks for asking, fortunately I’m well. All the best and love <3 xx Rena
sadminray
3 years ago AUTHORI’m so happy to hear you are going well, lots of love x
Tiziana
3 years agoI totally agree with you!
Send you a hug and hope you feel better today.
Have a great week and make the best of it!
Tiziana
http://www.tizianaolbrich.de
sadminray
3 years ago AUTHORThanks Tiziana! Hope you have a great week too!
shaira
3 years agoDefinitely! A person doesn’t mean happy when she’s smiling. Let’s not compare or judge other’s by how they appear or look. Sending you virtual hug!
Stay safe! 🙂
xoxo,
SHAIRA
Blog: http://www.missdream-girl.blogspot.com
sadminray
3 years ago AUTHORYes amen!! Hope you are keeping well x
Bibliotheque De Parfums
3 years agoI completely agree with you, we see only one second at photos, and even in vlogs we see 30 minutes from 24 hours.
New Post – https://bibliothequedeparfums.com/2020/05/01/bibliotheque-de-parfums/
sadminray
3 years ago AUTHORYes! it can be easy to forget it’s only a time snippet! Hope you are going okay x
Diana
3 years agoI couldn’t agree more with you, Instagram is a highlight reel! Sometimes, it’s easy to forget but photos often don’t show everything. I hope you’re doing well, this is a beautiful photo xx
http://mylovelierdays.com
sadminray
3 years ago AUTHORYes it is hey?!? I hope you are well too Diana x
Emily
3 years agoI always think about this and despite the fact I’m well aware that we only post our best photos and our best ‘side’, it’s so easy to get wrapped up in this perception of perfection. Really enjoyed reading this Susie, thank you!
Musings & More
sadminray
3 years ago AUTHORYes it really is so easy to be wrapped up in the perfectionism! Aw thank you, I am so glad! I hope you are well x
Georgia
3 years agoI’m so sorry to hear you felt like this, but really appreciate you sharing – I feel like it’s so easy to forget that a lot of what we see is a tiny snapshot of someone’s life. No matter how perfect someone’s life may seem, everyone is fighting their own battle. Hope you’re keeping well lovely.
//teandtwosugars.blogspot.com xx
sadminray
3 years ago AUTHORThank you for your kind words Georgia <3 Yes we are all fighting our own battles xx
Radi
3 years agoThis is such a great reminder. You really never know what someone is going through.
Hope you’re doing well!
http://www.fashionradi.com
sadminray
3 years ago AUTHORYes you never know what is going on <3 Hope you are well too x
Natalia
3 years agoI agree! pictures on insta are mostly staged and they rarely show the negative sides of life. But let’s face it, no matter how real negativity is, I guess we can agree that nobody wants to see that in their spare time. We’ve become a society that values pleasure too much and ain’t is proof of that.
I’ll pray for your health to improve day by day.
sadminray
3 years ago AUTHORYes they are mostly staged, so very true. Yeah it makes sense but so easy to forget at times. Hope you’re okay <3
Mica
3 years agoWhat a beautiful spot and photo! I’m glad you could go visit even if you were feeling unwell, and I hope you were able to relax adn enjoy the rest of your trip a little more! 🙂
Hope that your week is off to a good start! 🙂 We are on week 6 of staying at home but they have started to lift some restrictions which is nice! 🙂
sadminray
3 years ago AUTHORYeh I was still really lucky to go, thank you Mica! Hope everything is okay with you and your fam xx
Mercy
3 years agoI like how you voice out your thoughts about the unnecessary stress in social media as I feel it too. But posts like this makes somebody wake up to reality or inspire to be more aware on what’s really going on. I hope you’re feeling better even in these uncertain times.
http://www.busyandfab.com
sadminray
3 years ago AUTHORThank you! I am sorry you feel it too, but I am glad we understand <3 Hope you are well xx