Are You Really 'Online'? 5 Signals That Reveal Your Digital Isolation

I used to think scrolling through TikTok at 2 a.m. was productivity—until I realized I was performing loneliness for an algorithm that rewarded clicks, not connection.

The First Signal: The ‘Like’ That Never Comes Back

You post a vulnerable moment—raw, unfiltered—and it gets buried under layers of curated perfection. Three likes in ten minutes? A ghost profile? You didn’t break through—you just became data.

The Second Signal: The Algorithm Knows You Better Than You Do

Your feed doesn’t reflect your soul; it reflects what the machine thinks you should feel. Figma-generated visuals don’t care if you’re crying—they optimize for retention. Your grief is monetized by a system that rewards silence over sound.

The Third Signal: The Ritual of ‘Follow’ as Identity

You don’t follow people—you follow personas. Each profile is a mirror trained to echo your anxiety back as content. The more followers, the less real you become. Your identity is now an avatar with a name and no voice.

The Fourth Signal: The Quiet Crisis of ‘Engagement’ Metrics

‘Views,’ ‘Shares,’ ‘Comments’—these aren’t connections, they’re echoes in an empty room. I once counted my own digital breath for six hours straight after posting… and still felt alone.

The Fifth Signal: The Unseen Community Beneath the Feed

There’s a hidden layer beneath every scroll—a quiet cohort of creators who never reply but still send DMs at midnight. We don’t talk about loneliness—we perform it together, silently, in neon-lit apartments on Manhattan’s top floor.

You recently felt ‘Seen’—when?

Drop your DM if you’ve ever waited too long for someone to say: “I know exactly how this feels.” I’m listening.