Keeping safe in the world of Social Media

If you follow me on Instagram you will know that I recently abandoned my account of 4k followers in favour of a brand new account. Although this may seem drastic to some, for me it felt like the right (and easiest) thing to do.

For some time I had been considering the content I was sharing and what kind of people are seeing it. I have always blocked strange looking accounts but occasionally some slip through the net and the final thing to kick me in to action was receiving a message from someone asking for videos of my child claiming he was like their brother and they loved him. This was way too much for me and I decided, "that's it i'm starting a new account".

I really enjoy taking pictures and sharing with a lovely, supportive community so I didn't want to stop all together but the type of pictures I now share are carefully selected. They don't always feature Reuben's face and if they do it isn't a clear, full on face shot. It may be side profile, eyes closed or in the distance. If I do feature his face I make sure its fully appropriate and not something he may find embarrassing in an attempt to respect his privacy. I also no longer location tag for security reasons. These are just small steps that make me feel a bit better/safer online with an open account.

The reason I started a new account was because I didn't have the time (or patience) to go through all my followers and pictures and make my account as I wanted. It seemed like too big a job.

I now keep close tabs on whose following me and block as and when I see appropriate but also feel happier knowing i'm not sharing quite so much. I will always talk about child related issues, problems and triumphs as the support, advice and community is lovely. I'm just giving a lot more thought to what is and isn't appropriate to share about my child without his permission.

I think this is a very personal decision and every parent has the right to determine what they personally feel is appropriate to share. I'm not here to judge, just to do what I feel is right for myself and my family.