Guy Cisternino discusses the difference between hardship and depression… and how social media has risen self-induced anxiety.
Guy Cisternino is a bodybuilder who exudes confidence. When he recently went viral for his argument in a gym – many online criticized him harshly. But Cisternino, though defending himself, didn’t seem bothered at all. This is rare in the internet age when many, but not all, can have their mood deeply affected by how well received they are on social media. That being said, Cisternino is not impenetrable. In our latest GI Exclusive interview, Guy Cisternino opens up about dealing with anxiety, hardships, and discusses how social media has risen anxiety for nearly everyone in the world.
Though Guy Cisternino appears to have a “I don’t give a crap” attitude, he’s human. And while he overall projects confidence, he would be lying to say he didn’t suffer from anxiety. During our recent conversation, Cisternino opened up about how he’s had some truly dark times in his past. He’s overcome them and he doesn’t consider those bouts of time being real depression. But they were challenging.
In fact, Guy Cisternino uses this moment to discuss the difference between hardship and depression. He thinks that mental health is a very serious thing – but there’s a difference between real clinical depression vs just having hardships in your life. He worries that some people today confuse the two and use it as an excuse to not improve themselves.
Cisternino also discusses how he suffers from chronic anxiety himself. But this anxiety is different than what you might assume based off the standard definition of the word. Guy Cisternino explains how he has trouble sleeping nearly every single night. It’s not because he is kept up by anxious thoughts. Instead, his brain simply doesn’t turn off. He can be lying in bed, wide awake, thinking about nothing. He’s gone to doctors and sought help from psychiatrists. It’s a form of anxiety – but not the kind of social anxiety that brings bad thoughts into his brain.
Guy Cisternino then pivots in the interview to talk about anxiety as a whole in our culture. He believes that social media has made anxiety worse for most people. He considers it self induced though – as most people don’t need to use social media – despite nearly everyone succumbing to it. He believes that individuals who suffer serious anxiety caused by social media – should just log off permanently. It’s only making things harder despite the addictive rush of likes and positive comments.
“I think some people shouldn’t be on social media,” Guy Cisternino states in our interview. He continues:
“Some people I think it effects them in a real negative way. If you don’t have thick skin, you shouldn’t be on social media. Because you’re putting yourself at risk at the opinion of others. And you’re never going to get the majority of people – there’s always going to be someone who doesn’t like you just because.”
The term “everyone’s a critic” comes to mind with his statement. Social media has allowed us all to be put out into the mass public – and we will be judged. It’s in our nature to judge what we see. Social media makes that more constant and easier to disassociate our words from how it affects the person on the other side. Guy Cisternino doesn’t lose sleep over negative comments – but for those who do – he thinks the best course of action is to leave social media behind completely.
You can watch Guy Cisternino’s full comments on anxiety in our latest GI Exclusive interview segment above.