Iga Swiatek is part of a generation that grew up with the internet, but she's often stepping away from it to balance the positives and negatives.
Social media is great in many ways but as with most great innovations, it also highlights the worst in people and humanity in general. As a fairly young person, Swiatek doesn't really remember a time when the Internet wasn't around and for many like her, it's been a huge part of growing up.
Like many of her colleagues, she's active on social media, and it's part of being a public person. She uses it in many different ways but generally finds herself moving away from it during the season because it becomes a distraction.
Social media can also be a very toxic place for any public person, especially athletes, who are subjected to all kinds of hate.
Tennis players have spoken out often about it, with the sport starting to listen in recent years—however, Swiatek's use increases during the offseason, as per a recent interview for PZU Grupa,
But how much time do I spend on social media? Certainly now that I'm home during the preparatory period, the regime of having to prepare for a match is much smaller, so I have time to spend a little more time on social media.
Stepping away from it is always good because it tends not to be the healthiest place of all. There are many great things on the internet, but also a lot of bad stuff that you can certainly go without in your life.
For Swiatek and others like her, balancing that is crucial to preserve her mental health. She's been a passionate advocate for years and talked about her own experiences with it.
During the season and during tournaments, I use it certainly much less, because I also avoid such situations. They might just make me read something that hits me. Of course, there is a lot of hate now, so it's not like you can surf the Internet freely.
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