Instagram's new update that allows users to hide their like count is meant to be positive, but it ultimately won't change your social media experience.

I will say that I was initially excited about Instagram rolling out the feature to all users last week, as I’m no stranger to comparison fatigue on social media. Social media has trained our brains to find validation in the number of likes we get on a post about our lives, so maybe removing that artificial number could help alleviate the stress of it.

However, hiding the number of likes on two new posts didn't give me the reassuring sense of self-worth I was hoping for. It seemed more like a gimmick.

Instagram is built on the foundation of user interaction and likes. The more likes you get on a post, the more times your photo will appear in someone’s feed, the more potential brand partners will notice it, and the more exposure you’re likely to get.