Meghan Markle wants the world to know that she's doing just fine without social media.
The Duchess of Sussex had a virtual chat with Fortune for the Most Powerful Next Gen Summit on Tuesday, where she discussed the importance of taking action and using social media for good. But while Markle fully supports using social platforms for change, she revealed that she's been keeping her distance from it for her "own self-preservation."
During her interview, she explained, "For my own self-preservation, I have not been on social media for a very long time. I had a personal account years ago, which I closed down and then we had one through the institution and our office that was in the U.K. that wasn’t managed by us—that was a whole team—and so I think that comes with the territory for the job you have."
The duchess also confirmed that she currently has no active accounts on any social site. She said, "I’ve made a personal choice to not have any account, so I don’t know what’s out there, and in many ways that’s helpful for me. I have a lot of concerns for people that have become obsessed with it. And it is so much a part of our daily culture for so many people that it’s an addiction like many others. There are very few things in this world where you call the person who is engaging with it a user."
Markle continued, "People who are addicted to drugs are called users and people who are on social media are called users, and there is something, algorithmically, that is in there that is creating this obsession, and I think it's very unhealthy for a lot of people."
Although there was an official Sussex Royal Instagram account for Prince Harry and Markle, the two have not been active since March, after they stepped down from their royal duties. However, before they made their exit, the couple assured followers that they'd continue to take action.
Their final statement read, "What’s most important right now is the health and wellbeing of everyone across the globe and finding solutions for the many issues that have presented themselves as a result of this pandemic. As we all find the part we are to play in this global shift and changing of habits, we are focusing this new chapter to understand how we can best contribute. While you may not see us here, the work continues."
Kudos to this royal couple for showing that people can make a difference—even without an Instagram account.
