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Kelsea Ballerini has re-evaluated her relationship with social media.
At a recent concert on her first headlining arena tour, the country superstar revealed that one of her toxic traits is that she still reads comments. But in her interview for this week’s PEOPLE cover, Ballerini said she’s finding a healthier balance online.
“I got rid of Twitter a long time ago. That was helpful. Twitter kicked my ass,” says Ballerini, 31, quoting her 2022 song “Doin’ My Best,” “so Twitter’s been gone for a long time.”
Adds Ballerini: “I discovered Reddit. I went through a very toxic phase with that, but it was when my life was a bit chaotic. Then I was like, ‘We need to have some boundaries.’ So that’s no longer.”
Instead, the Voice coach stays active on just a couple other social media platforms — for a surprising reason.
“I really just keep up with TikTok and Instagram, and even that feels like too much, but I’m not sure how to not because I’m a people pleaser, and I like the feedback,” she says. “I think my intention is because I like feedback and I like to edit set lists, or we’re tweaking things on the tour because I’m seeing stuff on TikTok. But yeah, I’m a girl. I’m sensitive. I’m an artist. If I see a mean comment, it affects me.”
A long-time proponent of therapy, Ballerini has dissected her people-pleasing tendencies and more in sessions.
“My therapist told me a while ago, ‘Kelsea, you need to care more about less,'” she recalls.
And when it comes to reading comments, “Although I still care about that feedback,” Ballerini adds, “I don’t give it the gravity that I used to.”
After filing for divorce in 2022, Ballerini found solace in therapy, which previously helped her cope with an eating disorder through her teen years, as well as PTSD from witnessing a school shooting as a teen.
“It’s been a game changer,” she says of therapy. “There is still a stigma around talking about certain things, and the way that you take that stigma away is you create conversation.”
Ballerini’s self-exploration on behaviors that have haunted her for years inspired her latest album, Patterns.
“I’m very aware of my flaws. I have a relationship with them, and I do the work to keep growing up and growing out of certain things,” she says, “but in the same breath, I fully accept and celebrate myself right now. I don’t think I’ve ever been truly able to before because I had to go through life. You have to learn yourself before you love yourself — and I had learning to do.”
For more on Kelsea Ballerini, pick up the new issue of PEOPLE, on newsstands everywhere now.
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