Did you ever go on a summer camp when you were younger and get that lump-in-your-throat feeling when you were leaving? If not, I can safely say that as a veteran of many, both as a camper and a leader, I did. You’re so caught in the buzz of it all and running on adrenaline for the duration that only once it’s over do you have time to reflect on what you’ve achieved and the experiences you’ve gone through.

This used to be a personal experience that could only be logged by memories and still photos. Then Facebook arrived and sharing digital moments with friends became much easier. Now, Twitter allows for instantaneous quick thoughts, photos and videos that whilst quickly lost down a timeline, are forever there.

From a social media perspective, the London 2012 Olympic games have been unique – Twitter’s had records broken; been the place for breaking news; and has brought the games closer to people with instantaneous imagery and footage. Tweets have even played an important role for traditional media with TV stations and papers promoting the thoughts and sentiment of the public. Similarly the public have been voicing their opinions (the good and the bad) on the coverage as well as the performances.

Athletes have on the whole done themselves proud, not just in competition but on Twitter. There have been few incidents involving controversial tweets being sent with many athletes using Twitter sporadically to talk about their excitement or to thank fans for support. Now it’s all over though, athletes have taken to Twitter in their droves to release. The shackles have been removed and we, the public, are being allowed to share in these personal moments.

You could quite literally spend hours reading through tweets yesterday and today by GB athletes alone. Many include photos with the people they’ve met, all laced with both pride and sadness. At previous Olympics we’d be lucky to get snippets of this kind of insight as the heroes gave interviews on the way back home. London 2012, the socialympics, is allowing us to tap into their minds and emotions in a very public sharing experience.

It doesn’t take much for a lot of the nation to buy into the buzz that comes with the games, let alone when it’s on our doorstep and we happen to exceed all expectations. It's something that we never want to end but the infrequency of such a gathering is what makes it all that bit more special. As the adrenaline stops pumping, the time to reminisce arrives. Our athletes are doing just that with each other as they all head off to their hometowns but because of Twitter we can join in.

There is something reassuring about knowing that the athletes feel the same way we do. Twitter's allowed us to share the hope, the joy and now the comedown. As someone who gets emotionally drawn in by sport, it's good to know that I am not alone...