To use social media in a way that makes us feel good, we can start by recognizing the good things that come from it. Social media can be home to positive social movements, a place to connect over common interests, and a resource for communities that would otherwise be disconnected from the rest of the world. What’s more, now that every one of us is familiar with feelings of isolation due to the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic, we might find a new appreciation for apps designed to keep us close, especially when we’re physically distant.
To focus on the good and avoid the common pitfalls, there are a few habits to help us use social media more mindfully:
- Spend less time on social platforms.
One study found that reducing social media use to a maximum of a half hour a day led to a decrease in feelings of anxiety, depression, and loneliness. Need a little help tracking those 30 minutes? Phone settings allow our devices to alert us when we’ve reached our quota for the day — with these benefits top of mind, we can feel good sticking to it.
- Don’t scroll first thing in the morning or before bed.
While many of us use wake-up alarms on our devices (making it all too easy to reach for our phones in bed), a constant stream of news, updates, and selfies doesn’t typically set the best conditions for winding down or gearing up to start the day. Consider establishing more mindful routines around these 2 daily constants. Screen-free activities like journaling, practicing gratitude, and meditation are great places to start.
- Turn off notifications and only check social media at certain times.
We all know how easy it is to respond to pings showing us the latest comments or new posts. But in reality, we’re the ones in control. Try a tip from Headspace co-founder and former Buddhist monk, Andy Puddicombe: "I check in with email and social media at dedicated times where possible. I find this helps limit distractions. I do not have email or social media apps on my homepage and I have all notifications turned off.” Without all that prompting, and with a schedule that you control, you might find that you can avoid a lot of social media anxiety.
- Use social media on a device that’s not your phone.
When we think about it, do we really need access to every social media platform on all of our devices? Try taking a break by removing apps one-by-one from the device you use most (likely your phone) and see if it’s easier to find a better balance in your social media use when it isn’t always on hand. When we access social media only when we’re sitting at a computer, we might find ourselves less concerned with the virtual world, and able to be present with our physical surroundings.
- Create a feel-good follow list.
If the worry is that social media use is contributing to negative feelings, we audit our follow list. Unfollow the accounts that might be leading to the negative feelings we’ve mentioned, and instead follow accounts that make us feel good, provide entertainment, or even help motivate us to reach your goals. We might also try maintaining a profile in which only real-life friends and community leaders are the majority of that new follow list so we can use social media as it was originally intended: to find new friends and maintain bonds when we’re apart.
Social media and mental health
From push notifications to targeted advertisements, the manipulative practices of social media are real. Put plainly, these platforms are designed to lure us in and keep us there (the more time we’re plugged in, the better their metrics). Unfortunately for us, the negative impact of social media only gets worse the more time we spend on it. And once we’re hooked, the platforms tend to be the only side that wins. The negative effects of social media on mental health are real, too:
If you find yourself feeling anxious or depressed after being on social media, you’re not alone. Research has shown that social media and anxiety go hand and hand, with increased screen time exacerbating feelings of anxiousness, and sometimes even creating them in the first place.
Otherwise known as FOMO, these feelings of anxiety may come from not being invited to or not participating in enjoyable experiences with others. FOMO can lead to a negative thought cycle unique to social media: Worry sets in that events are happening without us, followed by the urge to keep scanning the platforms for proof, and finally, feeling a sinking validation of our worry when we see proof of those off-our-radar gatherings in posts online.
When airbrushed photos fill our feeds, it can be easy for negative feelings surrounding social media and body image to creep in. The thin-ideal presented in photos online creates an unattainable social media body image that can have a real effect on our self-esteem. When we’re hooked on regular scrolling and we see more and more picture-perfect images, sometimes we end up feeling worse about ourselves.
Constant scrolling can also chip away at sleep. One British study found that teenagers who used social media for more than 3 hours per day were more likely to go to sleep late and wake up during the night. That’s more bad news for those of us who spend a lot of time on social media and suffer from anxiety: We end up feeling anxious about what we’re seeing on the apps, and even more anxious from the lack of sleep caused by our time spent scrolling.
One survey found that 30% of teens in the U.S. had experienced some form of cyber aggression in the last month, from unkind statements to rumors and even threats. Cyberbullying can be difficult to monitor, and it can have real, dangerous effects on mental health for people of all ages who experience it.
With these negative effects top of mind, it’s tempting to want to remove social media from our lives completely. And while that’s certainly an option if we find that we’re better off without it (and can stay off it), it’s still possible to keep our daily scroll and curb the bad feelings.