Social media. It seems, at first, like such a helpful way to foster connection and community with friends, family, and people all over the world. Pictures and messages, ideas and encouragement all at our fingertips.
So why is it that the hours spent scrolling can leave us feeling… empty?
Research now suggests that instead of fostering connection, social media stirs up feelings of loneliness, envy, and an addiction to constant feedback.[1] This impulsive consumption of social media makes it harder to step away and further separates us from friends, family, and chances to engage socially in our everyday lives. While isolation can contribute to loneliness, someone can be surrounded by people and still perceive a gap between desire for attachments and their ability to experience connection.[2] When that separation occurs, it can create feelings of disconnection or a lack of authenticity in relationships.
Even passive use of social media correlates with social comparison and self doubt [1] to keep us feeling lonely or believing the lie that we are not enough. While failed attempts to genuinely develop connections online is an involuntary separation for people, it can create a state of mind that makes developing relationships more challenging, despite the underlying desire to have human contact. [3]
There is hope!
A study out of Penn University demonstrated that using less social media than normal leads to significant decreases in both depression and loneliness. [4] This knowledge of the relationship between social media and mental health can help empower us to take control of our online consumption and actively choose to unplug. While you may not identify personally as someone who is struggling with these feelings, you can still make the choice to unplug and help protect and promote your overall well-being.
So, how do we ‘Unplug?’
Step One: Awareness
Start by tracking your mood before and after you spend time on social media. While pen and paper always works, apps such as Mood Panda or Daylio are easy ways to quickly track your emotions. Repeatedly noting your feelings around Facebook, Instagram, TikTok or SnapChat will show you patterns over time of how engaging in social media impacts your mood.
Step Two: Goal Setting
Figure out how much time you are spending on social media. Most phones take out the guesswork and provide a break-down of time spent by categories and apps. Evidence supports working to reduce your use by about 30% of what you are currently spending. Set a goal to decrease your time all at once, or decrease at intervals such as 10% a week. Set phone limits to help hold yourself accountable.
Step Three: Stay The Course
Once you have decided to unplug and set a goal, you may need to distract or delay your social media urges. When possible, plan ahead and schedule activities you enjoy during the larger periods of time you typically spend on your social apps. Starting a new hobby or joining a club might be helpful in productively filling unstructured free time.
Quick activities that distract you from reaching for your phone in the moment, can be relatively simple to complete:
- Count backwards from a large number
- Name all the colors you see in the room
- Find an object near you and observe it in detail, paying close attention to the color variations, the patterns, the subtle details, and the way it feels
- Play with a fidget device
- Practice a 3 minute body scan mindfulness exercise
- Color, doodle, or draw
- Complete a wordsearch or a crossword puzzle
- Call a family member or friend just to say “Hi!”
Step Four: Celebrate Your Outcomes
Review the changes and patterns from the mood tracking you began in the first step. How have your emotions shifted since you first made a commitment to unplug? Take a moment to notice the ways your day-to-day has been positively impacted and write down a list of the benefits you can see and feel.
Your mental health matters.
The correlation between social media use and feelings of loneliness and depression is real, but you can make the decision to unplug. Seeking a connection with friends and groups all around campus will continue to help improve the quality of your relationships and to fill your time with creative and purposeful activities. Explore the organizations and events here at MTU and plug-in to something new!
#ItsOkToNotBeOk #MentalHealthMatters #MentalHealthAwareness #Unplug
[1] Konnikova, M. (September 10, 2013). How Facebook Makes Us Unhappy. The New Yorker. https://www.newyorker.com/tech/annals-of-technology/how-facebook-makes-us-unhappy.
[2] Psychology Today. (2022). Loneliness. Retrieved on June 28, 2022, from https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/basics/loneliness#:~:text=Loneliness%20is%20the%20state%20of,a%20deep%20and%20pervasive%20loneliness.
[3] Cherry, K. (May 24, 2022). Loneliness: Causes and Health Consequences. Retrieved on June 28, 2022, from https://www.verywellmind.com/loneliness-causes-effects-and-treatments-2795749[4] Hunt, M.G., Marx, R., Lipson, C., Young, J. (December 2018). No More FOMO: Limiting Social Media Decreases Loneliness and Depression. Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology, Vol. 37 No. 10. https://doi.org/10.1521/jscp.2018.37.10.751