Does Social Media Make You Anxious?

Let’s look at the facts:

According to searchlogistics.com, “Today the average time spent on social media is 2 hours and 24 minutes today for people aged 16 to 64.”

I guess you’re not surprised by that statement. Isn’t it too easy to reach for your phone and open up yet another notification? It certainly is for me.

My phone constantly pings with social media feeds. The adverse effects, of course, are losing time and focus on what I was doing before starting my mind-numbing scrolling, getting distracted, procrastinating, and ultimately losing even more time.

Social Media Anxiety

Now, I can’t speak for all of us, but I fear that social media is playing its part in rising anxiety disorders & negative emotions. Mental health problems are on the rise, and we can’t ignore the fact that social media usage is also on the rise.

Increased screen time means we spend less time on real-life conversations with people in front of us. We may feel more social with our ‘media’ interactions, but we’re not being social in real life. In fact, spending more time on social media platforms means spending less time in the company of real people.

Body Image

Social media accounts for far more than we know when it comes to rising mental health issues. In particular, body image issues, low self-esteem, and social comparison are increasingly common by-products of spending too much time on social feeds.

Again, let’s look at more facts.

Americans check their phones an average of 262 times a day (reviews.org). This is staggering: once every 5.5 minutes.

We’re more connected through social media than ever before, yet the connection is virtual, meaning it’s not the same as being in a room with someone.  

We can’t hug or kiss on social media, and we cannot sense each other’s emotions or feelings. We just don’t feel the same connection.

We’re not in the real world when we’re on social media. These are facts. Also, most social media users post pictures and comments that are glorified, edited, filtered, and beautified.

This has a damaging effect on our self-esteem and on what ‘reality’ really looks like.

I can’t imagine how young people’s mental health will be if they keep being exposed to the levels of social media we’re seeing currently.

It’s a worrying thought.

Becoming Obsessed

There’s still a higher risk, such as people becoming obsessed with other people’s lives, looking up to influencers as if they are gurus, comparing themselves, feeling inadequate.

Life satisfaction is frequently lower from making constant comparisons and the feeling of FOMO (fear of missing out), not to mention the physical toll of scrolling on your thumb, hand, and wrist mobility and the impact on your vision if you’re staring at a computer or phone screen all day. 

Using social media in the right way

Social media can have benefits. It can be an inspiring, motivating place if you’re looking to learn from others and share ideas. 

Below are three tips on how social media can be used better—to contribute to your life rather than become a life zapper.

Particularly if you find your anxiety levels higher because of social media use, it’s worth trying these suggestions below.

Unfollow

Unfollow everyone on your social feed (if you use this)

I dedicated an afternoon once and unfollowed my whole ‘friends’ list. Any new friends who now come in, the FIRST thing I do is unfollow them.

This stops them from showing up on my ‘news feed.’ Therefore, my news feed only ever shows posts from groups I’m in and topics I enjoy.

Every time someone or something I don’t like appears on my news feed, I right-click and turn it off immediately. 

This allows me more control over what I see on social media, giving me the upper edge over the algorithm (a kick of dopamine in my corner)

Set Limits

Limit how much & how often you look at social media. Easier said than done I know, but it’s essential to do this if anxiety levels are increasing from using social media.

You can download free social media tracking apps on your phone that will set a timer to notify you when your 5—or 10-minute browsing session is over. I’m a busy mum to two gorgeous boys, and they are my life.

I’d much rather look at them than at my phone, which is why I mainly use social media for business purposes nowadays.

I have minimal views of social media posts I admit. I’m mostly active in groups to which I want to contribute, meaning I’ve slowed the scroll!

It has helped me become more present in life and less distracted from what I need to be doing.

Try something totally different

Have you ever tried reading something different to the incessant posts on social media feeds? Believe it or not, I am a poet, and I write and publish poetry weekly for people to enjoy as an alternative to doom scrolling.

Check out all my published poems here.

Choose who you follow

Choose your followers wisely. Social media has huge potential if only we had greater control over our actions and used it as a learning tool.

To use social media for learning means picking and choosing your following. If you’re following the news, for example, the news will show in your feed, which may be good things that show up, but it may also be not such good things.

So, to solve this, stop following the news.

Choose to follow things that genuinely light you up instead. If you love to travel, follow travel posts. If you love the topic of homeschooling, follow that.

It helps censor what’s shown to you by narrowing down your topics of interest, so think and ask yourself, ‘What do I actually want to see on my feed?’ and only follow those. 

You don’t need to be a victim of social media. You’re in the driver’s seat!

If you’ve not watched the Social Dilemma on Netflix, I recommend viewing it, particularly if you have children, as this explains social media from the angle of those who used to work for the big platforms.

(It gives a real eye-opener to the virtual world we’re living in.)

And don’t underestimate the power of a digital detox. A weekend off social media or even longer (a few months?) is pure bliss. Please, give it a go and see how you find it.

Is this post helpful, or not? Please drop a comment below to share your thoughts.

References: Trevor Wheelwright, 2021, Cell Phone Behavior in 2021: How Obsessed Are We?, accessed 1.12.21, https://www.reviews.org/mobile/cell-phone-addiction/

Matthew Woodward, 2024, SOCIAL MEDIA ADDICTION STATISTICS FOR 2024 accessed 30.08.24: Source: https://www.searchlogistics.com/learn/statistics/social-media-addiction-statistics/