How Does Social Media Affect Mental Health?

For many of us, social media is not beneficial to our mental health. The internet is a hub for feelings of comparison. The negative effects of social media can include a fear of missing out (FOMO) and feelings of exclusion, but it doesn’t end there. 

Social media platforms and social networking sites have a plethora of filters designed to enhance a person’s physical features. But this has created a great deal of body image issues, especially with young girls. Adolescent mental health is easily influenced, and social media can contribute to negative self-perceptions during years where they are critical. 

The impact of social media, for many, is like a roll of the dice. Sometimes you see a funny video and get a hit of dopamine, and other times you see posts or have interactions that make you feel anxious, inadequate, or depressed.

There are a few different ways social networks can worsen existing mental health problems. 

Let’s go through some of the main potential issues.

It’s no secret that social media can lead to feelings of anxiety. 

Maybe you feel anxious about whether or not your friends will like a post you shared. Maybe some commenters left remarks that made you feel anxious or insecure about yourself. Cyberbullying can contribute to anxiety.

Or maybe you see your friends having success in their careers or relationships. Maybe you feel that you aren’t succeeding in life as much as you should be, and you feel anxious about that. 

The different reasons why you might feel anxiety on social media are vast. While these anxious feelings are always best avoided, they can be especially harmful to your mind and behavior if you’re currently getting treatment for anxiety.

Once you experience those feelings of anxiety, it can be easy to want to withdraw from social situations. If you’re afraid that your friends don’t really like you or have some other anxiety, you might feel inclined to stay home from that party, dinner, or other social interaction. 

This withdrawal can further feelings of loneliness and other negative emotions.

There are many different ways that social media can contribute to self-esteem issues. Certain filters can create unrealistic expectations of beauty, which can harm self-esteem. Comparison and anxiety could cause you to feel as though you aren’t good enough. 

Commenters on your posts might write cruel and untrue comments that make you feel less-than. Or maybe your post just didn’t get as many likes as you were hoping it would. 

Maybe you simply scrolled past a photo of a seemingly flawless person and started comparing your physical features to theirs. Social media can truly take a toll on your self-esteem. This is especially true for teens, young adults, and young people in general.

FOMO, or fear of missing out, is growing increasingly common in the social media age. Before social media, our social scope was so limited that we didn’t even know about most of the things we were missing out on. 

Now, we can seemingly see every party, social gathering, or activity that we weren’t there for, and they are always framed positively. It can be very easy to develop FOMO on social media.

For some people, the fear of being forgotten is so persistent, intense, and irrational that it can be deemed a phobia. Click here to read more about this growing phenomenon.

There are absolutely some inherent issues with social media that make it impact your mental health, but there are some signs you can look for in yourself that will let you know your use of social media needs to be put on hold to improve your mental health.

You can often notice changes in your confidence due to social media. One particular thing to watch out for is when new confidence issues arise. 

If you previously didn’t have any confidence issues, but you suddenly find yourself with low self-esteem or increased body image concerns, it could be a sign that you’re spending too much time on social media. 

If you delete posts because they don’t get enough likes or comments, anxiously check for likes and comments, or post often every day to seek validation, your confidence could be too intertwined with social media.

If you find your depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, or other mood disorder symptoms getting worse, it could be a sign that you’re putting too much of your self-worth into social media. 

If you struggle with a mental illness and are on a journey toward healing, social media could be a barrier that keeps you from getting there. Not to mention that mental illness may already place you at a higher risk for low self-esteem or issues with confidence, social media aside.

Keep track of your symptoms so that you can recognize when they’re worsening and why.

Another sign that your social media habits might be unhealthy is if you notice an increase in thoughts of comparison in your mind. 

It is perfectly normal to compare yourself to other people to a certain extent. In small amounts, comparison can drive you to new heights and successes. 

But when it goes too far, comparison can be debilitating and steal your confidence. 

The way to identify whether unhealthy confidence is triggered by social media is to consider where the comparison comes from. If you compare yourself to others based on what they post on social media to an unreasonable level, this could be a sign that your habits need to change.

We all want to reduce social media’s hold on our mental health, and keeping our social media habits in check can help us reclaim our power. Here are some tips on how to do that.

Setting a screen time limit on your devices is one of the most important things you can do. You can set a time limit per day for individual apps in your phone settings. Once you reach your time limit, a screen pops up and tells you to log off. 

This can be a great reminder to get your eyes off of the screen and instead do something that will benefit you. 

If you really want to get serious about it, let a trusted friend, family member, or spouse set your screen time passcode so that you can’t override the time limit.

Another healthy choice is to spend more time doing the things you love. Spending time scrolling through Instagram, Twitter, or Facebook is the easy option, but there are better things to do with your time. 

Instead of scrolling, maybe try a short, 15-minute workout. You could also read a book or go on a walk. Pick up an old instrument and learn a song. There are so many great things out there to spend your time on.

You can also take some time to focus on social interaction with your family or friends. Pouring time and energy into your relationships is going to be so much more beneficial to you than scrolling through your timeline or sending a Snapchat. 

The people you care about can help you on your healing journey. And giving back to them and supporting them will also help you and your mental health. 

Social connection can be a profound vessel of healing.

Another helpful practice is journaling. Specifically, a gratitude journal is a great way to boost your positive thoughts and self-esteem while also reducing feelings of stress. 

A little self-reflection goes a long way.

Take the time to remember the positive things in life. Focus on being grateful for the beautiful things around you, no matter how small or insignificant they may seem. It will help to change your mindset and lift your brain out of the negative place that social media can take you.

Social media can set back your mental health journey, but it doesn’t have to be a life sentence. You can take steps to reduce your social media time and get back to thinking about positive things. So take back your mental wellness, and do what needs to be done to get social media’s negativity out of your mind.

Nue Life believes in holistic treatment. What happens after your ketamine experience is equally as important as the experience itself. We want to ensure you have meaningful takeaways from your experiences and help you establish positive new neural pathways. 

That’s why we provide one-on-one health coaching and integration group sessions with our programs. We’re here to help map out the mind and body connections in your brain, and help you discover the real insights that lead to real relief.

SOURCES

The Effects of Social Media on Mental Health | Penn Medicine Lancaster General Health 

Signs of Unhealthy Social Media Habits Mental Health Practitioners Should Spot | Walden University 

Social Media Use and Its Connection to Mental Health: A Systematic Review | National Institutes of Health