Social media is an addiction that many teenagers, young adults, and even some older people struggle with. While it isn’t by default an “addiction,” it frequently turns into one. Many people notice the decline in their mental health after mindlessly scrolling, and try to remedy this habit by doing a “social media detox.” But what exactly does that entail, and how can someone know it’s time to try one?
The social media addict isn’t exclusively to blame for this nonstop scrolling. These apps are designed to keep people scrolling for as long as possible, often using tactics that can wreak havoc on the user’s mental health. The apps can be used to stay in touch with friends, keep up with the news, learn fun life hacks, and watch cute videos of unhinged cats. It’s a source of unlimited dopamine hits. Not only is all of this content available, but it’s catered towards each individual’s interests based on an algorithm.
It’s commonly agreed upon among researchers that being overwhelmed by so much contrasting content can have terrible impacts on mental health: Depression, anxiety, self-esteem decline, insomnia, impulsive behavior, distractibility, etc.… So how can a user know when it’s time to put away the entertaining “get ready with me” videos and spend some time outside for a while?
A common signal that it’s time to take a break includes feeling drained, overwhelmed, anxious, or otherwise upset after scrolling. While a social media session can be inspiring, educational, or eye-opening, it can get to a point where your brain is processing too much negative information for too long and doesn’t know how to handle it.
If your time spent on social media is actively taking too much time away from being with loved ones or doing hobbies, that is also a problematic symptom of this addiction.
Sometimes, people are fully aware that they need to take a minute and step back from the online world. But like any other addiction, many aren’t sure where to start.
The first step is to plan your “detox.” How long should this break be, what are your time limits on each app if you aren’t quitting cold turkey, at what point do you stop scrolling? It may be more beneficial to take smaller breaks more periodically to get your brain used to being off the grid. Maybe go two days a week without social media, or delete your apps every weekend. This can be a more realistic and therefore more successful way of going about it.
The next step after making a plan is figuring out other activities to do when you would normally be scrolling. While it’s healthy to be bored sometimes, in the beginning, this is not always a realistic expectation. This is a great time to try something new, or rediscover an old hobby that you “don’t have time for anymore,” such as reading, walking, meeting with friends, or drawing.
To execute these plans, you can simply delete your social media apps, or utilize one of many apps and settings that allow you to limit your own screen time on each app. For people who are super committed to the bit, you can change your technology all together and revert back to the stone age- buy a flip phone off Marketplace. It sounds outlandish at first, but the novelty of it may be just enough to kick out that social media addiction. Plus, who doesn’t love violently slamming their phone shut after a call that could’ve been a text?
At the end of the day, accountability is what can really make any of these options work. Having an accountability partner works for many addictions, and social media is no different. Make it as difficult or inconvenient as possible to access your social media apps outside of your designated time slots. While a social media addiction may not cause a whole lot of bodily harm, your brain is worth protecting, and cutting out social media may just help with that.