One can hear many opinions about the impact of frequent usage of social media on mental health. But is it the truth? Maybe these are just unsubstantiated rumors spread by frustrated people having no friends? It today’s article I will try to answer this question.
Have you ever experienced, so-called, phantom vibration syndrome? It happens when you think you received a notification but in reality, nothing happened. Nevertheless, you are incessantly checking your phone waiting for dopamine to be released. Numerous studies from the US, Canada and the UK have linked high social media use with anxiety, stress, and depression. The sad thing is that almost everyone I know uses social media extensively. According to Bailey Parnell, the social media expert, four of the most common stressors on social media are:
- Highlight reel
- Social currency (e.g. likes, comments, and shares)
- F.O.M.O. (Fear Of Missing Out)
- Online harassment
If they get out of control they can become serious mental health issues.
The highlight reel is a collection of the brightest moments of our lives. Steven Furtick, the New York Times best-selling author, once said "we struggle with insecurity because we compare our behind-the-scenes with everyone else’s highlight reel".
Social currency means that we associate our self-worth with what others think about us. Have you ever deleted a photo or post just because it didn’t take as many likes as you supposed? Or maybe you took a hundred photos to be sure that you will choose this one, the best shot. If so, don’t worry. It’s natural for humans to seek approval. The worst thing is that by using social media we become a product because we let others attribute value to us in the form of social currency.
F.O.M.O. is the fear that you can lose something, for instance, an event, opportunity or any other piece of information. A study at a university in Canada showed that seven out of ten students would delete their social media accounts if it were not for fear of being left out of the loop.
Online harassment is the worst stressor in social media. It doesn’t have to be a huge issue like the one we can see on the front pages of every paper. It can be as trivial as compromising photo sent on Snapchat to a friend that then sent it to someone else.
After reading this article, you may think that I recommend deleting accounts on all social media platforms, but that’s not the point. In today’s world abstinence is not an option, but you can use it in the ‘safe’ way. For instance, if celebrities make you feel worse because you don’t have all these things they do, you can unfollow them. Or maybe you feel you just spend too much time scrolling the Facebook wall. There are loads of apps that can help you break the social media addiction. These platforms are very powerful and can bring a lot of value to our lives, but it is important to be aware of all of their threats and not to lose control.
- How much time do you spend every day using social media?
- Have you ever experienced phantom vibration syndrome?
- Are you planning to take a break from social media?
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