How to Use Social Media in a Healthy Way

Social media usage has increased to astronomical levels since its inception. Currently, over 5 billion people using social media. However, prolonged social media use may be related to depression and other mental health issues.

It is now something everyone will interface with at some point. Whether you choose to stay away from social media altogether or dabble here and there, you should consider what your relationship with the platforms will be like.

In this article, we will cover:

• What a negative relationship with social media looks like
• How to create a positive relationship with social media

Social media can be healthy, but only if used in a healthy way. It takes some effort, but we have tips to improve your social media habits.

Social Media Addiction

Research has found that social media addiction is driven by a dopamine feedback loop. That being said, social media platforms are designed to keep people coming back and staying engaged on the platform.

Social media addiction is a very real issue that can be a debilitating issue. It’s far from the only issue that people have with social media, however problematic consumption can often lead to social media addiction.

How to Create a Healthy Your Relationship With Social Media

Social media can be a vibrant place for people to share new ideas, uplift others, and spread positivity. It can quickly become a place where negativity thrives.

Creating and maintaining a healthy relationship with social media is important because without that effort it will become negative. Some hallmarks of a negative relationship with social media include:

• Neglecting obligations
• Being easily distractible
• Living a double life, including infidelity
• Experiencing obsessive thoughts
• Not feeling able to enjoy “the moment”
• Self-diagnosis
• Preventing getting real help

Learning about mental health issues is a great example of a positive interaction gone bad. It’s great that people can share their health experiences online and help break down stigmas. However, these kinds of interactions should be limited to just getting the conversation going. The next step should be seeing a doctor, not diagnosing yourself.

Related Article: Self-Diagnosing Mental Illness, Weaponized Self-Care Talk 

Consider Why You Use Social Media

To build a helpful relationship with social media, you need to think about why you use social media. This helps build a framework around why you’re on the platform and guide your usage.

The reason you’re on social media could include:

• Staying connected with friends
• Finding the best deals on products
• Staying up to date on the news
• Market your business

Your reason for being on social media should be your guidepost for making decisions about who to follow and what to post.

Related Article: Doomscrolling 

Unfollow Negative Accounts

Think about what kinds of accounts you want to follow. When you log into social media, what kinds of things do you want to see?

For most, the kinds of accounts you should follow are positive and align with your values. Think about things that spark joy and find the pages that are posting those things.

Really consider what parts of your feed are negatively impacting you, and don’t forget about family members. These don’t need to be pages that are obviously negative. Consider accounts like as well:

• That cute couple that seems to be able to do everything you wish you could
• That new mom who somehow got her pre-pregnancy body back without even trying
• The family member who shares a lot of questionable articles
• Pages that share helpful information but the comments get nasty

Pages or people that cause you to compare yourself are negatively impacting your mental health and should be on the chopping block for unfollowing.

Related Article: How to Reduce Mom Guilt: 6 Ways to Overcome Mom Guilt 

Be Conscious of What You Share

Your social media presence is just as important as the people you follow. Remember, we’re trying to make social media as helpful for you as possible.

Think about what kind of presence you want to have on social media. If you’re using social media to keep people updated on your life, only make those kinds of posts. You don’t need to share hot-button topics or your opinion on current events.

It goes without saying that social media is a hot bed for misinformation and unhelpful discourse. Before sharing a video, article, or some random person making some wild claims, consider the validity of the message. 

Also, consider whether or not the content would be helpful or harmful to the people who follow you. Is this something your grandma would need to see? What about your young nieces or nephews? Think about your followers and how your posting behaviors can affect them.

Find a Helpful Community

One of the only benefits of social media is the connection that can be made between like minded people. There are thousands of communities that can be found online with some really nice people. However, be careful. There are many fringe groups that are filled with hate and misinformation.

A helpful community is one that will match your interests and uplift you. Consider finding a community for something you enjoy doing. That could be:

• Crocheting
• Baking
• Running
• Board games
• Painting
• Local silent discos

Some online groups have requirements you must fulfill in order to enter. These groups tend to be heavily moderated and could be a safer space compared to the wild west of the internet.

Monitor Your Screen Time

We’ve all experienced the time warping capabilities social media has. One minute you're just checking something, the next hour you're aimlessly scrolling through tik-toks.

Most phones come with the ability to track screen time per app. Take a look at how much time you’re spending on social media and set realistic goals to decrease that time.

It’s not easy to do this alone so you may want to consider getting help from a friend to keep you accountable. You could share screenshots of your screen time to one another and encourage one another to get your time down.

Turn Off Notifications

Seeing alerts at random times throughout the day can be a nuisance at best and a complete distraction at worst.

Turning off notifications for social media platforms is a good way to mitigate distractions throughout the day. This also builds a helpful environment with social media so it’s not consistently trying to pull you back into the platform.

Take a Break

Social media is designed to be sticky. It wants to keep you engaged with the content on the platform. It’s deliberately designed to be addictive to users. 

If you feel an aggressive pull to continuously be on social media, it’s probably a good time to take a break. Not only that, but it’s healthy to take time away from social media platforms to regain a sense of reality.

Adding scheduled breaks from social media into your month or week is a good way to reevaluate your social media use and enjoy some time in reality.

Prioritize Your Health

Social media has become a staple of daily life for many people. It’s more normal to use social media regularly than to not be on social media often or all together. With that comes a feeling of FOMO who aren’t on platforms.

Don’t let the normalcy of social media usage keep you in a negative place. Instead, prioritize yourself and advocate for your mental health.

Counseling for Mental Health

Social media addiction is a debilitating issue. If your social media use is starting to harm your mental health, general mental health counseling can help.

Inner Balance counseling offers support for the issues that trouble people the most. Social media usage can be a difficult area to navigate, but you don’t have to do it alone. 

Request a consultation to learn how Inner Balance Counseling can help.