Here’s to your Health
Brought to you by Community Partner COMPACT, www.compact2020.com
Every day, the world on the internet changes. From Tiktok dances to devastating news about a social media icon, the world on the internet can seem overwhelming to parents but it is the reality kids live in today. Sitting down with your child and explaining to them how to separate themselves from this world by putting down their devices and engaging with someone face to face is important. This will take away a lot of stress in their lives. Today’s most successful social media apps work hard on improving and growing the amount of people they can bring to their platform while maximizing the amount of time a person spends on their platform. The more time a person spends, the more ads they can run and the more likely they make a profit off their product. In the end, it’s a matter of business.
How social media becomes stressful. Even if you know that images you are viewing on social media are manipulated, they can still make you feel insecure about how you look or what’s going on in your life. We are all aware that other people tend to share the highlights of their lives rather than the low points that everyone experiences. But this doesn’t lessen the feelings of envy and dissatisfaction when scrolling through a friend’s photo of a beach trip. A study at the University of Pennsylvania found that a high usage of Facebook, Snapchat, and Instagram increases rather than decreases feelings of loneliness.
Ways to limit social media use and improve mental health. A 2019 University of Pennsylvania study found that reducing social media use to 30 minutes a day resulted in a significant reduction in levels of anxiety, depression, loneliness, sleep problems and fear of missing out. However, you don’t need to cut back on your social media use that drastically to improve your mental health. The same study concluded that just being more mindful of your social media use has beneficial results on your mood and focus.
Four tips on reducing your social media use.
- Use an app to track how much time you spend daily on social media
- Turn off your phone at certain times during the day
- Don’t bring your phone or tablet to bed
- Disable social media notifications and try removing social media apps from your phone
For more information on social media use, visit us on Facebook @Compact2020 or call 205-605-1827. †
