How Social Media can harm our Health

Social media has become a part of daily life for practically all of us. Social media has revolutionized reading news, following your favorite sports teams, websites, and most of all staying in touch with new and old friends. It has let all of us stay connected in ways we could never have imagined before. For us here at Revivalize it has also been one of our primary means for reaching our followers.

However as we all can attest, very few of us who use social media seem to limit it to just those things. Studies show that social media can quite literally turn addicting. You tell yourself you are just going to check for a few minutes and before we know it you are taking a quiz that matches you to what type of fruit you are most like or scrolling mindlessly through selfies of people you don’t even know. 

Every time we post something on social media and get a response in the form of a like, comment, or re-tweet it releases dopamine, your brains pleasure hormone. However, this leads us down the rabbit hole of addiction and few of us even realize it. We start comparing our lives to that of others even though we only see a brief snapshot, not the whole picture. We start feeling like we need the likes and approvals of others before making even the most simple life decisions. On top of that much like a drug user builds a tolerance to the dopamine boosting drugs they use; the more we rely on social media to make us happy, the more of it we need to have the same effect. Eventually it takes more likes, more followers, and more time spent to get that same dopamine high. In other words we end up in a world where we are never satisfied with ourselves and constantly comparing ourselves to those we see as stronger, more good looking, and/or more successful than us. 

Whether the reason be personal, business, campaigning, protesting, etc. every social media post is a person or organization saying, “Someone please notice me!” What this does to us on a personal level is make us feel like our goals, our interests, and our lives aren’t right just because they aren’t “liked” enough by others. It is no secret that you will be healthier both physically and mentally when you are able to live your own life and break free from the pressure of doing what society says you should do.

Every social media post: SOMEONE PLEASE NOTICE ME!

Our advice to those who find themselves spending hours of their day on social media…… 
Get your dose of dopamine from a healthier source such as seeing friends and family, learning a new skill, or simply getting some exercise or cooking up a delicious (and hopefully healthy) meal. These are the simple things that build long term health and happiness rather than the quick shot in the arm we might get from a social media post.

So ditch social media for a day, two days, or even a week and realize how little you actually need it. While it may be hard at first, you will feel an instant relief sooner or later. Those who truly care about you will find other means to stay in touch.  And when you do use social media, really prioritize who you want to hear from whether it’s your closest friends, a website you like, or your favorite sports teams. Understand that if you are constantly looking at loads of marketing and misleading snapshots of other people’s lives what you really are doing is forgetting to live your own life. Even those who might seem to be living the dream are human just like you and me and have their own personal problems in life. Social media, however, is an easy way for anyone to show off their joy and success while hiding their struggles and pain. 

If you find yourself mindlessly scrolling your newsfeed without much thought you are probably following way more things than you need to. Learning to say NO and prioritize what is and isn’t important to spend your time on is a major life skill. If you want to live a healthier life then you need to prioritize living a healthier life. The time we spend scrolling is time we can spend reading a book, learning a new skill or hobby, exercising or even just meditating or going for a walk. The average person spends 2.5 hours on social media every single day and many spend much more!2 Those that spend less often just substitute that time with time watching TV. So many people claim to not have the time to take care of their health. Ultimately though, for most of us it comes down to choice and priority. By reading this article you are already a step ahead because you have made living a healthier life a priority. But remember that none of this reading matters if you don’t take initiative.  

So my ultimate takeaway is this. Ask yourself, “How different would my life be if I just checked social media for 30 minutes a day and spent 2 hours exercising, meditating, or learning a new skill or hobby?” How much more self esteem and natural dopamine would you have by doing that? And in exchange what do you have to lose? Will you really miss out on anything major if you limit your social media time to a modest 30 minutes a day? Almost all of us know that that the answer is a definite NO. So do yourself a favor, prioritize your health and the needs of you and those close to you. Live your own life, not someone else’s! 

Leo Gabriel, Revivalize Inc.

Sources:
[1] https://sitn.hms.harvard.edu/flash/2018/dopamine-smartphones-battle-time/ 
[2] https://www.statista.com/statistics/433871/daily-social-media-usage-worldwide/