Everyone has a different relationship with social media. Some people love it, some people hate it. However, over the past few years, especially over the course of the COVID-19 pandemic, more and more people have admitted that their mental health suffers when they use social media platforms.
It is believed that social media encourages comparison to others and impacts self-esteem, confidence and mood negatively. As people show the best parts of their lives, we are often inclined to compare it to our own. This has a huge effect on mental health and is an unrealistic way of living.
Taking a detox from these platforms doesn’t mean falling off the face of the social media earth. It can be for a week, a month, 6 months; however long you feel you need it mentally. Sometimes deleting those apps that make your mind suffer, allows more time to be outside, be with people you love, focus on bettering yourself and your life and most of all, learning to be confident in who you are.
You may feel you need a detox from social media if when you use it, your anxiety levels increase, or you feel your mood change negatively afterwards. This is not uncommon. However, not all social platforms may make you feel this way. For example, Tiktok may lift your mood and make you laugh, whereas Instagram may allow anxiety to creep in. So, take a break from the ones that affect you, and keep the ones that make you feel happy.
Once you decide (if you decide) to join the social world again, try make changes to your experience to lower the chance of it affecting your mental health again. This may be unfollowing accounts that don’t make you feel good, following more positive, relatable and funny content.
Everyone may feel that they need a break from being on socials at some point, and you are not alone in this. Protect your mental health and make choices that will positively affect your mindset.
