10 Ways Social Media Negatively Affects Your Mental Health
Technology is a great thing. You want to watch Beyonce’s Super Bowl half-time show 17 times? No problem. You want to create a six-second video of your cat? Or share your deepest personal thoughts in 140 characters? Go crazy. But, what we might not be realizing is the effect technology can have on us. Check out these 10 ways it can affect mental health.
1. Sleep
Using a laptop, cell phone, or iPad late at night can seriously mess with your sleep patterns and habits, potentially leaving you with a sleep disorder. Late night use is also associated with stress and depressive symptoms. (Yikes.)
2. Depression
A Swedish study found that participants who felt the need to have their cell phones constantly accessible were more likely to report depressive mental health symptoms.
3. Addiction
Several studies have actually suggested that the brains of technology abusers develop a certain pattern of change over time. Studies also suggest that the amount of times technology abusers check their gadgets are just enough to trigger the addiction-oriented parts of our brains.
4. 24/7 Stress
When we come home from school or work and immediately hop on the Internet or turn on the iPad, our brains don’t get the chance to de-stress and unwind from the day’s activities, so our brains get stuck in stress mode 24/7.
5. FOMO aka “Fear Of Missing Out.”
It’s a real thing now. The popularity of social media and sharing everything has led to this new sensation where everyone from middle school-ers to working adults feel the pressure to attend every event and share every experience. It’s the“is everybody having fun without me?” disease. (Hint: they’re not)
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