How to Tackle Social Media Stress: Tips for a Healthier Online Life

Beat social media stress with these simple, effective coping strategies.

POSTED 19.11.24 16:00 BY CHARLOTTE CROSBY

Most of us know that spending too much time on social media can make us feel bad afterward, but we struggle to identify where this feeling comes from or how to fix it. Here, we will explore some of the main causes of stress from social media and ways to change your perspective.

FOMO

FOMO (the Fear of Missing Out) occurs when we see pictures of people doing exciting or interesting things with others that do not include ourselves. It could be triggered by a picture of friends going out together without us or a family member getting a new job. So how do we stop feeling like this?

Remember that people on social media only show what they want us to see. Online we are all guilty of excluding the mundane and the flawed parts of our lives and only displaying the best parts.
Focus on things in your own life that you have found exciting. Maybe you visited a new place or you went to a party.
Question yourself. Why am I jealous that I was not invited to that? Do you really want that for yourself? Often we can be envious of things we think we should want or should be doing when in reality we would not enjoy it or it is not right for us. We are all different and face different challenges so it doesn’t mean anything when you compare yourself to someone on an entirely separate journey.

Body Image

Social media is inundated with images of beautiful people, it is very easy to scroll through posts and feel bad about our appearance.

Celebrate your individuality. The world would be very boring if we all looked the same and it is much more beautiful to have you in it.
Beauty standards are impossible to keep up with because they change so quickly. Rather than constantly chasing after the latest beauty trends and being disappointed it is far more freeing to embrace your differences and love the features you were born with. Your body is not meant to fit into trends, it is meant for you to live and feel comfortable in.
Editing pictures and videos is an unfortunate reality of social media. You might even be comparing yourself to someone who is not real.

Disruption of sleep

We are all guilty of lying in bed for far too long on our phones when we are supposed to be asleep. This is problematic because the blue light from our phones disrupts our sleep-wake cycle, making it almost impossible to fall asleep. Some useful advice would be to:

Have at least a one-hour break from screen time before bed.
Read a book before bed. Reading is perfect because it provides entertainment without the blue-light and the anxiety of social media.
Activate the screen- time limit on your phone so you can not use it between certain times. (do not press the snooze button either!)

Addiction

‘Doomscrolling’ is the excessive consumption of social media content for an extended period. Often, we can feel ourselves becoming more anxious as we continue to mindlessly scroll, yet somehow, we cannot seem to stop. By the time we stop scrolling, a significant amount of time has often elapsed, leaving us with regret as we think about how we could have used that time differently. The main reason for this is that social media, by its very nature, has been designed to be addictive, creating small surges of dopamine in our brains that encourage us to chase it more. Some ways to avoid doomscrolling are:

Use screen-time limits on your phone.
Engage in an offline hobby like a sport or a craft. These hobbies make you feel relaxed and accomplished and provide a healthy source of dopamine
Take longer breaks from social media. This may be for a week or even a month either way it gives you back a sense of control of your attention.

Disconnected

Social media was invented to connect people across the world; however, it also has a bizarre way of making people feel even more disconnected from each other. This is because we are bombarded with so many ways to connect with so many people online that we can neglect to nurture smaller, more important relationships. Here are some ways to feel more connected:

Avoid following people who you do not know outside social media. Often having loads of followers we do not know makes us feel more lonely.
Spend more time with people who are important to you, nurturing these relationships strengthens them and distracts you from all the noise of social media.

Everyone is different

We all use social media in different ways, so it is up to you to identify which aspects of social media may be causing you stress. Maybe some platforms make you feel positive while others don’t, or perhaps you start to feel negative after an hour of screen time. You may not need to implement all of these suggestions into your social media routine, but some of them might help. Learn what helps you feel better when using social media. It may take time to figure out what works for you, but as social media becomes a more prominent part of our daily lives, it is increasingly important to establish boundaries so it does not negatively impact our mental health in the long term.