How to strike a healthy balance between social media use and mental health

Social media use and mental health are closely related.

Although there are advantages and disadvantages to using social media, it's crucial to keep in mind that someone is actively managing the social media accounts of your favorite companies. Every positive social media post we see is balanced out by drama and unpleasant news.

Consider this: daily social media usage peaked at 147 minutes per day on average. Our daily encounters with others are increasingly conducted through smartphone displays.

Nevertheless, society's focus on social media is sparking fruitful discussions regarding mental health. Not to mention eliminating the stigma attached to people who experience difficulty.

How to handle social media and mental health is explained here. This offers advice on how to manage it both emotionally and professionally, as well as good practices.

The overall picture of social media and mental health

Take into account the fact that one in five Americans say they have had mental health therapy. We can't afford to overlook social media's effects on our wellbeing given how important it is to our everyday lives.

Both the good and the negative are included.

Let's get things going by exploring both points of view.

Why is social media bad for mental health?

When it comes to mental health, social media has a terrible reputation. When you take into account the following, it's not entirely unjustified.

FOMO pressure and the "always on" society

It may be both a blessing and a curse to be constantly connected to friends, coworkers, and the rest of the globe.

Hence, social media's "always on" nature. Specifically, there is an implicit (and occasionally explicit!) push to be active.

Always pay attention. never absent. post continuously.

Fear of missing out (FOMO) and the associated pressures have resulted from this. This also refers to the strain to...

• Stay informed. From a never-ending news cycle to ads and updates, there’s a constant flood of content to consume. Keeping up with it all is downright overwhelming. This includes content we want to see.

• Respond. This applies to both personal and professional social media use. Expectations are high when it comes to response time for consumers. Leaving anyone on read feels like a no-go.

• Post. Many people feel compelled to post even when they don’t want to. Research says that 45% of Gen Z claim that there’s too much pressure to be perfect on social media.

Conflict and bad news can flourish on social feeds.

Social media algorithms have sophisticated internal workings.

Nevertheless, common belief holds that algorithms prefer content that receives the most hits, comments, and shares.

And frequently, that results in content that is divisive or conflict-driven.

This causes a negative snowball effect on our social feeds. A post that is contentious or designed to spark controversy receives more interactions, which feeds the algorithm. Negative behaviors like doom-scrolling are now widespread when combined with the urge to be "always on."

Ill effects of excessive screen time

As was already mentioned, people are spending more time on social media.

Parents of the younger generation are quite worried about this. There is a plenty of published research on the drawbacks of excessive screen use. This comprises:

• Fatigue
• Depression
• Poor sleep quality

Yes, nobody is compelled to sit in front of a screen all day (unless it's required for your job). For the majority of Americans, smartphones are an essential component of modern life. But that doesn't make these potential health issues go away.

How does social media aid users in maintaining better mental health?

There is no denying that social media has the potential to be harmful.

Having said that, we shouldn't completely disregard social media's benefits. The benefits of social interaction for our mental health are highlighted below.

Increasing understanding of relevant topics and people

Social issues have been the subject of innumerable conversations on platforms like Twitter and Instagram. Specifically, problems that people might not normally run with in their neighborhoods. This comprises:

• Resources for mental health and treatment
• Awareness of social and political causes (#FightFor15 or #InsulinForAll)
• Support for marginalized groups

Community-building and relationships

Social media offers a venue for people to interact despite its drawbacks.

This includes fostering a sense of community among people from all backgrounds. Making connections via social media is feasible for everything from musicians to fans to friends keeping in touch. Moreover, it's now simpler than before.

Opportunities to communicate and learn regardless of location

Social media democratizes information and communication, if nothing else.

Think about how many people only communicate via social media. Social media platforms offer a place to interact, share, and learn with the over six billion cellphones in use worldwide.

How to place a social media professional's mental health first

Tackling social media burnout is tricky.

Because it's difficult to log off when your job depends on social media usage.

It's awful enough to have to put up with criticism and even abuse from social strangers. The difficulties mentioned above are made worse when those difficult conversations are added to the mix.

Take a step back if it all seems like too much to handle. The following advice can help you stay mentally healthy as a social media worker.

Set limits and boundaries

The major one is this. In a professional setting, it is essential to speak out for yourself. Setting boundaries for what is acceptable in your daily tasks is necessary to achieve this. Setting boundaries in the following areas is advised:

• Comments and criticism from customers. Acknowledge when a customer is being unreasonable or hostile. There’s a line between confrontation and harassment that customers shouldn’t cross. Reserve the right to step away when they do.

• Assistance and support. Know your role and scope of work. Just because you work in social media doesn’t mean you have to be a therapist or conflict mediator.

• Logging off. When you’re off the clock, you’re off the clock. Separating your personal and professional social media should be a priority. This might require some getting used to if you work remotely. That said, being “on” 24/7 is mentally draining.

Lean on your team

Ironically, it can be a lonesome job working in social media.

Your need for interpersonal encounters won't be satisfied by customer chat and content publishing.

This emphasizes the need of working closely with your team and maintaining open lines of communication. You should feel supported, and you should also show support to anyone who could be experiencing burnout.

Slack is widely used in businesses for this very reason. Some teams, for instance, create channels specifically for congratulating one another or exchanging memes. Consider your team channel as a place you may go all day to increase your serotonin levels.

Inject some personality into your professional presence

Content can help people connect with one another. For instance, a lot of companies make an effort to display their humanity on social media. If doing so is consistent with your brand, some suggestions are:

A complete or entertaining work "just because"

Behind-the-scenes content or content featuring you instead than your company

Content that is inspirational or motivating

Brands frequently gain from having a mixed-up social media presence. Even better, consider adding discussions about mental health to your content schedule (remember Mental Health Day).

Make your chores more bearable by breaking them up.

Don't put yourself through unnecessary stress, is a pro tip.

Avoid being "always on" on social media unless you have a service-oriented job. Even then, you are not required to work nonstop on tiresome duties. Take the Pomodoro technique for time management as an example. Instead of completing your most mentally difficult chores all at once, break them up into manageable chunks.

The likelihood is that social responses from clients and coworkers can wait a minute or two unless you're dealing with a genuine emergency. Ensure that you have some breathing room.

Move around (like, literally)

It is impossible to stress the importance of just standing up and taking a break.

Depending on your circumstance, that can be a 10-minute walk or a yoga break. Another option would be to stand and stretch for a short while. It is noteworthy that sit-stand desks and productivity are correlated.

Make a point of taking pauses from your screen, if nothing else. That also applies to your smartphone. That can entail writing down notes or making calls without turning on your webcam. Figure out what works for you.

4 tips for healthier social media usage in your personal life

Developing healthier habits professionally is easier when your personal social use is stress-free.

To wrap things up, let’s look at some tips for ensuring a healthier social media diet in your personal life.

1. Keep your personal social media truly personal

Most social media professionals don’t double-dip their private and personal accounts.

That said, you can take things a step further to protect your mental health. This includes:

• Setting boundaries and being firm about logging off. Again, work notifications can wait.

• Unfollowing (or reducing) industry-related accounts in your personal feed.

• Avoiding “professional” networks (LinkedIn, sometimes Twitter) for more “authentic” ones (BeReal, TikTok)

2. Curate a positive social feed

Despite popular belief, fighting back against negativity from social algorithms is possible. A few ways to this include:

• Regularly interacting with accounts related to your personal interests and hobbies
• Muting accounts and words that could potentially stress you out (see below on Twitter)
• Be selective about who you follow to reduce negativity in your feed

3. Consider occasional social media breaks

Fact: more and more teens report taking voluntary breaks from social media. Week-long breaks are surprisingly common.

The concept of “digital detoxing” is all the rage right now. That doesn’t mean you have to destroy your phone and live in a cabin to “unplug,” though.

How long you take your break to go is up to you. We recommend thinking of breaks as a healthy challenge. Start with a day or two and then assess from there. You might be surprised by what happens when you free up your time.

4. Prioritize activities that limit screen time

Having hobbies that don’t involve social media or screen time is always a plus.

And despite popular belief, Netflix is not a hobby.

Attempt to keep your hands and mind occupied. It's up to you whether it include crafts, exercising, or cooking. Experimenting outside of your comfort zone is never harmful.

How do you manage social media and mental health?

It might be challenging to strike a healthy balance between your social presence and your well-being. The aforementioned advice is a good place to start.

Yes, we are really sociable creatures. Obviously, your mental health should come first at all times. This is especially true for industry experts.

Consider using Blog3world social media publishing tools to automate your duties and free up time if you want to curate a favorable presence.