Too Much Social Media Leads to Depression
by Dr. Rachael
- Updated February 13, 2023
by Dr. Rachael
- February 13, 2023
Table of Contents
Success Day #1 Of The #30DaySuccessChallenge:
Don’t Spend More Than a combined total of 90mins a day on FB, Twitter, and IG unless it’s for business purposes.
OK, so how many times today have you checked your Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram already today? Some of us barely post on social media, but may spend hours a day looking at what other people are doing. Then there’s another group that post often in an attempt to reemphasize to the world how great things are going with you.
The Choice People who spend too much time on social media
People who spend too much time on social media can enter into ‘smiling depression.’ There’s a tendency to smile to make everyone think your life is perfect, but when you turn it off, you realize that life is far from perfect. The trip you just took to the tropics where you posted all those gorgeous pictures, the room had cockroaches; the perfect relationship picture that you posted, you two almost broke up last week; and all those gifts under the Christmas tree really put a financial strain on things. All of our lives are far from perfect, and that’s very normal! But the mirage of social media can trick your mind into thinking the opposite is true. It is very easy to become sad and for some, depressed, trying to balance reality and perception.
The University of Michigan conducted a study where researchers observed 82 Facebook users during a two week period. They found that the more time a person spent on Facebook, the more their feelings of well-being decreased and their feelings of depression increased. It reminds you of all that’s missing from your life instead of reminding you to be grateful for all you have. Too much social media leads to depression.
The natural instinct is to compare
Then there’s the other version. You may not post much, but you sit and voyeuristically watch everyone else and their perfect lives that are full of family, travel, and friends. The natural instinct is to compare….and sadly you cannot compare, no one can because it is just a glimpse, and certainly not the full story. As a result you feel yourself sink into a deep sadness…and you can’t put your finger on why. It’s hard to get the day started, difficult to focus, things aren’t fun anymore, and your appetite is off.
Whether you are a smiling depressed person or just one feeling unfulfilled, watching other people’s fantastic lives can paralyze you, and fabricating your own in draining. One day you wake up, you realize that haven’t worked on pursuing your dreams, and you just want to stay in bed and browse through other people’s images.
So on Day 1 of our Success Challenge, I challenge you to limit your time on social media. See if you can go the majority of the day without checking it. Stay on it less and less each day. It’s a process.
You will feel your confidence rise, start to get more accomplished, start valuing quality time with loved ones, stop missing bits and pieces of important dialogue, and you will be primed and ready for the success that the world has to give!!
Have a great day & I’ll see you tomorrow for Day #2 of our #30DaySuccessChallenge
Article by
Rachael L. Ross MD, PhDAs a family doctor and a sexologist.
Dr. Rachael Ross has been heralded as “The next Dr. Ruth, the nationally renowned sexual therapist who pioneered frank sex talk.” Chicago Tribune. Dr. Rachael earned her M.D. from Meharry Medical College and her Ph.D. from the American Academy of Clinical Sexologists, along with a B.A. from Vanderbilt University, where she studied anthropology.