Social media has become an important part of our everyday life. Most people check social media notifications immediately after waking up and before going to sleep. Sometimes while being with family or friends, we give our attention to the virtual world instead of focusing on the present moment. Has it ever happened to you that you just wanted to check the notification on your phone and have lost the entire hour?
Before we got smartphones it was easier to enjoy every moment – and time didn’t seem to run so fast. We can’t stop the rapidly developing technology, but we can change our habits and choose the right mobile applications that will help make our life easier, not only waste our time.
Social media also has a huge impact on our mental health. A large number of likes increase our sense of self-worth and our day seems successful, but a few negative comments, a better photo uploaded by our friend, or terrifying fake news, can make our day very unpleasant.
Are we heading in the right direction? How will the future look like if every aspect of our life will be controlled by social media? I do not even dear to think this thought to the end.
Fortunately, it is not too late for a change, but we have to start with ourselves and observe when social media has a negative impact on our everyday life.
If you have problems with concentration
The flow of information on the internet is incredibly fast nowadays. Every day we can see millions of short, very fast videos, photos, and blinking gifs. Our brains are used to registering that information quickly, but when we need to read a book, it’s hard for us because the brain is not used to focusing on one thing for a longer period. To deal with this problem we should be more careful and focus only on valuable content. Sometimes it is good to turn off our phone and just read a paper book or even get bored for a while, our brain needs to slow down.
If you feel lonely
Even thousands of virtual friends will not replace a companion in real life. If we have noticed that we spend most of our time on the Internet, it may be worthwhile to change it into a personal meeting with someone. We should also remember to use the phone as little as possible when we are with other people.
If you are overwhelmed
Because of so many things happening in the virtual world we tend to forget about our own needs. If you start and end every day by checking notifications, change it! Try to buy a traditional alarm clock instead of a mobile one, so your phone won’t be the first thing you reach out for when you wake up. Try to control the time you spend in each application and silence the phone when you need to focus.
If you feel that social media has taken over your life, do not hesitate to seek professional help from a therapist. The Internet gives us what seems to be almost unlimited possibilities that previous generations didn’t have. However, it’s up to us to decide how to use them. The key’s to teach the algorithms of our applications to show us only valuable and suitable content that is truly beneficial to us and our mental health. It’s important to choose the social media platform where you can meet new and like-minded people with similar interests and share your passion with them!
Justyna Kluska
Enthusiastic content creator, I want social media to become a source of knowledge and inspiration. I wish they would connect people instead of dividing them.
