Tips for Mindful Social Media Use: Strategies to Improve Quality of Life and Reduce Stress and Anxiety

2024-03-22 13:44:07
It is advisable to avoid the cell phone during those times when we are likely to spend more time on networks, for example in bed (Illustrative Image Infobae)

Social networks are a fundamental part of our lives since they allow us to be connected with others based on common interests or values, quickly and without physical limits. Additionally, they can be a source of entertainment and information.

“Conscious and careful use of social networks can make us feel positive emotions and could even reduce symptoms of stress and anxiety. However, when use is passive and/or excessive, it may be accompanied by discomfort and negatively impact quality of life,” explained Delfina Ailán, member of the Department of Cognitive Psychotherapy at INECO.

To understand and improve the use of social networks (RRSS), the INECO professional identified a series of steps or links that begin with a trigger and lead to the use of the tool:

Internal and external triggers.

Automatic thoughts and beliefs.

Impulse to use RRSS.

Enabling cognitions.

Use of RRSS.

Next, Ms. Ailán provided a series of exercises in relation to the aforementioned model.

Internal triggers are related to psychological or emotional states that may include, for example, feelings of boredom, loneliness, need for validation, stress, insomnia, sadness, or anxiety when faced with a challenging task or decision. In this sense, the use of RRSS becomes a maladaptive way of regulating these uncomfortable or unpleasant emotions. For this reason, it is useful to ask yourself how you feel before using social networks.

External triggers are elements of each person’s environment, such as receiving a notification, seeing others around you using their phone, or being in a place where you typically access your social networks (such as your bedroom). Other examples of external triggers could be the proximity you have to the mobile device, accessing it as soon as you get up (for example because you use it as an alarm clock), or seeing the social network icon on the main screen.

One way to identify the external triggers for social media use could be to ask yourself about where you are when you use social media, with whom, and what is happening around you at that moment.

Another exercise to detect them could be to set a goal, asking yourself the following questions:

• Why are you entering this social network? The answers are multiple and can be different each time. Some of the reasons may be: getting distracted, having fun, learning a skill, chatting with friends or publishing some content.
• When? It is important to define at what times of the day you are going to use them and for how long. It is advisable to avoid those times when you are likely to spend more time online, for example before going to bed.
• For how long? Define how much time you are going to spend on social networks. Many smartphones have application timers that limit the amount of time on the screen.

Finally, you can also try logging out, deleting the application from the main screen, or logging in from your computer. These strategies cause the fact of wanting to return to the social network to involve an additional voluntary act.

Automatic thoughts are cognitions, images, interpretations, and self-instructions that appear in a given situation and influence our emotions and behaviors. Most of the time we don’t have much of a record of them, but with a little training we can identify them. In the context of social networks, beliefs may appear such as: “I have to check the networks so as not to feel anxious” or “if this photo does not receive many likes, it means that it is not pretty enough.”

An exercise that can be of great help regarding this issue is to work on recognizing these automatic thoughts and how they present themselves when using social networks.

At the same time, it is important to remember that social networks show reality in a biased and partial way. Users often select, edit and finally show their best moments. Taking this into account can help you so that, if you compare yourself to other people, the discomfort is not so intense. At the same time, recognizing that what you see and show on networks is only a fragment of reality, gives you the possibility of choosing to reconnect with other things valuable to you.

When we talk about impulse, we refer to the desire or “desire” to use social networks. The urges may manifest as physical sensations, such as increased heart rate or motor restlessness.

In that sense, identifying how the impulse manifests itself in your body is the first step to being able to control them. Once you have identified them, the ideal is to stop the impulse to want to check a social network. Stop, put the phone aside, take a deep breath, and ask yourself why you are going in. It may be helpful to have this question displayed on your phone’s lock screen.

Another strategy is to distract yourself with any activity that helps you shift the focus of your cell phone, such as putting the phone aside and leaving the room, talking to someone, listening to music, or doing other activities.

Enabling cognitions are thoughts that enable or give us “permission” to act on impulse, such as: “I worked all day, I deserve a distraction,” “It’s only going to be five minutes,” or “I may be missing out.” Of something”. Along these lines, the exercise is to recognize if you have any enabling cognition of that type, in order to work on it.

Even if you decide to enter social networks, there are strategies that can be implemented, such as reviewing which accounts you are currently following and analyzing how they make you feel. Some examples of emotions that can be experienced when using social networks are: joy, love, envy, shame, sadness, anger and jealousy. Remember that all emotions are valid and transmit important information about the situation you are experiencing, which is why it is crucial to recognize and accept them. Then, if you detect that there are accounts that consistently generate negative and intense emotions in you, you may decide to silence them or stop following them. At the same time, identify if there is other content that you would be interested in starting to follow.

It is important to understand that, although you can decide to take some time off from social networks or deactivate them, the key is balance, equilibrium and asking for professional help if the discomfort increases, is very intense and/or persistent.

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