Do you find yourself scrolling for HOURS a day on TikTok, Instagram, X [RIP Twitter], Facebook…? The weekly screen time report pops up and you’re like: there’s no way I spend 8 hours every day scrolling… but you do! Whether you want to admit it or not, it might be time for a social media detox. You may think I’m crazy or think I don’t know what the heck I’m talking about, but PLEASE keep reading and see these 7 BENEFITS OF A SOCIAL MEDIA DETOX.
But first, let me give you some background on myself and my life without social media.
If you want to skip to the 7 BENEFITS OF A SOCIAL MEDIA DETOX, click here.
If you want to see my tips and tricks for a social media detox, click here!
MY JOURNEY WITH SOCIAL MEDIA
My online status as a 24 year old is a bit unusual because the only social media I have is Pinterest, Snapchat and YouTube.
Believe it or not, I don’t live under a rock.
I had Instagram from 6th grade up until my senior year of high school, then deleted my account. I redownloaded it again 3 years later, but it only lasted for about 6 months, then I deleted it again.
I had Twitter for a few years in high school, but the petty Twitter fights and controversy was just bad vibes, SO BYE.
I had TikTok the summer of 2021, the golden year, some might say. Until got into the habit of laying in bed at night, opening the app and scrolling for 3 HOURS! I don’t know why but I just lost track of time and couldn’t seem to just go to sleep, then I would have bloodshot eyes and a raging headache.
With TikTok I decided to quit cold turkey. It was wasting so much of my time, I wasn’t gaining anything from it, and honestly I just felt horrible about myself every time I would get caught doomscrolling.
Soon after I deleted TikTok, I had my second wind of Instagram and Reels turned into my new TikTok. And soon enough the bad habit resurfaced and I was scrolling again for hours, feeling defeating and frustrated with myself.
it’s all personal preference
I know I am quite hard on myself and so many people do the same exact thing, but self-control is a very important thing to me. And feeling like I’m doing something where I have no discipline and I wind up comparing my life to hundreds of other people, I draw the line.
Clearly, social media is just not for me personally, but I know there are a lot of good things that come out it as well.
I’m not here to tell you to cut it out of your life completely, I know some people literally make a living off these apps, use them for work and to stay in touch with family/friends.
BUT we need to set BOUNDARIES!
HOW LONG DO I HAVE TO DETOX
It’s all personal preference!
I think you can start with baby steps, challenge yourself to 24 hours without checking social media first. I think the 24 hours is the hardest for sure.
If you think you can do more, try 72 hours, then a week!
The goal is to be able to train yourself to not be so programmed and addicted to opening your phone, opening each social media app, and scrolling for hours.
NOW LETS GET INTO THE 7 BENEFITS OF A SOCIAL MEDIA DETOX
1. Creates space and time for other creative endeavors
Not having social media really frees up a lot of your time you didn’t realize was being wasted. You will no longer be held hostage to doom scrolling, which can lead you to feel like you have no control over your life.
Once you take the power back, and don’t feel the need to fill in every minute of your time… grabbing your phone during conversations, during commercials, in between tasks at work, while watching Netflix.. we all do it. It’s just an instinct at this point, but we need to break the cycle.
You can start filling that time with some meaningful activities that will better your mental health and bring you some new knowledge or joy! Hobbies like reading, journaling, crocheting, working out, yoga.. are just some ideas of how else you can be spending your time at the end of the day instead of checking your FYP.
2. Less anxious and overwhelmed
One of the main benefits of a social media detox is that it is sooo much better for your mental health overall. As humans, we are not meant to be consuming so much media. As you scroll, you’re being exposed to hundreds of different forms of content: bad news, good news, fake news, people’s vacations, meals, material belongings, parties… EVERYTHING. It is too much!!!
Lessening the amount of media being consumed on a daily basis allows your mind to SLOW DOWN.
It may take some time to adjust and you may feel super bored or don’t know what to do with yourself because as a society we are constantly being over-stimulated and we are so accustomed to it now. But I promise you, once you turn off all the noise, you will never want to go back.
3. Much less likely to compare yourself to others
We are constantly seeing posts from influencers, celebrities, friends, families of what new stuff they bought, what trip they are on, what party they’re going to, what they are eating, the list is endless. Although you may be happy for them, or content with your own life, I’m sure there is a part of you that compares yourself to that person.
Why don’t I have as many friends?
I wish I could buy all those new clothes and makeup.
I wish I could go on a trip to Europe.. You then find yourself being jealous, or upset, or putting yourself down for not being able to “be like them”.
But in reality, it is all a highlight reel. People are not sharing themselves sitting in bed scrolling on TikTok until 3AM, or sharing themselves going to the grocery store in their sweatpants. Everyone only shares what they want the world to think of them. We all do it and we all find ourselves comparing our lives to each other every day.
A social media detox prevent this problem. You no longer able to compare yourself to anyone else, you can just focus on your life and the people in it and LIVE WITHOUT WORRYING ABOUT ANYONE ELSE.
4. Less pressure
Along without having to SEE everyone elses highlight reels, you no longer feel the pressure to have to POST about your life. A lot of the times we feel the need to share this picture perfect life.
“Instagram eats first.”
“If you didn’t post it, did it even happen?”
Believe it or not, you can just go about your day without having to take a picture while you’re out to eat, or get ready 2 hours earlier so you can take selfies to post. I know it may feel super weird at first, especially if you are with a lot of friends and they all whip out their phones or spending an hour to pick out what to post. But you may feel relieved.
You can just LIVE.
5. Different social interactions
Disconnecting from social media also can change the way you interact with others. As I just mentioned in the last point, you may be out with friends and notice just how much everyone is on their phone. Everyone is mainly on their phones because we are all programmed to check all our feeds often.
There once was a time when there was no social media or smart phones, where friends would go out and even forget their phones. I RARELY forget my phone when leaving the house.
Just imagine a world where you can all just chill, catch up, play some games together, or go out without feeling like you have to fight for someone’s attention. A social media detox will really encourage you to prioritize the people that are physically in front of you, instead of those in cyber space.
6. Photos have a different meaning
Without social media, you won’t feel the need to take picture perfect photos to post or feel the need to prove anything… where you are, what you bought, what you’re eating.. etc.
Taking photos doesn’t have any pressure to it anymore. You take photos for memories or you may not even find a need to take nearly as photos in general. I never was someone that likes taking photos of myself, but for some reason I felt like I had to. Once I got rid of social media, I was like, why do I have so many pictures of myself in my camera roll? 100 photos of practically the same picture, just to get the perfect angle of myself to get the most likes on IG, for what?
And this is no hate if you enjoy posting pictures of yourself, go off! I’m just saying, the only reason we take photos like this, is with the intention to post.
7. Different perspective on life
Overall, if you decide to try out a social media detox, I promise you are going to notice a difference in the way you are going about your days. I know it is going to be SUPER HARD at first, but you got this!
You will be forced to try new things, create new hobbies, create deeper connections, and have more meaningful thoughts that aren’t clouded by all of the online noise. You will be re-training your brain to exist without needing to constantly be stimulated and hopefully re-grow your attention span from the endless stream of short-form content.
Feeling ready for a detox?
I hope this was able to re-frame your perspective a bit on our relationship with the media and you are able to see the benefits of a social media detox!
Click here to read about my tips and tricks of how to do a social media detox!
Do you suffer from any of the “side effects” from social media I mentioned??
Challenge yourself to a 24-hour social media detox and see how it impacts your mental well-being. Share your experience in the comments below!
