By Amanda Jowsey
"I am now dumber..."
The average adult checks their phone 80 times a day. A recent study published by the National Library of Medicine found that the impact of social media on our brains most closely resembles age-related cognitive decline. It causes problems with memory, language, thinking and judgment. The result, over time, “is neurological damage.”
Don't worry! Participating in a self-imposed social media detox can help stop, delay, or even reverse this trend depending on how committed you are to putting an end to mindless scrolling and making the most of your screen time.
Some tips for doing a social media cleanse
I usually do my own Facebook detox every month or so. Just deleting the app is sometimes enough to help me rewire the habit of clicking it for no reason.
Experts recommend replacing social media use with more educational games or apps if you find it too difficult to stop using your phone altogether. Duolingo and Lumosity are my favorites. That way you are using your device for something productive, rather than just zoning out. Although, I do love a good zone-out. Don't get me wrong!
One study published in the Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology found that people who limited social media use to half an hour a day have lower depression and anxiety symptoms and significant improvement in overall well-being. Those who limited their use also showed reductions in loneliness and depression over a three-week period compared to a control group.
Constant connection yet more disconnected than ever
Alex Reid, Ph.D., director of the University at Buffalo’s department of media studies, said “We now get information through our phones in a way we didn’t before. We’re processing information differently, at a different speed, through different media, coming from different places.” Reid studies the way emerging technologies change the way that we communicate with each other.
“Phones are designed to structure our attention in particular ways that claim to be of interest to us but are surely of interest to the designers and sellers of phones and apps. So, we’re always having to balance competing interests in our own hands, in our lives, in a way that we didn’t have to before,” he added.
“There are so many things that are within reach for us because they’re right there on our phones. That’s almost overwhelming. It can be anxiety inducing… We don’t know how to live with these devices. We’re learning how to live in this new world that we don’t quite know how to do yet."
So whether you quit cold turkey or take baby steps toward limiting your social intake, doing a digital detox of any kind reduces anxiety and depression, improves focus and memory, and helps to heal relationships that are strained by a lack of connection.
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