Anxiety, Social Media, and What To Do About It.

Social media has had a profound impact on the mental health of its users today, both can be positive and negative. I know through COIVD it helped foster a connection, support, and awareness. I don’t think that the creators of social media, in its infancy, had ill intentions, but the negative effects I believe have far outweighed the positive. Overcoming anxiety alone without the help of social media is quite hard to do in of itself! Cyberbullying and online harassment has increased significantly. A 2018 Pew Research Center study found that 59% of U.S. teens had been bullied or harassed online, with 42% experiencing offensive name-calling and 32% encountering false rumors. In 2023, approximately 26.5% of U.S. teens reported experiencing cyberbullying, a figure that has been steadily increasing over the past few years. A survey indicated that 54% of young people on Facebook reported experiencing bullying on the platform, while 28% reported such experiences on X (formerly Twitter).

I know for me, every time I access Facebook, Instagram, or whatever, I see post after post of people on vacation or the huge house they just built or bought and get slapped in the face with all of their joy and wondrous moments of life…. Which I have no ill towards those posts. If you’re happy and completed a significant milestone in your life you’d certainly want to share it with the world! However, the reality is that social media is often just a “highlight reel” rather than a true reflection of people’s lives. It isn’t genuine to their story of hardship, heartache, or reality. Most people tend to share curated moments—happy memories, achievements, vacations, and good times—while leaving out the struggles, insecurities, and mundane aspects of life.

For me, that’s why I post the ugly, the negative of my life along with the good and the positives. I want to be authentic and genuine and it helps to keep me grounded to reality.

The dark side of social media that no-one talks about is many people struggling with loneliness, anxiety, or depression still post smiles and exciting updates. The psychological implications of this, how detrimental this can be to your mental health, I’d have to include in another post…. But it isn’t good. Almost like creating an alternate reality for yourself and ignoring the true reality of your situation. Hardship sucks, trust me I know… I’m there right now. However if I ignore my present state and just keep running from it… it doesn’t get any better. Through the ashes is the only opportunity to rebuild. Studies suggest that excessive social media use can actually increase feelings of inadequacy and unhappiness, especially when comparing one’s life to idealized online portrayals. Even influencers who appear to "have it all" often admit to feeling pressure to maintain a perfect image.

And what about the human effect of social media? We are made by our creator to be social creatures… we crave belonging and social interaction. Fundamentally we hate being alone, most of us. While it helps maintain connections, excessive reliance on digital interactions can replace meaningful face-to-face relationships. We need to get outside, away from our screens more and actually engage in thoughtful civic conversations face to face with each other!

So what to do about it. How can we overcome anxiety in general? You know, I’ve never dealt with any anxiety before until over the last few years after going through the most hardest times I’ve ever faced. I can’t really describe it, however I’d be doing something mundane and ordinary, and then out of the blue would come this wave of fear. Almost incapacitating at times, and my rational mind couldn’t make sense of what my body was telling me. I would be at work, in a position I’ve been in for over 20 years as a paramedic and have complete confidence in my abilities, and just feel afraid. Timid. Scared. Small. Inadequate. I couldn’t make heads or tails of it and certainly didn’t know what to do with it.

However, here are some things I’ve personally implemented in my daily life in order to combat my anxiety, and these things have helped me tremendously.

First off… whenever I started feeling anxiousness come over me I had to learn how to take a step back and capture the moment or the thought. Analyze it and test to see where it’s coming from. The ability to capture your thoughts and then decide how to respond is only inherent in humans. I would still “feel the feels” and validate them, however my response to them is what mattered. I can’t change how I feel, but I can change how I react. I may not be able to change what happens to me but I can choose to respond in a positive way. I encourage you to read Viktor Frankl and Stephen Covey to learn more on how to do this. And remember, your feelings are NOT who you are.

Second… Practice gratitude. Practicing gratitude every day can have a profound impact on your mental health by shifting your focus from what's lacking to what’s already present and positive in your life. It rewires your brain to recognize and appreciate the good, leading to greater emotional resilience and overall well-being. It enhances your self-esteem, strengthens your emotional resilience, and reduces your anxiety and depression. And its certainly worked for me.

Third… Practice mindfulness and grounding. Go outside! Take your shoes off and walk barefoot on the ground, through the grass. There are plenty of interesting studies on grounding that are beneficial. Journal. Write down your thoughts to declutter your mind and to lay out all your feelings on the paper. This has proven to be probably the second most beneficial for me…and is what actually lead to the creation of this blog.

Those are just a few tips, personal ones that I’ve incorporated that have helped me along my journey in life. I hope some of them may be beneficial to you as well. With social media, there has to be a balance. Set time limits to usage, take breaks, and prioritize your real-life connections. Use it as a tool and not a replacement.

Peace out