Social Media Can Ruin Your Mental Health and You May Not Realize It

Social media has worsened our depression

There is a reason why Steve Jobs and Bill Gates prevent their kids from having a tech-life. The kids are living a tech-free life. Steve Jobs wouldn’t let his kids use the iPad. These inventors are smart and know the detrimental effects of using social media even though they are part of making it happen.

People think you’re not normal if you say you don’t use social media but we have been living decades and centuries without technology and social media which was the most normal thing. Being on social media for 8 hours a day is not normal. Being outside all day is normal. Those who think you’re abnormal for not having any social media account are the ones who are ignorant and don’t know what they’re saying because they live in the illusion.

Yes, I’m aware that you can use social media for good; You spread your wisdom and message to people in the world. You may make a living on social media instead of a 9–5 job. You found your spouse or friends online. That’s true. But to me, it has more bad influence than good influence.

Social media is not for sociable people. Social media is created as an illusion to make people more sociable. It’s for anti-social people and narcissists. I went to class with an absurd guy who would send me a message first and keep a conversation going and being sociable. He made me think he’s talkactive and extrovert. Yet when we meet face to face he’s awkward and avoids eye contact. It’s as if I talked to a different person than the one I talked to online. He did this to everyone. Anti-social people seem very communicative and sociable online but once you meet them, they’re extremely awkward and anti-social. They don’t talk to you like they do online. It’s ridiculous and stupid.

It’s hard for people to be real in real life.

Social media is not for social people. It’s for narcissists.

I remember not having Facebook for around 2 years a long time ago, back in around 2014, I think. People had a hard time believing I didn’t have Facebook as if it’s abnormal and crazy for them. To me, I felt liberated. I felt free.

No offence, but some naive people would say

“I disagree. Social media is how you use it.”

Not true. I used to think that way too but the former Facebook president, Sean Parker said Facebook was intentionally built to consume your time and make you hooked on it. They are not stupid, they knew exactly what they were doing. It’s intentionally built to make you addicted to Facebook. Social media, in general, is designed to steal your time and make you addicted.

Are you aware of how you use your social media? You will experience anxiety, stress, and depression by doing these things on social media:

• You follow people whom you compare your life to
• You are trapped in a useless argument on comments
• You focus too much on creating the picture-perfect image to post
• You are being badly influenced by those you follow AKA influencers (beauty products won’t gain your soul happiness)
• You don’t get enough likes, comments, and followers
• Someone unfollows or blocks you
• When you look at your notification and message (fear of being in trouble for example)

These are true whether you are aware of it or not. Suicide rates have increased after social media has launched. Anxiety and depression rates have increased too. The rates weren’t that high back in the ’80s.

The truth is we are dopamine-addicts without recognizing it. Many people today are highly dopamine addicted. You get dopamine from likes. You feel happy and satisfied by getting likes. When days have passed without getting likes you become anxious and depressed because you feel socially rejected. You feel empty and not important. In my opinion, social media’s intention is not to make people feel better, it’s there to make people feel more crappy and anxious.

The fact you post your whole life on your social media makes you vulnerable to strangers. People who only post selfies of themselves are low-key narcissists without knowing. People who only post pictures of themselves online is just like placing pictures of yourself on your wall in real life, as my brother told me. I didn’t think about it that way but it’s the truth.

People will say you can cut down your anxiety, stress, and depression on social media by unfollowing people with a bad influence on you and spend less time on social media. Your stress, anxiety, and depression may be reduced by doing that, but the stress, anxiety, and depression will still be there because of social media.

My advice would be

Remove social media.

Quit it quickly like a cold turkey. Quit it like you quit cigarettes. I know it’s easier said than done, but that’s because your ego doesn’t want you to break free. Your ego will give you many excuses as to why you should stay on social media. But isn’t your mental health more important than your social media?

See how it goes for you. See if you can feel any difference emotionally. See if you start to feel free and happier. In the beginning, it’s hard to quit, but it will be worth it. You will suddenly realize how you didn’t regret quitting social media.

Be aware. Your ego will make you feel guilty for quitting social media, don’t listen to that. Because once you quit, you feel happier and your depression has decreased.

How can I find love then if I can’t use social dating apps? Go out in the real world. Go to the park. Go to a library. Talk to people. The option to find love is there in the real world but people make it harder than it is because social media has taken power over our lives and decisions.

Social media started around 10–15 years ago especially with Facebook as the kickstart. It will expire one day. It has a expiration date just like it has a start date. It has an expiration date. Everyone used to use MySpace until it died out. I can see the same thing happening to social media such as Facebook and Instagram.

Social media is not there to connect people, it’s there to disconnect and separate people. Everyone has their face glued to their phone in real life. That’s not being sociable.

Short-term happiness from social media will disappear and stress, anxiety and depression will rise up again once you lack dopamine.

People have more courage to play tough online than in real life. On online the bullies would say the nastiest things, even send death threats and curse at someone. In real life, they’re just a small dog who barks.

Your “friends” on your friend list won’t even say hello to you on the streets. Your “friends” on your friend list is not even your friends at all, because are they there for you when you go through struggles? Nope.

You see beautiful people on social media and compare yourself to them which makes your depression worse because you feel like you’re not good enough because you don’t have six-packs or big buttoms like the photoshopped models in the picture.

Teens have become more stressed out, anxious and depressed over the years than many years ago. I’m a 00’s kid who was born in 1994. I am fortunate to grow up in a time where the computer was rarely used and spending time with family and friends was a big part of my life. I’ve deleted Snapchat long time ago. No regrets. I just recently deactivated my Facebook and I don’t miss it because I never really used it anyway. It’s a crazy place to be with. There is a lot of crazy people in there. Instagram is the only social media I have trouble deleting, so you see, I’m not perfect either. I struggle with the addiction too. But I’ve definitely reduced my time in there now. As of now, I use it for my work.

Social media is like being in a cult.

Life in the old days was so much different.

There was a time where we lived without social media. Everyone talked to each other. No one was on their phone. If people are bored today, they would be on their phone. Back in the days when you’re bored you would just draw on your sketchbook, talk to someone, or go out biking. Everybody was out in the real-life and talked to each other face to face. Your friend will knock on your door to ask if you want to go out and play soccer. Everyone in the family would eat dinner on the table without phones being nearby and talked to each other.

Back then the kids were happier. Little to no depression, anxiety and stress. Today you will see many kids with high depression, anxiety and stress caused by social media. Back then there were no social media and kids were happier then. Of course, they had personal problems on their own but in overall they were happier and felt free.

Today if you talk to someone they would only talk about themselves and not ask into your life. Or they would just stare on their phone when you talk to them. People have forgotten to take care of each other and watch for each other’s back.

Everyone in this video has eye contact with each other. No one is on their phone. The main guy in the thumbnail asks into people’s lives and ask how’s it going with school. No one talked about themselves. People listen to other people and ask more into their life.

I hope one day social media becomes outdated one day and everyone starts talking to each other in the real-life again. Having your whole life exploited online is very vulnerable and everyone will intentionally hurt you if you open up online.

Once you exploit your whole life online, then you no longer have a private life. Everyone has access to see in your life. You have no privacy and people will stalk you online. The power of mystery when having a private life is dead and your whole life is posted on social media.

Watch out for your mental health when you go online. See how it effects you.