A cell phone is such a small thing but takes up a big mental space in our lives. We use them for much more than phones. They are our alarm clock, news source, stopwatch, exercise tracker, etc. The list goes on. Using them to make our lives more efficient is not a problem. Thinking of them as extensions of ourselves is a problem.
Azar Nafisi mentioned our dependence on electronic devices in her book, The Republic of Imagination. “These objects have almost become extensions of our physical selves, threatening to take the place of actual content with others and with the world around us,” she wrote. “They are our intimate companions: in the streets, in our cars, in supermarkets, and at restaurants, even during family meals and in bed, we communicate with them, and through them, we ask for advice and direction, feeling lost, almost bereft, without them.”
Having a cell phone and depending on it is one thing but not being able to get through a dinner with a loved one without looking at our phones is a whole other matter. When our phones are more intimate companions to us than a person, and when we look at our phones more than we pick up a book, we are in deep trouble.
Social media addiction
The most addicting things on our phones are social media apps. I point the finger first at myself. When I wake up in the morning, the first thing I grab is my phone to check the time. It serves as my clock. The second thing I do is check my social media notifications. While there is nothing wrong with being on social media, being addicted to likes and follows or even checking up on what others are doing is not good for overall brain health.
A study looked at 58 adolescents and young adults who completed a task in the MRI scanner that mimics Instagram. Researchers looked at the neural responses when the participants provided positive feedback to others. What they found is that providing likes to others on social media is “related to activation in brain circuity implicated in reward.”
What is the big deal about the study’s findings? Social media is “tightly connected to individual’ rewards systems,” according to an article by King University. “Things like gambling and narcotic drugs have the power to rule over the brain’s rewards system in a similar capacity. Social media users should be aware of these parallels to avoid potential pitfalls.” In other words, social media addiction is real and can be just as much of a problem for someone as drugs or gambling.
Social media addiction can be a shiny toy hanging in front of those of us recovering from childhood trauma, particularly those of us with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Take my habit of looking at social media when I get up in the morning. Mornings are the toughest time for me. I wake up with anxiety. While I have devised a morning mental health routine that helps me reduce anxiety, I still reach for my phone upon waking up and check my social media notifications.
The reason I do that is the same reason I used to reach for alcohol or would binge on sweets and stick my fingers down my throat to throw it all up. It momentarily makes me forget about anxiety. It numbs me emotionally. I know it yet I keep doing it. It bothers me yet it is the second thing I do after waking up.
Breaking free
This is not one of my articles where I wrap it all up with ways you can learn from my progress. This article is where I get real about my struggles. I have not overcome it yet. It is one of the areas where I still need freedom. While I have yet to gain victory over my social media addiction, one thing I will not do is practice all-or-nothing thinking. I will not delete social media apps from my phone or delete my accounts. Life is not black and white. It has shades of gray.
I choose instead to research ways I can reduce my dependence on social media. As I put what I learn into practice, I will share it in this newsletter. We can learn and grow together.
Due to my young onset parkinsons disease aka the Michael J fox disease my vocal chords have been paralyzed so I am unable to speak so my phone is my lifeline to the outside world I don't however use (or are part) of any social media I text like crazy and of course emails