Leeks Opinions: I deleted social media for a week.
Alekha Akkapeddi
As someone who is clinically addicted to their phone, I had been called to delete social media for the last week. I truly did not know the impact that it was having on me, despite my screen time ranging from 7-9 hours per day. From a physical, emotional, and spiritual perspective, my life felt like it changed (not to be too dramatic). Social media can be a great tool to connect and gather more information, however there is a fine line that can be crossed where it becomes toxic to our mind, body and soul.
Here are the main reflections that I wanted to share, and some scientific data to back it up.
- Gratitude expanded
It is no surprise that we tend to compare ourselves to others around us in general, but social media, in my opinion, has amplified this tenfold. In my own life, despite reaching many personal and professional achievements, I would still look at “influencers” or people that I perceived to have more to me and compare my life to theirs. Nothing that I did seemed to be enough. At one point I was staying at a very expensive hotel in NYC with my best friend and THAT didn’t even feel like enough.
After deleting it for this week, I realized that I have an extremely blessed life and that most of what is seen on social media and the internet really isn’t what it seems. Everyone is on their own path and there is no reason to compare what I have with what someone else has because I’m sure there always someone going to be doing that to me. - Increased clarity, less brain fog
As someone who continues to heal from chronic illness, I do suffer with brain fog from time to time. I had not anticipated how much social media was contributing to this, and being on my device in general. I was actually able to get the tasks that I needed to complete finished without much procrastination.
- Less anxiety, mood regulated
This goes along with the first two, but social media regularly contributed to my anxiety. One of the main reasons for this was because I thought that I was not doing “enough” or was taking in just too much information. Another part of me felt truly helpless at the injustice and violence going on in the world that I was seeing over the screen, thousands of miles away. It felt a bit like a Black Mirror episode. I was witnessing people going to red carpet events and then kids being slaughtered just because of where they live in the world. Other days I felt paralyzed on Tiktok, scrolling for hours on end in bed with no will to stop. Truly, it was a breath of fresh air to my brain when I stepped back.
Along with this, I would use social media as a crutch when I was experiencing social anxiety in different situations. For example, if I was in a room with strangers, I would automatically bust open my phone and start scrolling on Instagram. This definitely hampered my ability for potential connection with people in certain situations.
As I got more into the research, I found that social media actually has been clinically found to cause anxiety. One review[1] found that social media did impact anxiety in university students. This is important because although anxiety is multifactorial, social media may be contributing more than we know.
Frankly, there needs to be more studies that are done about this because I am sure that every single person with social media has experienced anxiety from time to time because of overuse. - Less anxiety, mood regulated
This goes along with the first two, but social media regularly contributed to my anxiety. One of the main reasons for this was because I thought that I was not doing “enough” or was taking in just too much information. Another part of me felt truly helpless at the injustice and violence going on in the world that I was seeing over the screen, thousands of miles away. It felt a bit like a Black Mirror episode. I was witnessing people going to red carpet events and then kids being slaughtered just because of where they live in the world. Other days I felt paralyzed on Tiktok, scrolling for hours on end in bed with no will to stop. Truly, it was a breath of fresh air to my brain when I stepped back.
Along with this, I would use social media as a crutch when I was experiencing social anxiety in different situations. For example, if I was in a room with strangers, I would automatically bust open my phone and start scrolling on Instagram. This definitely hampered my ability for potential connection with people in certain situations.
As I got more into the research, I found that social media actually has been clinically found to cause anxiety. One review[1] found that social media did impact anxiety in university students. This is important because although anxiety is multifactorial, social media may be contributing more than we know.
Frankly, there needs to be more studies that are done about this because I am sure that every single person with social media has experienced anxiety from time to time because of overuse. - Less reliance on artificial dopamine
OO this is something that I am passionate about!! I am definitely going to talk more about this in the future, but dopamine is a “hot” molecule that is being talked about right now. Dopamine, which is mainly responsible for the reward and pleasure pathways[2] is produced by either natural or artificial stimuli. Natural releases of dopamine include exercise, positive social interactions, having a new experience, sleep, and accomplishments. However, artificial dopamine is linked with substance use, unhealthy foods, risk-taking behaviors, and …… SOCIAL MEDIA[3]!!!
I really hate to admit it, but over time my brain has been wired more to artificial dopamine and unfortunately ADHD does not make this any easier for me. Once I cut out social media, I began to “feel good” by seeking out more natural forms of dopamine including yoga, nature walks, learning new skills, and reaching my goals.
Again, there really needs to be more studies conducted because long-term use of social media and devices I’m sure is linked to some pretty weird neurotransmitter dysregulation, which may impact our health adversely. - A new sense of appreciation for nature
The first day of deleting my apps was pretty rough because I was like well what am I supposed to do?! I don’t really have any other hobbies?! There is that Tiktok saying that sometimes you have to “go out and touch grass” and that was honestly what I had to do.
I am grateful because I live in a place that is surrounded by nature, so I was able to escape all of the different terrains of San Diego including the hiking trails on the beach, the mountains, the desert and more. I ACTUALLY started to LOOK FORWARD to my outside activities and developed a deepened sense of appreciation for nature. After all, nature is the BIGGEST TOOL that heals us. - Deeper connection to the divine
In general, I am someone who is blessed to be connected with the divine and performs rituals and practices to honor the divine, but social media sometimes makes my judgment clouded. Don’t get me wrong, there is divinity in everything, however certain things that I subject myself too on social media make me lose this connection in myself. I get very wrapped up in the Ego and honestly am not the best version of myself because of it(I get this may sound cryptic but I’m sure some of you can relate).
Again, social media is a great tool when used in moderation and appropriately, but there is no doubt that sometimes a break is needed as we do not know how this really affects our brain and biochemistry.
Anto A, Asif RO, Basu A, Kanapathipillai D, Salam H, Selim R, Zaman J, Eisingerich AB. Exploring the Impact of Social Media on Anxiety Among University Students in the United Kingdom: Qualitative Study. JMIR Form Res. 2023 Jun 16;7:e43037. doi: 10.2196/43037. PMID: 37327030; PMCID: PMC10337317.
Lewis RG, Florio E, Punzo D, Borrelli E. The Brain's Reward System in Health and Disease. Adv Exp Med Biol. 2021;1344:57-69. doi: 10.1007/978-3-030-81147-1_4. PMID: 34773226; PMCID: PMC8992377
