Limiting social media may be difficult for people with social media addiction. However, it is an important step in dealing with excessive social media use.

Make sure icons are spaced in a way that meets the “clear space” requirements of each social media company. Choose three to five It is always easier to overcome an addiction if prevention starts early, and by following a few of these steps you can get to a healthy level of social media use. Here are a few simple steps to combating a social networking addiction, or even cutting down if you are using apps too much: One of the hallmark signs of addiction is continuing to use something even after it has clearly had negative impacts on your physical or mental health, relationships, work, or other vital areas of life. More and more people are reporting that heavy social media use negatively impacts their relationships and self-esteem and makes them less productive at work or school, which is a red flag that may indicate addiction. Find vital social connection if you live in a remote area, for example, or have limited independence, social anxiety, or are part of a marginalized group. A deep emotional connection to one’s smartphone, often using it as the primary means to access and engage with social media.Are you seeing an unusually high volume of the same status being shared? This should ring alarm bells that it may be a scam, especially if the message is the same for more than a few people. While it is possible to try to limit social media use without medical intervention, in some cases, professional help may be necessary. If you’re a parent concerned about your child’s social media addiction or a young adult recognizing the problem yourself, the first step is to reduce the time spent online. This can extend to screen time in general. Watching television and surfing the internet have many of the same effects as using social media. Using social media more often, though, increases FOMO and feelings of inadequacy, dissatisfaction, and isolation.

Worsening symptoms of anxiety or depression. Rather than helping to alleviate negative feelings and boost your mood, you feel more anxious, depressed, or lonely after using social media. Modifying social media use to improve mental health step 1: Reduce time online

Behavioral addictions have much the same effect on the brain as drugs and alcohol, and the same is no different for social media. For those who engage with social media apps on a regular basis, the process of scrolling and intaking images, posting and receiving positive affirmations from others, and other stimuli create the chemical dopamine in the brain. Dopamine reacts with neurotransmitters and creates feelings of pleasure and reward and causing the formation of “addiction pathways” in the brain that makes it hard to resist urges or stop the behavior. [4] Medical News Today has strict sourcing guidelines and draws only from peer-reviewed studies, academic research institutions, and medical journals and associations. We avoid using tertiary references. We link primary sources — including studies, scientific references, and statistics — within each article and also list them in the resources section at the bottom of our articles. You can learn more about how we ensure our content is accurate and current by reading our editorial policy. On the Message tab, in the Include group, choose Signature, and then choose your newly modified signature. Gmail signature