4 Simple Steps to Reduce Social Media Stress

Social media can be a wonderful way to connect with friends, market our businesses, and keep up with world events. It can also become another stressor, causing us to compare ourselves to others and expose ourselves to unnecessary drama.

Giving up social media completely isn’t necessary or even desirable for a lot of us, so how do we still reap the benefits without suffering the negative consequences?

The answer is about balance and carefully curating the accounts you follow.

Here are some simple steps to reducing social media stress:

1- Ditch the crazy makers. This one might be obvious, but it’s shocking how many of us never get around to it. If you’re constantly annoyed or irritated by a friend’s posts, simply unfriend or unfollow them. (Most platforms won’t tell people when someone unfollows them.) It’s a very simple weight off your shoulders. Just hit “unfollow.” That’s it!

2- Drop the accounts that make you feel inadequate. Do you follow any people or accounts that make you feel jealous or like you aren’t good enough? Do you always feel gross when that celebrity trainer you follow posts pictures of her post-workout abs? Unfollow, unfollow, unfollow.

3- Fill your feed with good things. Now that you’ve gotten rid of the bad, it’s time to bring in some more of the good! Find some accounts that post encouraging quotes, articles, or pictures that make you feel awesome. Your social media should make you happy when you log on. If not, look at what you’re filling it with and be intentional about what you want to read and see.

4- Limit your social media time. Set a time once or twice a day where you allow yourself to check social media. Keep it to a half hour or less. Set a timer, log on, and when the timer goes off, it’s time to get back to real life. Social media is less likely to become stressful if you only indulge in small doses.

5-Adjust your mindset. This isn’t really an action, but something to remember when you’re scrolling through endless success stories, bikini bodies, and vacation photos: You’re looking at the highlight reel. You’re only seeing what those people want you to see. And that may not be who they truly are.

Chances are, that person having an amazing time on a beach in Hawaii with her husband and is just like you and me. With bad hair days and worries about things no one else sees. Never assume that what you see on social media is the whole story. Most photos are posed, edited, filtered, cropped, and carefully selected to make sure that you only see the best parts.

They’re all human, just like you.

I hope this helps you feel more relaxed and less stressed on social media!