On average, we spend 2 hours+ on social media per day but if you’re like me, it’s probably more…
What’s the harm in that?
Social media can help to keep us connected with the world. However, social media can detach us from reality and enforce comparison between peers. Most people’s accounts often only display the “best” version of themselves.
Picture this
You’re exhausted after a day of work. It’s easy to sit back and scroll. You might have a break for dinner but you spend the rest of the evening with one eye on the TV and one on your phone. Hours go by and it’s time for bed. Yet, before going to sleep, you must just check your messages, news feed and people’s stories. After completing this, you can finally go to sleep.
Sound familiar?
Social media can open up a world of information, news and networking. However it’s also important to switch off and give our minds a much needed rest.
Mindfulness is a practice that brings us back in touch with the present, nature and ourselves. Although, when we use social media, we can become overly concerned with other people’s lives and what’s happening in the world, thinking about we should, could or would be doing.
That’s the problem, we’re constantly thinking.
It’s healthy for our mind’s to switch off from our thoughts. In the Power of Now, Eckhart Tolle says that ‘thinking has become a disease. Disease happens when things get out of balance’. When we think too much, we are submissive to our thoughts. We can become stressed, anxious and overcome by worry.
But how do we just stop thinking?
Switch off your social media, put down your phone and look around. Focus on the sounds, smells and sensations you feel right now. This is mindfulness, when we let go of our thoughts and become present.
In a world that never stops, sleeps or rests, it’s important to take a break from it. When we finish thinking at work, we then spend our free time doing more thinking by scrolling social media. It never stops. Social media is one aspect of the constant whirlwind of thoughts but watching the news is another example.
Take a break, rest your mind and become more grounded in the present. You might realise that you become less stressed or worried and can even reflect on what you have right now.
If you find yourself scrolling through you feed before bed, try reading a book or practicing meditation instead. It’s proven that the light of our phone or laptop screens inhibits our natural sleep, so switching off social media before bed actually improves sleep!
My next piece is on 10 things you can do instead of scrolling to give you some inspiration of mindful activities and fun things to do whilst taking a break.
Recipe for Mindfulness 