Are you a slave to your phone? Happiness researchers explain how social media is making you unhappy

[Prorootect]

Content source

http://glitch.news/2018-05-05-slave-to-your-phone-happiness-researchers-explain-how-social-media-is-making-you-unhappy.html

Are you a slave to your phone? Happiness researchers explain how social media is making you unhappy
by Jessica Dolores

Many things aren’t what they used to be because of social media. We don’t talk to each other often anymore, because we’d rather check our mobile phones even if we’re seated at a table with friends and family. So everyone ends up reaching for their mobile phones as well.
According to happiness researcher and psychologist Dr. Tim Bono, social media has changed the ways we relate to each other. We’re updated on what’s happening to the world and to our immediate surroundings faster. We know what our friends and family are up to. But just like any new development, social media can backfire if it’s abused, or not handled well. (h/t to Healthista.com)

• Decreased attention span: Social media has given users instant, easy access to information and entertainment. People get so used to instant gratification they can’t control their impulses anymore. Bono believes that if we can’t resist the urge to check Facebook for a silent six-minute period, we might not be able to keep our mind from wandering when it needs to pay attention.Solution: Meditation is the best way to focus on something. With practice, we learn to become better at pinpointing distracting thoughts, and letting them go. We learn to be better at rechanneling our attention back to the work at hand. This skill extends to our ability to persevere through a challenging task despite new social media posts.
• It’s addictive: Most of us know that we spend long hours checking our social media accounts – but we still do it. That’s because it’s addicting. In the same way, a gambler in Las Vegas continues to place his bets on a favorite game even if he loses big time. The feeling the player gets whenever he expects to hit the jackpot the next time he pulls the lever at the slot machine is the same feeling that we get while we browse social media.Solution: Put your phone away from arm’s reach. Download apps that check or limit the time you spend on certain sites. Bury social media apps in folders on the last screen of your phone. Better yet, don’t use the apps at all and log into a web browser each time you want to log on.
• People don’t interact anymore: The strongest component of happiness is the strength of our connections to others. However, this doesn’t refer to the number of friends or followers you have on Facebook or Instagram. Bono says our social media time has encroached on the quality and quantity of our person-to-person connections. We may be seated next to a person, but we’re mentally absent from the situation, passing up the chance to genuinely connect to the other person on a deeper level. Solution: Check your list of friends instead, and find someone to call. The happiness you get from a genuine connection to another person will be a lot greater than a random post or like on social media.
• Social comparisons become the norm: Bono and other psychologists know that this is a bane: People who measure their worth against what others own find it hard to be happy. Unfortunately, social media lets us know what others have achieved, where they spent their grand vacation and other things that could make us envious. It’s almost impossible not to get carried away by a tidal wave of comparison.Solution: Count your blessings. Those who take even a few minutes to think about what they must be thankful for, feel happier and more hopeful. Bono says they get sick less than those who don’t see the bright side of things.
• Sleep deprivation – Sleep is essential to happiness and well-being. It helps our brain rest and prepares it for the following day. However, feeling anxious, angry and envious of what we see on social media keeps the brain on red alert and prevents us from falling asleep.Solution: Keep your phone off your nightstand. Before going to sleep, do deep breathing exercises or read a book to divert your attention. Choose something that reduces brain activity, which is the opposite of what social media does.

For sure, social media has plenty of benefits. However, too much of anything is never good. We have to draw the line between healthy social media use and abuse of this endless source of information and entertainment.

 

[Weebarra]

Nope, definitely not for me. I very rarely use the web on my phone , in fact i barely use it as a phone but Mr Weebarra has been getting mighty pissed off at one his employees who can't keep his face out of his. The job involves working with machinery and having a sense of your surroundings and a certain level of concentration but as they go from job to job where they walk to each job with said machinery, this guy walks with his head down most of the time looking at his phone. When he speaks to him to tell him where to go next etc, half the time the guy can't even hear him because he is so lost in the www somewhere. What is so important that you can't go 5/10 minutes without looking to see what is "happening" out there. Dear Lord, you may miss that someone didn't have any lunch that day so just ate a packet of crisps instead

 

[In2an3_PpG]

Not for me either. My generation is plagued by the curse that is Social Media. I requested account deletion a few months ago for my Facebook that i used only for birthdays. Other than Facebook i had nothing else to do with social media. Never got into it. My phone is with me at all times but I'm not constantly looking at it. I have too much respect to pull my phone out when I'm either in a meeting, breakfast, lunch, dinner, family event, etc. etc. It drives me nuts to see people younger and older doing the exact opposite. If its an important call, whoever should leave a message for you to get back to them. If its a text, then you dont need to respond right away. You got the message, respond when its convenient. Not that very second.

 

[Prorootect]

Look too on our another topic: Mobile devices are on track to destroy the eyesight of an entire generation, scientists warn

 

[Prorootect]

Social media platforms, apps, websites and young people’s mental health:
Researchers rank Instagram as worst social media app for young people’s mental health

On Risk.news: Researchers rank Instagram as worst social media app for young people’s mental health

Researchers from the Royal Society for Public Health (RSPH), in cooperation with the Young Health Movement (YHM), recently wrapped up a report that focuses on the world’s biggest social media sites, and they’re offering up a horrifying conclusion. It’s that all of the social media sites, on some level, are simply terrible for people’s mental health, specifically for the youth.

The 14 health- and well-being-related issues are as follows:

1. Awareness and understanding of other people’s health experiences
2. Access to expert health information you know you can trust
3. Emotional support (empathy and compassion from family and friends)
4. Anxiety (feelings of worry, nervousness or unease)
5. Depression (feeling extremely low and unhappy)
6. Loneliness (feelings of being all on your own)
7. Sleep (quality and amount of sleep)
8. Self-expression (the expression of your feelings, thoughts or ideas)
9. Self-identity (ability to define who you are)
10. Body image (how you feel about how you look)
11. Real world relationships (maintaining relationships with other people)
12. Community building (feeling part of a community of like-minded people)
13. Bullying (threatening or abusive behavior towards you)
14. FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out – feeling you need to stay connected because you are worried things could be happening without you)

It is based on these issues and the subsequent ratings that the survey participants gave the researchers that a short unofficial “worst social media platform for young people’s mental health” list was created. And based on the average scores, it came out that YouTube places ahead of the likes of Facebook and Instagram. The top five, ranked in order of best to worst, are:

1. YouTube
2. Twitter
3. Facebook
4. Snapchat
5. Instagram

According to Shirley Cramer CBE, the Chief Executive of the RSPH, social media plays a key role in the lives of impressionable youths. “Social media has been described as more addictive than cigarettes and alcohol, and is now so entrenched in the lives of young people that it is no longer possible to ignore it when talking about young people’s mental health issues,” she explained.

 

[frogboy]

Not here as I do not own a phone and never feel I need one.

 

[SumTingWong]

Not here as I do not own a phone and never feel I need one.

 

[MeltdownEnemy]

Private life gives you more happiness, you won't be suffocated to know who might be making fun of you, criticizing you when someone sees your posts, the social network keeps you busy and waiting that your actions will get an emotionally positive reaction, it's very horrible if your life is involved & falling into that cold and desolate little game attentive to the hope that text messages and reactions from invisible or non-existent friends arrived, also of having to show off who you really aren't or show off economic possessions to try to get the maximum popularity, is the stupidest thing I've seen about of the human behavior, as well as the smiles and body postures of the ridiculous simian current selfie culture.
In the online world there is never anything more reassuring and pleasant than being able to visit a website with a pseudo nickname+avatar, see poringa and Xvideos without someone tracking your footprints, entering into "ync without entities who its speculating that you are that kind of person, and discuss anonymizedly against trolls and hackers who can't threaten you by exposing your sensitive personal data, if you left the social network behind, then congratulations, the recovered privacy has incalculable rewards in your life. there's no such thing better.

 

[Prorootect]

Private life gives you more happiness, you won't be suffocated to know who might be making fun of you, criticizing you when someone sees your posts, the social network keeps you busy and waiting that your actions will get an emotionally positive reaction, it's very horrible if your life is involved & falling into that cold and desolate little game attentive to the hope that text messages and reactions from invisible or non-existent friends arrived, also of having to show off who you really aren't or show off economic possessions to try to get the maximum popularity, is the stupidest thing I've seen about of the human behavior, as well as the smiles and body postures of the ridiculous simian current selfie culture.
In the online world there is never anything more reassuring and pleasant than being able to visit a website with a pseudo nickname+avatar, see poringa and Xvideos without someone tracking your footprints, entering into "ync without entities who its speculating that you are that kind of person, and discuss anonymizedly against trolls and hackers who can't threaten you by exposing your sensitive personal data, if you left the social network behind, then congratulations, the recovered privacy has incalculable rewards in your life. there's no such thing better.

Thank you very much for you enlightening post!
All, we go on holidays then, real social holidays in real life, without pseudo "social" web networks!

Two years without Facebook: Two years without Facebook – The Midnight Sun

 

[MeltdownEnemy]

Thank you very much for you enlightening post!
All, we go on holidays then, real social holidays in real life, without pseudo "social" web networks!

Two years without Facebook: Two years without Facebook – The Midnight Sun

my pleasure.
Oh Yes Living the real life, even if we go walking go out the city and talking with anyone whether with "coworker, family or friends" the important thing is not to lose touch with reality.

 

[Prorootect]

To conclude:

Are you a slave of the screens?

So finally, what do you prefer: to stay until the end of your life (sitting) in front of your screen/monitor, seeing your eyes, your back, your health deteriorate, or to leave for real life?
Stay or go in reality?..

They're waiting for you


-----------------------

From neck problems to hearing loss: How technology might affect your health:
on express.co.uk:
From neck problems to hearing loss: How technology might affect your health

 

[Prorootect]

Yes express.co.uk is very sure website!
(and sorry for this precedent, another bad link that was sent by me in a hurry...)

 

[Prorootect]

my pleasure.
Oh Yes Living the real life, even if we go walking go out the city and talking with anyone whether with "coworker, family or friends" the important thing is not to lose touch with reality.

- Sure, living the real life, don't lose touch with the reality.

Some choices:

Maybe you could taste this delicious bread, which is lying next to me - or look similar on the web?

And maybe you could smile at this lovely girl on the other side of the street? Or... do you prefer images on the Internet?

And maybe play with this kitten and give him food? or YouTube

What do you choose? reality or screen, there should be no doubts, and time is running out and is not coming back - never