Written By: Kinsey Featherston
Every day, more and more people become aware of how much social media we consume as a society. I’ve been seeing a lot of people (on social media, of course) talk about how we, as humans, are not meant to consume as much information as we currently do. And I have to agree – I don’t think we are capable of handling the hundreds or maybe even thousands of accounts we follow, as well as keeping up with the news and all of the fear-mongering we are inundated with. Add to that everything we have going on in our own lives, like work, friends, and social events, and it’s too much for anyone to handle!
The amount of social media we consume not only causes us stress but also alters the way we think and process. This NYPost article talks about “popcorn brain,” a concept introduced by University of Washington researcher David Levy in 2011, and how social media consumption causes our focus and attention to jump quickly from one thing to another. And honestly, as I’m writing this blog post, that’s exactly what my brain is doing! My brain has been trained to need constant stimulation. And that’s a problem.
We may be quick to assume that teenagers are the ones who are negatively affected by social media because “they grew up with it – it’s all they’ve ever known.” We, the adults, can’t possibly be affected by something called “popcorn brain” because we grew up without social media, and spent most of our free time outside. But I hate to break it to you: we are just as susceptible to “popcorn brain” as the trendy 15-year-old girl making “Get Ready With Me” videos on TikTok. The issue isn’t what generation we were born in; it’s how attached we are to our technology and social media.
This is why I’ve decided to start exercising my brain to be more comfortable with being “uncomfortable.” In other words, I have to learn to be ok with boredom. Here are a few things I am doing or am challenging myself to do to make a change for my own mental and physical well-being when it relates to the information that I consume:
- Placing my phone in an accessible yet inconvenient location somewhere in my house after getting home from work.
- Charging my phone in a different room of the house at night.
- Utilizing “Do Not Disturb” mode to prevent distractions from notifications.
- Unfollowing any social media accounts that may invoke a sense of jealousy or “FOMO” – but follow accounts that encourage me and bring me simple joy.
- Spending more time outside and soaking up some sunshine.
While I’m certainly not perfect and may not achieve every goal daily, even accomplishing just one per day will pave the way for these changes to become habits. It’s time to start prioritizing our well-being by showing up for ourselves and being present in our current realities. All we stand to lose are our short attention spans, our need for constant stimulation, and the mental stress of keeping up with the rest of the world. To me, that sounds like a huge win!
