Detox

Today I’m coming back from a 10-day Social Media Fast, and I feel amazing!

Did you know that Americans spend an average of 197 minutes each day scrolling through social media. That’s 3 hours and 17 minutes . . .every day! That is a lot of time.

So, let me ask you two questions: HOW MUCH TIME DO YOU SPEND DAILY ON SOCIAL MEDIA? and WHAT’S IN YOUR FEED?

What messages are you hearing?

What images are you allowing?

Social Media can be a platform for good, but if we’re not careful with it, we can allow it to be harmful to our spirits, our body image, and our self-esteem.

Let me share with you a few statistics (from HERE):

• 37 percent of girls feel they need to change specific parts of their body when comparing their bodies to friend’s bodies in photos.
• 75 percent of Facebook users are unhappy with their body.
• 51 percent of respondents on a survey reported Facebook makes them more conscious about their body and weight.
• 30 minutes on Instagram can make women fixate negatively on their weight and appearance.

I think you know what I’m talking about. For example, say you’re nonchalantly scrolling through Instagram when you come across a before and after picture. You immediately stop scrolling and read the post to find out exactly what that woman did to get those results in hopes that you can too. Another new diet/program -YAY! This is going to be the one that finally works and changes your life forever!

With every picture we scroll through, we are comparing our worst to someone else’s (usually edited) best. We are constantly, for 3 hours and 17 minutes every day!, comparing ourselves to our peers as well as famous social media influencer who seem to always have their lives together while ours is no where near. Social Media use has been known to contribute to anxiety, depression, and body discontent which tends to lead to disordered eating, extreme dieting, binge eating, and feeling of inadequacy.

Is it any wonder we’re encouraged to take a break from it every now and then? If you’ve never fasted from social media, I highly recommend it. It’s extremely healing. If you don’t think you can go a whole 10 days, fast for a week, or three days, or even one day. You may also want to limit the amount of time you spend scrolling. (There are apps and phone settings you can set that will help you with this if you need it.) I promise you, you will notice a difference a big difference in the way you feel, especially about yourself.

Another thing I recommend is what is called a Social Media Detox. This is where you go through all of your social media feeds and get rid of anything that encourages judgement, comparison, or preoccupation with your body image. I promise it’s okay to unfollow/unfriend these people. It’s also a good idea to fill your feed with positive, uplifting, fun accounts -Accounts that encourage you and inspire you. -Accounts that make you feel like a million bucks!

Then repeat repeat repeat! Continuously curate your ideal social media environment. If you come to a post that triggers you or makes you feel bad, don’t double tap, just UNFOLLOW!