How Has Mental Health Changed with Social Media

By Brady Gibbons

Have you ever been on your phone and felt like you were stuck to it? Have you ever felt like you were drained by social media? 

     Is there a reason we feel like that? Have other generations felt that draining feeling? Social media leads to anxiety, depression, and sleep distribution. According to Pew Research Center, 69% of U.S. adults and 81% of teens use social media—putting a huge portion of the population at risk. 

     Social media affects the reward part in your brain affecting your dopamine levels giving you a pleasure feeling.

But why do people keep coming back if we know it’s bad? It’s like the gambler’s fallacy. 

     It’s different every time you open some apps. “When the outcome is unpredictable, the behavior is more likely to repeat. Think of a slot machine: If game players knew they never were going to get money by playing the game, then they never would play,” said McLean Hospital’s Jacqueline Sperling, PhD.

      But it’s not all bad, social media keeps people in contact with each other and allows people to meet new people. And allows for easy communication

     But how can we fix the bad stuff and keep the good stuff? “We could put videos in every corner in every video that showcase one of those natural wild life experiences, specifically the bird section, little birds in little nests, to decrease stress and increase a connection to wildlife and take people away from bad content” – Tyler Kacalek, a Benicia High student.

     So has there been a significant change with the use of social media? absolutely. How could you fix this? Maybe don’t go on your phone so much and take frequent breaks.