Digital detox. Why do you need a break from social media - and how to do it?

Nowadays, the Internet and social media have become the main platforms for interacting with the world. Through them, we do almost everything: we communicate with family, friends and colleagues, acquire knowledge, shop, read news, participate in events, and even date. According to data from the research platform Statista in 2022, nearly 4 billion people worldwide used services such as Facebook, Instagram, TikTok or X (formerly Twitter) - half of the global population. Users spent an average of 151 minutes a day on them - over two and a half hours.

At the same time, the negative impact of these platforms on mental health and individual well-being is well known and widely documented. For example, studies conducted as early as 2016 indicate that social media can contribute to the development of depression, anxiety states, toxic body image and false perception of reality, as well as feelings of isolation and alienation and an increase in aggression and decrease in empathy. You can read more about the causes of this situation in the Digitized Reading Room.

In this context, scientific and medical communities are increasingly and more clearly calling for moderation in the use of social media. Unfortunately, the responsibility to limit screen time still rests on individuals, as there are almost no systemic solutions worldwide that could realistically affect this situation (China is an exception). Below, we describe several ways to self-diagnose a problematic relationship with social media and various strategies to overcome this problem.

How to recognize that you need a break from social media

There are several key signals that may indicate that it's time for a break from the Internet and social media. Harvard University on its blog suggests asking yourself the following questions - and more importantly, answering them honestly.  

• Do you feel positively inspired and informed after interactions on social media? Or maybe exhausted, sad, frustrated, overwhelmed, depressed, anxious, and angry?
• Do you use social media, but increasingly find yourself forgetting when you picked up your phone and launched the app?
• Does social media take away the time you used to spend meeting with friends and family or doing other activities, e.g. household chores?
• Do you constantly compare yourself to other people on social media and feel like you're always missing something and need to catch up?
• Have any friends or family members expressed concerns that you spend too much time on social media or talk too much about its content?
• Do you have more tasks and relationships in real life, or does most of your life happen on social media?
• Do you feel like you need a break, but don't know how to do it?

If you answered yes to at least two of the above questions, it is most likely a sign that you need a digital detox. However, due to the addictive nature of social media platforms, awareness of the problem may not be enough. Specific strategies and habits are needed to help you fight the reflexive urge to reach for your phone.

Digital detox - how to take a break from social media

Step one: a realistic action plan

According to Jessica A. Kent from Harvard University, the first step to success in limiting social media is making a detailed plan of what you want to achieve as part of your digital detox.

If you want to reduce the time spent in front of the screen, for example, you should specify specific times when you will not use your phone. If you have trouble setting them, start with the first hour right after waking up and the last hour before going to bed. This way, you will not only avoid mindless scrolling from early morning to late at night, but also improve the quality of your sleep. The latter is an extremely important factor affecting mood and overall mental well-being. Useful tools to support your efforts may also include apps like Forest or Space, which closely monitor your activities. In Apple devices, such trackers are built into the system, and their activation is highly recommended during a digital detox.

Ultimately, regardless of the methods and types of tools you decide to use, the most important thing when creating a plan is a realistic approach to your capabilities. Trying to immediately cut off from social media, for example for a month, may be doomed to failure and discouraging in the long run. Try starting with a few hours a week or a whole day or weekend. Small successes can provide you with motivation for future action. Importantly, you should also determine the time after which you will reassess your relationship with social media and progress in implementing your plan.

Step two: elimination of triggers and conducive circumstances

Using social media is often a habit dependent on circumstances. So pay attention to when you specifically reach for your phone: on the way to work, in bed before sleep, or maybe always when you receive a notification? Identifying the factors that trigger the desire to launch social media is an excellent way to free yourself from them.

According to psychologist Jennifer Kelman, a good strategy in this context is to create so-called "screen-free zones" in your home or workplace. The need to move to another room to use your smartphone or laptop can effectively discourage you from constantly browsing social media. Among other methods, Kelman also mentions turning off notifications or the entire smartphone at specific times, for example after dinner. Jessica A. Kent also recommends modifying habits or finding alternative activities such as physical activity, reading, puzzle solving, cooking, journaling, or physically meeting people.

Step three: radical actions

If you feel that the above methods are ineffective, it may be necessary to apply more radical methods. Among them is removing all problematic applications from your phone or limiting access to them using external tools such as Freedom or Cold Turkey.

Ultimately, you can also replace your smartphone with a simple mobile phone that does not support any applications and only allows for sending SMS and making calls. This last one is, by the way, an increasingly popular trend among representatives of Generation Z.

Step four: specialized psychological help

Operating in the digital world, it is sometimes difficult to associate personal problems with the direct influence of social media. So if you are increasingly experiencing states of anxiety and depression, your self-esteem has reached a dangerously low level, or you feel that you are unable to detach yourself in any way from social media, then a consultation with a specialist may be inevitable. Professional psychological or psychiatric help not only guarantees a precise diagnosis of problems, but also methods of solving them tailored to specific needs.