A little help

How do we tackle a social media addiction?

We know that platforms are intentionally designed for their product to be addictive. In that tech landcsape some are super addictive habit forming dopamine machines. So we are all addictive by its design when we start using these tools. There is no question about if it’s addictive. The real question is what level of addiction do you feel you have on a 1-10 scale. Level 1 being less addictive and level 10 your super addictive. Example of; can’t control your impulse’s, your on too long, memory retention problems, your experiencing anxiety, depression, emotional distress, unwanted thought and If your struggles feel sever please contact someone for help

www.samhsa.gov/find-help/national-helpline

If you need help reach out for someone to talk with. Remember every problem has a positive solution that can be solved. Remember tomorrow is a new day and can always be a better and become your new favorite memory to talk about with someone in the future.

If you think you’re having some sort of addiction and you’re taking steps to admit “yes I need help” take a moment and understand how Courageous that is! That taking action is Courageous! Remember it is not your fault. The system was designed to be addictive.

First if your offline and your finding yourself struggling don’t even go back in until you resolve your addiction. I have had moments where I realized there was a problem and tried to correct or fix it only to be sucked back in. Then finding myself in distress over failing. One example is feeling of whelmed form following too many account and trying to shift through who to unfollow and how many. That cause an internal struggle that deregulates the nervous system that makes you want to consume more. I never realizing the eco system is designed to get you hooked. I always believed saying it was an addictive was an empty phrase. The stronger the addiction the harder the hook.

Reading about addictions with tech and social media I saw an article about how a couple of tech companies ‘are intentionally designed to mimic addictive painkillers.’ That reminded me of taking a friend to get help after a prescription addiction problem. The nurse said “it only takes one.” I said “one what?” She said “One pill to get addicted.” If that’s true then the digital ecosystem I have a problem with scares me deeply.

Some people may be able go in and simply delete their account and get help. But if you have been struggling and you have been plugged in for long periods I say don’t risk it. Keep out if your mindset is in the moment stay off and get help now. There are super smart teams of people hired with behavioral and psychological knowledge who are employed to keep you on as long as possible. You need to put together your own team for help.

Second tell a friend or friends or family member you’re struggling. Tell them you need their support and use them to talk with in times of need and schedule a weekly check in. If you feel you got no one then you need to find a professional service to help. There are hotlines out there with support. Just being able to tell someone ‘hey I need help’ gets it out there so you don’t feel trapped and it gets the ball moving towards healthy positive change. I personally posted about it being addictive ( not that the system would allow it many views ) the last couple years that allowed me to be more honest with seeking help.

Third write down what’s going on in a journal every day. If you’re really struggling maybe every hour is the way to start until it gets easier to deal with. Write down how your physical feeling, how your emotionally feeling, and keep a time log about it all. Note any information about anxiety or panic attack to symptoms of depression. What ever your feeling keep track of it. It will help alleviate some stress. It also replace the time you used in addiction scrolling and now you need to redirect towards a new attention system rather then leaving it open and possible relapse. You will replace your time scrolling with journaling and this will begin to rewire your brain.

Fourth get professional help with a therapist. I think that’s the best way to move forward no matter what level your addiction is at. A trained profession can better assess and address what’s happening with you. What program to enter and whether medication is needed. Remember you need your team too. You got a free addictive product to use and that’s designed to keep you on longer for their business model on something that mostly in your hand 24hrs seven days a week.

Fifth you need to find something to replace social media time. Learn something new. You need to substitute your time with a new skill to compensate using the social media that led to physical and psychological addiction because it triggers the brain's reward system to release dopamine. You need to create new neurotransmitter connection from something else. Take up drawing, take up pottery or learn a language learn. Maybe even learn about different type of addictions and learning how your favorite social media app has been intentionally designed to be addictive using behavioral science and systems to keep you onto keep you motivated.

Depending on how much you have been using your favorite social media app your about to enter a digital detox that will be difficult. But it will be worth it. You can find a lot digital detox but I don’t know the answer to how long does it take. I only know that after three months I noticed some positive changes. I don’t have brain fog anymore and my clarity is super clear in a way I could not see or recognize while I was plugged in experiencing the distress of it all and trying to tackle my problem. I can only imagine the longer disconnect the better your going to physically and emotionally feel.

Remember it’s not your fault when they have designed it to be addictive. No one ever plans on getting addicted or loosing control. It just happens. Most likely you were experiencing a negative emotion or some negative event(s) and in attempt to self soothe you became susceptible to addiction on something that’s designed to be addictive. If you’re seeking help and doing the work on yourself to overcome the problem you will feel amazing after you heal from this problem. Social media tools can be great until you find yourself struggling and possible loosing control. Add any mental health problem that are created from their use or amplified and it makes it even harder to fix and heal. That fight does not have to be alone. It’s about getting help and finding the right tools to support you over coming this problem and regain control. You got this.

Note I am not a professional and this isn’t profession advice but rather a journal with thinks that may help. I am just someone trying to heal themselves from this problem. We stumble, we fall, we fail but we can get back up. That’s just what being human is all about.

Wishing you success.