Social Media Distress and Addiction

January 8th, 2024

By P. Casey Arrillaga, LCSW, LCDC

It
is well known that social media has become a ubiquitous part of daily life for
billions of people worldwide. For many of them, this is a great way to stay in
touch with friends and family, and it is sometimes a place to make new friends
and business contacts. But for some people, social media is a source of stress
and social anxiety, and it can become a full-blown addiction. This post will
explore these issues and what can be done.

What
We Know So Far

Social
media use has become an increasingly serious issue as the presence of social
media in our lives has become more and more prevalent. In 2023, just under 5
billion people used social media of one type or another, and some estimates
expect that number to get closer to 6 billion in the next three years. The
average user is on multiple social media platforms such as Facebook, YouTube, TikTok,
X (formerly Twitter), and more, the point that people interact with 6-7 social
media platforms per month. Two of the biggest, Facebook and YouTube boast 2.9
and 2.5 million users per month each.

The
dominant business model for these social media platforms is that they are free
to the user and make their money through advertising, which means that social
media users are bombarded with ads that are highly targeted to them based on
all the personal data that users give away through using them. This is not just
the user’s name, birthdate, address, etc. that they input when they sign up. It
is the carefully compiled statistics of every tiny action a person takes (or
doesn’t) as they use the social media app. This includes everything that gets
attention, such as how long a person stops to look at a given social media
post, what they indicate they like, what they ignore, whose posts they favor or
scroll past. All of this data is used to tailor what the app shows the consumer
in order to keep them as engaged as possible, triggering each users reward
system as often and effectively as possible to keep them on the app.

In
other words, social media platforms are deliberately designed and engineered to
be as addictive as possible, and to constantly and automatically become more
addictive as the user continues to interact with them. To make matters worse,
this is not only done by showing users content that brings pleasure, but also
things that stir up fear and anger, as these are arguably our most powerfully
motivating emotions.

What
users don’t always realize is that advertising is not only done through
obviously paid ads seen in their social media feed, but that much of the
content in the app is also advertising of one sort or another. Some of this is
done by corporations and small businesses that recruit users to create content
that seems personal but is in fact meant to promote a given product. Some is
done by political parties and ideologically-driven groups that encourage people
to post things that promote a certain point of view. Much is done by individual
users who are advertising themselves and building their “personal brand” by
carefully curating their image through posts that make them seem better than
most people: “Look where I am. Look who I’m with. Look at how good I look. Look
at the fun I’m constantly having.”

All
of this can have a terrible effect on the end user, who is bombarded with
images that manipulate their emotions in order to influence their behavior. It
is well worth noting that the most popular people on social media are known as
“influencers,” and that 50% of younger people trust influencers most for
information and product recommendations.

In
the case of adolescents, who are most vulnerable to social media influence, the
influencers can be the biggest source of anxiety whether they wanted to be or
not. Teens compare themselves to the images they see and find themselves coming
up short. They may not realize how manipulated and manipulative those posts
are. They only know the anxiety they feel when they see other adolescents and
young adults who seem more attractive, more popular, funnier, etc.

This
can lead to depression, anxiety, and other psychological distress, which has
become an increasing threat as more and more people rely on social media rather
than personal interactions for social support. Unfortunately, researchers have
found that when people rely on social media for social support, it doesn’t lead
to better outcomes, whereas people who lean more on in-person support see
improvements in their mood and thinking.

When
Social Media Becomes an Addiction

Researchers
have found that while social media can be bad for anyone’s mental health, it is
particularly destructive for some people who nonetheless use it compulsively to
the point that it is reminiscent of drug use in how addictive it can be. When
any activity (gambling, drug use, etc.) causes distress and difficulties in a
person’s life, they see increasing use over time, they experience withdrawal
when not doing the activity, and yet they feel compelled to continue, that
activity can be labeled as addictive. Social media use hits all these
benchmarks for many people.

Addicted
social media users are more likely to experience the anxiety, depression, and
distress that any user must be careful to avoid. They are more likely to see
reduced ability to retain information and get lower grades when in school. They
are also prone to lower self-esteem due to constantly taking in others’
self-promoting and exaggerated posts, and low self-esteem is well known to go
hand-in-hand with other psychological problems.

What
Can Be Done?

As
more studies are being done around social media distress and addiction, there
have been some promising results. Since social media addiction has so many of
the hallmarks of other addictions, it shouldn’t be surprising that some of the
same techniques that help with other addictions can offer some relief. One
research team found that a two-week series of Motivational Interviewing and
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy exercises helped a group of adolescents see a
reduction in social media use and addiction symptoms. More of these exercises
need to be studied and both public and mental-health professionals need to be
educated about their use to help reduce the threat of social media distress and
addiction.

At
Windmill, all of our clients are removed from social media for most or all of
their stay, but we know this will not solve the problem within itself. Many of
our clients choose to stay longer and move through phases in their treatment
that allow them to increasingly access their social media accounts so that they
can learn to deal with the problems it can create, all while in a safe
environment with professional help and guidance.

The
Bottom Line

Social
media is a growing part of human life. While it can be a normal part of life
for some, many people experience worsening psychological problems as a result
of social media use, and some become addicted. There is hope around this if
more people, and particularly helping professionals, educate themselves and the
public about the dangers of social media and some of the promising techniques
to reduce its dangers.

About The Author

P. Casey Arrillaga is the Team Leader for Education at
Windmill Wellness Ranch, and he is the author of books including “Realistic
Hope: The Family Survival Guide for Facing Alcoholism and Other Addictions”.