How Does Social Media Impact Your Brain?

Have you ever taken the time to look at how many hours you spend on your cell phone each week? Let’s go a bit deeper with that question. Have you looked at how much time you spend in each app on your phone, including the social media apps? 

According to a recent Forbes article, Americans spend about two and a half hours on social media every day.

With that in mind, you might wonder just how that screen time affects you. Keep reading!

You will walk away from this knowing more about:

• The Dopamine Effect of Social Media

• Social Media Overload

What Is Dopamine?

You’ve probably heard of dopamine. It’s one of the feel-good hormones in your brain. Let’s break it down in really simple terms – you might need a refresher on high school science because most of us do!                                                                                          

According to an article published by the NIH, dopamine is a hormone that is made by neurons in the base of your brain. Those neurons are simply nerve cells that send messages to do all kinds of things - from running to writing to breathing. There’s another great article from Harvard Health Publishing that explains how dopamine is part of how you feel pleasure and reinforcements. Think about how good the kitchen smells after you’ve pulled out a tray of cookies. The smell probably makes your mouth water, and obviously you eat one, and then… you want a second, right? Maybe this time with a glass of milk?

So what does dopamine have to do with social media?

This same article from Harvard Health Publishing goes on to say that the  “darker side of dopamine is the intense feeling of reward people feel when they take drugs, such as heroin or cocaine, which can lead to addiction.” 

So just because something smells or feels good doesn't mean it's actually good.

Okay - let’s take a quick pause.

You know that social media is definitely NOT the same as cocaine. But it’s important to realize that your brain reacts to the structure of likes 👍 and comments that pop up under your posts in the same way that it responds to an addicting substance. Your brain will crave that dopamine rush that has come in the past when you saw likes 👍 under a post. As time goes on, you won’t know when friends or acquaintances on the platform will comment, and so you continue to check back on it again and again. You crave the dopamine hit that comes from the positive experience of seeing that others recognize and like your post. 

Is it bad to post pictures, fun stories, and ridiculous moments of your day on social media?

The answer to that question is no.

Here is a fantastic Bible verse for this conversation! 

“You say, ‘I am allowed to do anything’—but not everything is good for you. And even though ‘I am allowed to do anything,’ I must not become a slave to anything” (1 Corinthians 6:12 NLT).

• Does posting on social media create a loving community?

• Does posting on social media allow you to encourage others?

• Does checking social media create feelings of anxiousness or stress?

• Does posting and checking on social media pull you away from people in your real life?

Social media has the potential to be an amazing tool for connection and information. 

It’s pretty amazing to see how our technology connects with our neurology.  

So dopamine is not a BAD hormone! It’s just something in your brain that – in a sense – calls you back to activities, smells, images, or foods that are pleasurable. It’s a part of your body that is trying to bring you back to enjoyable moments. 

Now you just have to think about ways to keep social media in that same category of enjoyable rather than stressful or controlling. ❤️

All of us neighbZ at are excited about a NEW kind of social media!

We want social media to be something that serves our communities!
We have created it to be a positive force that is sharing true information!
We are pumped about having a platform that is geared towards supporting local businesses and that encourages Christian principles. 

But Christians need these reminders too. 👇

Our social media is meant to be just one small piece of our daily interactions!
When you can, use technology to:

• make new connections

• encourage people you already know

• Find new community groups that you can join

When you can use social media to do these things it is such a blessing!

Your social media is not meant to be a replacement for good ol’ face-to-face time!

When you start to rely on social media for all of your social interactions, and it begins to negatively affect  your brain chemistry, then you are allowing yourself to be a slave to it. 

We at neighbZ are daring each of you to find ways to use social media in a way that sends out beautiful ripples of positive change into your communities!

Hopefully you have a basic understanding of what dopamine is now, and how it connects to social media basics.

Have you heard of social media overload?

Dopamine’s connection to social media wasn’t a surprise, but this concept of social media overload may be!

It is amazing to read the research that has gone into how social media is affecting our lives, productivity, and mental health. Have you done any digging into the research yet? 

Social media overload is when you feel overwhelmed or emotionally drained from having to keep up with all of the messages and notifications from your social media. You may have notifications from Facebook, Messenger, X/Twitter, Instagram, TikTok, and LinkedIn all popping up on your phone within the same hour. This can be distracting, to say the least. 

So think about it like this. 

• When you’re online, you have access to SO MUCH INFORMATION at any given time. 

• You now have a different level of media coming at you than if you were working face-to-face with others, or even using a computer to complete a single task. 

• You most likely have a smartphone, and maybe a smartwatch too! 

• Do your devices beep or buzz when you’re at the grocery store?

• Do you have notifications pop up on your computer, phone, or watch while you are trying to finish reports for work or school?

• There is so much information on traditional social media platforms that your brain literally cannot process all of it without being negatively affected. 

Remember, social media is not something BAD, but when it is used for long chunks of time then it begins to affect you in negative ways. 

Look at what a couple of studies have shown.

Way back in 2017, results from an eye-opening study were shared at the 23rd Americas Conference on Information Systems.

• Cognitive Control and Social Media Overload was the focus. 

• This study explains that processing the amount of information that is available to you on social media can create mental health problems. This study also looked at how cognitive control and social media are connected. Fear of Missing Out (FoMO) was one of the three main ideas.

What is FoMO?

FoMO, or Fear of Missing Out, is pretty rampant on social media. 

When you check Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, or X/Twitter, you may see what looks like AMAZING moments! Things just look so polished and perfect! But guess what…  that is just because those are the moments people want to share. 

• Would you post pictures of the horrific moments of your day, or just the sweet ones? 

• Do you post pictures that you look rough in, or just the good shots?

FoMO is an aspect of social media that creates totally unrealistic expectations for people. You may logically know this, but while you scroll through the feed, all you may feel is a sense that your life doesn’t measure up and that you are missing out on all of the fun in your community. You may also forget that many people use filters to make themselves look quite different than they do in person. 

• More recently, in December of 2023, a Mechanism Study of Social Media Overload on Health Self-Efficacy and Anxiety was conducted. This study looked at how social media affected people during the COVID19 pandemic. 

• Folks, that is a crazy long title that basically says Too Much Time on Social Media is Gonna Cause You To Doubt Your Health & Cause Anxiety.

• In the study’s Results section it clearly states, “Social media overload and social media fatigue are common factors that negatively influence users' psychological and behavioral well-being.”

  
  

There are many more articles out there that discuss the impact of social media on your brain. The more research that you read, the more you may ask the next question. 

So how much time is too much time with social media?

Whether you are trying to create new, healthy habits for yourself or even your kids, this is a question that needs to be considered. 

Have you already completed the 40-Day Social Media and Secular News Fast?

At neighbZ, we want you to be thinking about how to use social media and news in a way that serves you and your communities. We think it’s good to question how much time you spend on social media! Doctors and researchers all over the country - and internationally - are also trying to determine how much time is too much time with social media. 

“Individuals who report excessive social media use, defined as use for more than an average of 2 hours per day, are twice as likely to report social isolation as those who spend less than half an hour per day using social media” (Withington 2019).

☝️ Based on this research brief from Syracuse University, you may not want to spend more than 30 minutes on social media each day! 

Knowledge in Action

You have just taken in A LOT of information. 

• You have learned how your brain reacts, on a hormonal level, to things like Facebook!

• Dopamine - The 🙂 Hormone   

• You have learned how the sheer volume of media can affect your mental health!

• Social Media Overload - The Sheer 😩 Overwhelm of Too Much Media

  
  

All of us at neighbZ want to say, “Well done!”

You’re choosing how to use technology and media in a way that honors your time and health. If you started out with our 40-Day Fast then you know we are all about being counter-cultural! We feel led to call each of you to lives that honor your neighbors and Christian beliefs. 

It might sound silly at first, but the way you act on social media and the time you spend on it says something about who you are as a person. We are calling you to more! We want your social media and your news sources to mirror values of faith, hope, and love for your neighbors and communities.

Let’s keep working towards ripples of change that spread that love. 

Be on the lookout for our next post! 

We are all about building healthy habits and routines - and that’s what our newsletters will share. 

Love thy neighbor. Support thy neighbor. ❤️

-The neighbZ Family

P.S. If you have a topic that you are passionate about or would like to know more about, then please fill out our form! CONTACT US

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References

Bajarin, T. “Spending time on social media is both good and bad.” Forbes. 21 Sep. 2023. Accessed 22 Mar. 2024.

“Brain Basics: The Life and Death of a Neuron.” National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, NIH. Accessed 25 Mar. 2024. 

Li, Kai et al. “Mechanism study of social media overload on health self-efficacy and anxiety.” Heliyon vol. 10,1 e23326. National Library of Medicine. 5 Dec. 2023. Accessed 27 Mar. 2024.

Watson, S. “Dopamine: The pathway to pleasure.” Harvard Health Publishing. 20 Jul. 2021. Accessed 26 Mar. 2024

Whelan, Eoin, et al. “Cognitive Control and Social Media Overload.” CORE. 23rd Americas Conference on Information Systems. 10 Aug. 2017. Accessed 27 Mar. 2024.

Withington, S. and Punch, A. “There Are Costs from Spending Too Much Time on Social Media.” Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs, Syracuse University. Oct. 2019. Accessed 27 Mar. 2024.