Repeatedly from notices on radio stations to news channels and advertisements on public transport, the Coronavirus has been almost impossible to escape our attention. After a while, this can easily verge on becoming all consuming within our minds and rather than staying informed, we\u2019ve become distracted. The lockdown in particular couldn\u2019t have isolated some communities more and as a means of attempting to rekindle social interaction, we\u2019ve relied on the phone. If there had ever been more of an opportunity for social media to blow up – it would be now. In line with this there is urgency to be wary and balance the enjoyment of scrolling through TikToks with then suddenly spending 2 hours on an app at only 9 o\u2019clock in the morning.<\/p>\n
I really like Instagram. I think it\u2019s by far become the most entertaining app over the passage of time from messaging services like MSN to Myspace and Facebook. Social media undoubtedly connects us in what would have once been an unthinkable way! I can connect with family in Jordan, my friends in China and can discuss topics from art and philosophy to how best prepare for a medical interview, with strangers worldwide. We\u2019ve become reliant on the technology but it definitely makes our lives more efficient and easy when utilised correctly. During the pandemic, the UK was getting a lot of its information on the severity and nature of Coronavirus from international reports. Countries such as China and Italy were among those communicating with us and the footage and interviews made available for the general public were the beginning of the education for many of us as to what this virus had in store. As laymen, we stayed informed through formal government guidance on our televisions as well as exploring all kinds of conspiracy theories (and I do mean all kinds\u2026) on social media. For me, Instagram has and still is a combination of enabling me to see what my friends are doing or posting from the Black Lives Matter movement and the death of Kobe and Gigi Bryant to female empowerment and body positivity.<\/p>\n
But of course\u2026 we\u2019re abusing the time and nature of content we\u2019re consuming \u2013 much of the time, unintentionally. When 10 minutes scrolling in the morning has us come across something which triggers an unpleasant or undesirable emotion in us, the effect doesn\u2019t leave as we leave that application. It can take hours or even days before we stop thinking about a photo we saw, or a comment, or even the number of likes our post\u00a0didn\u2019t<\/em>\u00a0get. During the pandemic, we\u2019ve seen a lot of fads from hyperproductivity and somewhat forced positivity when really what these apps lack a lot of the time is transparency. The truth is, events like lockdowns impact our physical and mental health massively; a person\u2019s release might be their gym time in the morning or studying in a local caf\u00e9. Consequences like increased conflict within the household, domestic abuse, porn addictions, weight gain and lack of motivation aren\u2019t things that are more popularly advertised on social media. This means that ultimately, we\u2019re fed quite a false and more fake perception as to what our friends and \u2018idols\u2019 are going through.<\/p>\n Some tips to take control over social media time<\/strong>\u00a0\u00b7 Switching my phone notifications off at a set time each evening \u00b7 Putting my phone in a different room as I study\/ spend time with family \u00b7 Be mindful of the content you consume; what were the effects after seeing that thing? \u00b7 Reminding myself how SHORT life is!<\/p>\n Social media should really be used in moderation. These apps are fun and also educational when knowing where to find legitimate sources. Remember to find balance and live outside your phone.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Repeatedly from notices on radio stations to news channels and advertisements on public transport, the Coronavirus has been almost impossible to escape our attention. After a while, this can easily verge on becoming all consuming within our minds and rather than staying informed, we\u2019ve become distracted. The lockdown in particular couldn\u2019t have isolated some communities […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1571,"featured_media":6307,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[274465,81449],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6306","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-covid-19","category-mental-health"],"yoast_head":"\n