Burnout from social media can have a large impact on your relationship. It’s been a wild time that we’re living in. Since many of us have been sheltered in place for months, social media has become a haven and a platform for everything from household tips to political statements. You need to protect your relationship from these negative influences.
I’ve got two friends who are a couple and in the mornings over coffee they each sit in their own recliner on their respective phones on Facebook instead of sitting together and talking over coffee as they start their day. There’s nothing wrong with that, right? Well, at least they are in the same room. There’s not much else right with this scenario.
I’ve seen people become agitated, depressed, hopeless, and discouraged, simply from spending two- four hours on Facebook and social media in a day. Think about that. This is Burnout that can have disastrous consequences.All those huge negative emotions, brought complete upon your-self by choosing to invest your time and energy into social media.
I’m not against social media per se, but if it’s becoming a burden to you emotionally, or if it’s negatively impacting your mental health and well-being, I might suggest some changes in the way you expose yourself to Facebook and other forms of social media in the future. These are signs of burnout. Your relationship and or marriage needs your focus more than your friends on facebook, twitter, and Tik Tok
Honestly, there’s no good substitute for human interaction. Spending time with people you love is a great balm to your mental state. Even heated political discussions in real life are less likely to escalate to the same level they do on social media. People feel empowered with the anonymity of social media and are more likely to make it insulting or personal which they are less likely to do when you’re standing right in front of them. We don’t want to hurt the people we love, we don’t disparage or insult them; we respect their opinions and allow them space to express themselves. Isn’t that what civilized people do?
If you’re feeling stressed or worn out by what you’re seeing on social media, you’re not alone. Burnout is a real thing that’s happening in our society. To avoid this problem, I would suggest that you take a break. Take a sabbatical from your social media. Maybe not quit cold turkey, because this is an addiction as you will find. Maybe step back and take a few days. Put yourself on a time restriction where you might browse your platforms for ten or fifteen minutes twice a day instead of spending hours and hours scrolling and posting. Or shut down one platform and don’t engage there for a week. Keep the others active, and at the end of the week you can switch to a different platform. Check in with your stress level along the way and see if you feel better without it.
How will you fill in all of this extra time? Think about all the things you and your partner don’t have time for today. We want to do ____________ but we just can’t find the time. Guess what? You just found the time. Put your energy into your relationship, greet your partner face to face and spend quality time together doing the things you’ve been putting off. This, too, can become addicting; in a good way. Talk to your partner about doing this together in an effort to improve your relationship and your overall mental health. It could be the beginning of something beautiful in your life.
