Screens & your mind

Video-calling family, learning a skill or making art is very different from scrolling content that makes you feel bad. Researchers find that the links between social media and mental health are mostly small and mixed, and depend a lot on the person and how they use it.

Nearly half of U.S. parents (47%) say they spend too much time on their own phone, more than the share of teens who say this about themselves (38%).

And 46% of teens say their parent is at least sometimes distracted by their phone when they’re trying to talk to them.

Autoplay, endless feeds and notifications are built to keep you engaged longer. Pediatricians recommend turning these features off, because changing the setup works better than relying on willpower alone.

Many people want to change how they use their phone, and many manage it: in 2024, 44% of U.S. teens said they had cut back on social media. Turning off a few notifications or charging the phone outside the bedroom is a realistic place to start.

Many people describe picking up their phone “on autopilot”, or feeling uneasy when it’s out of reach. In a 2023 Pew survey, 44% of U.S. teens said being without their phone at least sometimes made them feel anxious, and 39% said lonely.

Yet most teens in the same survey also said time without their phone made them feel happy (74%) or peaceful (72%). That uneasy feeling often fades once you get through the first stretch.

Feeds, autoplay and notifications are designed to keep you coming back, so this isn’t a failure of willpower. Changing the setup (notifications off, phone out of reach) usually works better than relying on willpower alone.

Ask yourself

• What was I feeling just before I picked it up?
• Did I find what I was looking for?
• How do I feel now, compared with before?

Most phones can show how long you spend on each app and how often you pick the phone up. Many people are surprised when they first see their numbers. Look without judging: the point is to learn, not to feel bad.

Things worth noticing

• Apps that leave you feeling better, and ones that leave you feeling worse
• Feelings that come just before you reach for it (boredom, loneliness, stress, worry)
• Places where you scroll most (bed, the bathroom, the couch)
• Times of day when it’s hardest to stop

Social media triggers dopamine, a brain chemical linked to pleasure and reward. Likes, catching up with people and seeing enjoyable content all reinforce the habit. Over time, the brain can get used to it, so it takes more scrolling to get the same good feeling.

Another sign worth noticing is when people close to you start saying they’re worried about how much you’re online.

Platforms are designed to maximize the time people spend on them, sometimes with input from mental health professionals. Game companies often hire psychologists to help design games that keep players wanting to continue, and research suggests gaming may activate the brain’s reward system in a way similar to gambling.

In the teen years, the brain areas that respond to rewards and emotions are very active, while the prefrontal cortex, which helps with planning and stopping impulses, keeps maturing into the mid-to-late 20s.

Children also don’t yet have the thinking and self-management skills to work through harmful online situations, and fear of missing out is real: more than half of teens say social media would be hard to give up.

Using social media to avoid real-life worries or emotions is one sign of problematic use. Teens in particular often use devices to escape hard feelings.

Pediatricians suggest that if media has become someone’s main way to calm down, it’s time to build other calming tools with the help of friends, family, a doctor or a therapist.

Other ways to soothe

• Talking to someone you trust
• Slow breathing or a short walk
• Drawing, music or writing
• Time with a pet

Choose a set time to catch up, like after breakfast. Outside that time, you don’t need to check. If something truly important happens, you’ll hear about it.

Pick one or two reliable news sources rather than following breaking-news posts and comment threads. Reading a short summary once a day keeps you informed without the constant drip of alarm.

Be careful with posts designed to make you angry or afraid. Those are often the ones that spread fastest, not the ones that are most accurate.

When the news leaves you feeling powerless, a small action can help: donating, volunteering, checking on a neighbour, or writing to a local leader. Then let yourself step away.

When every click is counted, people may skip breaks, feel anxious about short pauses, or feel they aren’t trusted. In the same survey, people who felt micromanaged were much more likely to feel tense or stressed during the workday (64% vs 36%).

Ideas

• Ask what is monitored and how the data is used
• Take your breaks: rest helps focus
• Keep personal browsing and messages on your own device
• Talk with coworkers, a manager, HR or a union about concerns
• Switch off work apps after hours when you can

See the “Understanding burnout” guide for more on work stress and recovery.

What helps

• Ask “How are you really doing?”
• Take breaks together
• Share what’s helped you cope
• Point them to an employee assistance program if there is one

Every buzz pulls your attention away and tempts you back into the app. Pediatricians recommend turning off autoplay and notifications, because these features are designed to keep you engaged longer.

Try this

1. Open your phone’s notification settings.
2. Turn off alerts for social media, games and shopping apps.
3. Keep calls and messages from people you know.
4. Use “focus” or “do not disturb” modes for school, work and sleep.

The AAP suggests keeping screens away from the dinner table, homework time and bedtime to protect face-to-face connection, learning and sleep.

A phone basket by the door, or a charging spot in the kitchen, makes the rule easy to keep without arguing every time.

Feeds learn from what you watch. Unfollowing, muting and tapping “not interested” teaches the app what you don’t want. Searching for hobbies, nature or humour teaches it what you do.

Good accounts often…

• Make you laugh or learn something
• Show real, varied people and bodies
• Inspire you to do things offline
• Come from friends you actually know

Most phones can show how long you spend on each app and let you set a daily limit. Many people are surprised when they first see their numbers.

Pick one app to start with and set a limit a little below what you use now. When the timer pops up, it’s a reminder to choose, not a punishment.

Often we reach for our phone when we’re bored, lonely, anxious or putting something off. Noticing the feeling behind the reach gives you a choice.

The 3-question pause

1. Why am I picking this up right now?
2. What do I actually want to do or feel?
3. Is there another way to get that? (a text to a friend, a walk, a stretch, a glass of water)

Pediatricians suggest scheduling alternatives like reading, outdoor play, family games and hobbies. It’s easier to scroll less when there’s something good to do instead.

Because the teen brain is still building its “brakes”, setup and routines matter more than willpower. Agree on a few clear rules together, and explain why they matter.

Helpful habits

• Charge phones outside bedrooms overnight (yours too)
• Explore their favourite apps or games with them
• Praise steps forward, not just slip-ups
• Review the plan together as they grow

Adults can’t be given rules, but you can share how the phone affects your time together. “I miss talking at dinner” lands better than “You’re always on your phone.”

Ideas to try together

• A phone-free meal or walk each day
• Charging phones outside the bedroom
• Planning one offline thing you both enjoy each week

Many older adults use video and social apps to stay close to family: 64% of U.S. adults 65 and older use YouTube, and 57% use Facebook.

Ways to help

• Help set up video calls and photo sharing
• Show them how to mute upsetting news alerts
• Talk together about scams and how to check a strange message

Call or text 988, or chat at 988lifeline.org, 24 hours a day. You can reach out for yourself or for someone you’re worried about.

A free, 24/7 text line staffed by trained crisis counselors. Some people find texting easier than talking.

Find A Helpline (findahelpline.com) is a free directory of helplines in more than 175 countries, by phone, text or chat.