Modern social media platforms use powerful algorithms designed to maximize engagement by showing users content that they’re most likely to interact with. While this can improve the user experience, it has profound effects on mental health. Read on to discover how these algorithms can impact mental health- and what you can do about it:
How Social Media Algorithms Disrupt Mental Health
Here’s a few ways that social media algorithms can negatively impact your mental health:
- Reinforcement loops & negative mood: Algorithms amplify emotionally stimulating content—such as sensational news or idealized lifestyle posts—often leading to “doomscrolling,” which reinforces anxiety, sadness, and fear.
- Social comparison & envy: Curated feeds highlight peers’ achievements and highlight reels, fostering envy and lower self-esteem—sometimes described as “Facebook depression”.
- Anxiety, depression & FOMO: Studies link heavy social media use to greater anxiety, depressive symptoms, loneliness, and fear of missing out—especially among teens and young adults.
- Algorithmic endorsement of extremes: Engagement‑driven models may unintentionally favor extreme or sensational content, reinforcing negative emotional states and worsening mental health.
While social media algorithms keep users scrolling, they can also deepen emotional distress by prioritizing sensational and comparison-worthy material.
How Social Media Affects Physical Health
Let’s take a look at the few ways that social media can affect mental health, which directly impacts our entire well-being:
1. Content Amplification & Emotional Bias
Algorithms boost emotionally charged posts—especially negative or sensational ones. This encourages doomscrolling: compulsive scrolling through bad news, which worsens anxiety and depression.
2. Comparison Culture & Self‑Esteem Decline
Seeing others’ successes and lifestyles in algorithm‑curated feeds leads to envy and reduced self-worth—particularly for vulnerable individuals.
3. Addictive Engagement & Dopamine Hooks
Infinite scroll, notifications, and algorithmic rewards drive repeated checking. This triggers dopamine surges but may foster dependency, anxiety, procrastination, and low mood.
4. FOMO & Social Anxiety
Algorithms create fear of missing out by exposing users to friends’ social events, achievements, and trends. Research ties heavier use to greater FOMO and anxiety.
5. Exposure to Misinformation & Distressing Content
Algorithmic feeds may include sensational or misleading posts, contributing to stress, confusion, and emotional distress—especially during crises.
Deleting Social Media for Mental Health
Many people choose to delete or temporarily deactivate social accounts to break these cycles. Let’s take a look at how this can help:
- A two-week digital detox reduced depressive symptoms significantly, according to a meta‑analysis across multiple studies.
- A randomized experiment before the 2020 U.S. election found that five weeks off Facebook or Instagram improved well-being and reduced anxiety and depression—especially for Facebook users over 35 and Instagram users under 25. Limiting social media to 30 minutes daily for two weeks led students to report significantly lower anxiety, depression, loneliness, and FOMO.
For some healthy ways to spend your time while taking a social media cleanse, take a look at these alternative therapies to improve mental health.
Caveats and Potential Risks of Deleting Social Media
Although deleting social media may be the right choice for you, there may be some negative consequences of deleting social media.
Some may experience:
- Increased isolation, especially if they rely on social media for connection.
- Unplugging completely can affect professional and social opportunities.
- Time limits rather than quitting may be more sustainable, as setting a lofty goal of quitting may set people up for discouragement if they’re unable to stay off social media.
Social Media Recommendations
Social media algorithms are powerful engagement engines—but they often prioritize emotionally charged, comparison‑driven content that can harm mental health. But users can reclaim agency:
- Set time limits (e.g., 15–30 min/day) or use app timers—this reduces anxiety, depression, loneliness, and FOMO.
- Temporarily deactivate apps for 3–7 days, or longer, to experience clearer mood, better sleep, and improved focus.
- Unfollow content that triggers negative emotions, mute stress-inducing accounts, and curate your feed to prioritize positivity.
- Engage purposefully, such as posting updates or reaching out, instead of mindless browsing.
- Add friction—move apps off your home screen, switch your phone to grayscale, or disable push notifications.
By combining intentional limits, content control, and deliberate use, you can maintain the social benefits of media while protecting mental health.
Help for Your Mental Health
If you’re struggling with social media, FOMO, depression or anxiety, the experts at Associated Clinic of Psychology are here to help- you don’t have to go through this alone! We can match you with a provider that will target exactly what you need a little help with, so that you can start living a life with greater ease and joy.
Request an Appointment Today to take the next step towards the rest of your life.
