Why Social Media Is Harming Your Relations

Social media use can have unintended consequences to your health in addition to harming your relations…

In the previous article, we saw that our source of true happiness is our deep bonds.

While it certainly helps to have physical proximity for deeper connections, it is certainly not the case that physical proximity will lead to connection. It is also not true that being alone will lead to loneliness. Aloneness is not the same as loneliness. We can cultivate habits of mind that create connections wherever we are.

You also perhaps appreciate that our social media connections do not mean real connections, although for many disabled people, social media is the only means of connecting with others. For others, the source of happiness is not the number of followers or connections on social media.

In fact, social media usage can lead to mental health issues.

Research shows that using Facebook frequently is linked to feeling less happy and satisfied with life. Also, spending a long time on any social media platform can make you feel more depressed.

However, talking directly with people online instead of just scrolling through their posts and clicking 'like' doesn't seem to have these harmful effects. What we long for are not connections through clicks but through real heartbeats.

So, what enables us to connect deeply with others?

Remember, we spoke about how trained therapists' approach to creating rapport with their clients determines whether their clients will recover from debilitating mental disorders. We don’t need to treat others as patients, but we could all benefit from the rapport-building methods used by psychologists and people skilled at forming relationships.

I summarize these methods into the following general categories:

1. Self-awareness

2. Openness and curiosity

3. Humility and vulnerability

4. A powerful and mindful presence

5. Emotional agility

6. Intelligence of your body

7. Empathy and compassion

We will discuss each of these in detail in subsequent articles.