10 reasons you need to give yourself a break from social media

How long do you spend scrolling through your social media profiles each day? If you haven’t thought about this yet, the answer could be… too much time! it might be worth considering this as all that time spent on Facebook and Instagram could be affecting you and your kids.

Social media can take up a lot of time – I know, I’ve definitely been stuck infinitely scrolling – and has a few other negative aspects as well. Perhaps it’s time you gave yourself a break from social media? Here are 10 reasons why it will be worth it.

It will improve your sleep

As a mum, you will know just how precious sleep is. And that it’s in very short supply when you have kids! The screens of phones and tablets emit a blue light that isn’t visible to the naked eye, but can affect the body and mind’s ability to fall to sleep at night. So, rather than scrolling through your phone at night, why not enjoy a book in bed or a relaxing bath?

You’ll have more time for the kids

There’s no denying that social media is a complete time drain. That’s time that you could be spending with the little ones. When you are caring for your children, you need to always be focused on them to make sure that they are safe and happy. If you are glued to your phone all of the time, you won’t be there for them when they could really need you – or just want your attention!

Even worse, you might just miss out on some of the amazing things they say; we’ve captured some of them for Mother’s Day in our cute quotes article just in case you weren’t quite listening. 😂

It will stop you comparing yourself to others

If you find that you keep on feeling down when seeing everyone’s perfect lives on social media, then it will certainly be time to enjoy a digital detox. It’s all too easy to compare our lives to your friends and influencers, even though we all know that we only ever post the highlights reel on our profiles. It’s still easy for us to feel fed up about it even if we do know that people only post their best bits, so do take a break from social media if it ever gets you down.

Likes? What likes?!

Getting likes from other social media users can quickly become addictive. In fact, some people find that their happiness depends on these likes. That shouldn’t be the case as you have so much in your life to be happy about, such as your family and children.

You can interact better face-to-face

Interactions on social media are never the same as conversing with a friend face-to-face. Rather than tweeting or DMing someone, reach out to them and see if they are available for a catch-up over a coffee. Talking to them in person will be a lot more meaningful indeed. 

You’ll always be present in the moment

When you are staring at a screen looking at social media, there could be so much around you that you are missing. For instance, you don’t want to be scrolling through Twitter when your young child takes their first steps or says their first word. Put down the phone and be in the moment.

You can enjoy more privacy in your life

A lot of people are now starting to become a lot more aware and concerned about their online privacy and so limit what they share on social media platforms. However, there is only one way you can keep your life as private as possible – come off social media completely. 

There’ll be more time for chores (unfortunately!)

Just think of what you could get done if you didn’t have social media to distract you! You would have more time to finish all of your chores and wouldn’t feel so stressed trying to squeeze them into your schedule. By enjoying a social media break, you might find that your home becomes a lot tidier and more organised!

It’s a good example for kids

Not many parents want their children to spend hours online. Kids learn through example, so it’s really worth setting a good example yourself. If your kids don’t see you constantly on your phone, then they will be a lot less likely to end up addicted to social media too.

It’s better for your mental health

For some people, social media can be a constant drain on their mental health. If you take a break, then your mental health will also be able to enjoy some respite. You won’t compare yourself to others and you won’t feel a need to live your life in any particular way. You can enjoy a lot more peace of mind and time relaxing with your family.

So, do you think you will take a break from social media?

If you don’t – make sure you still around with us won’t you?!!? We’ve got a few other articles that you might be interested in:

• If you do have someone you know that is into blogging and is on social media a lot, then how about some of these ideas for gifts for bloggers,
• Anyone still use Twitter with a passion – well here are my 18 places to tweet secretly!
• If you use Pinterest, then here are five ways to optimise your Pinterest profile to get some awesome increases in traffic and
• Finally, how to manage social media with teens so it doesn’t turn into a battleground.

We know, it’s ironic we just suggested all of the above having told you to get off social media more during the week. You’ll just have to be uber-efficient won’t you?!?!

Other articles that might be useful to you include:

• The Diary of a Frugal Family and her list of ten things your kids should know about social media,
• The Joys of Boys has information on what every parent should know about social media, and
• Practical Mommy has a fabulous parenting “lounge” and chats to other mums about the issues around social media. Pop over and see what others are saying.

Social media IS a minefield, for us as parenting, and for the kids too. Join in the chat by subscribing to us.

See you again soon.

Helen

Helen

Helen is a mum to two, social media consultant, and website editor; and this site is (we think) the only Social Enterprise parenting magazine!Since giving up being a business analyst when juggling travel, work and kids proved too complicated, she founded KiddyCharts so she could be with her kids, and use those grey cells at the same time.KiddyCharts has reach of over 1.1million across social and the site. The blog works with big family brands (including travel) to help promote their services, as well as offering free resources to parents of kids under 10.It gives 51%+ profits to Reverence for Life, who fund a number of important initiatives in Africa, including bringing running water and basic equipment to a school in Tanzania.Helen has worked as a digital marketing consultant (IDM qualified) with various organisations, including Channel Mum, Truprint, Talk to Mums, and Micro Scooters. She loves to be creative in the brand campaigns she works on.Get in touch TODAY!

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