Basically Mums, NHS England is encouraging you to “take back control” and stop scrolling through your feeds for an entire month! The Royal Public Health Society is behind Scroll Free September, which is targeting users of Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and Snapchat. It believes logging off could improve sleep, relationships and wellbeing.
[Do you know that “phubbing” affects your relationship?]
NHS England said it was right to highlight social media’s role in a rise in young people’s mental health issues. The campaign is asking phone addicts to give up, or cut down on, their use of personal social media accounts.
Half of users aged 18-34 think going “cold turkey” for a month would have a positive effect on their sleep and real-world relationships, research by RSPH found. And almost half (47%) thought it would be beneficial to their overall mental health.
The RSPH report warned that social media could be fuelling a mental health crisis in young people with Snapchat and Instagram being the worst culprits. NHS England’s national director for mental health, Claire Murdoch, said everyone – including social media giants – needed to take responsibility to tackle the “mental health epidemic in the next generation”.
So Mums, are you fully team scroll-free September? or do you think going completely off social media is a bit extreme? Well, giving up social media entirely may be too daunting for some.
Good news is, the campaign has other suggestions to curb your social media habit:
- Take a break from social media at all social events. (This won’t be a problem at the upcoming LagosMums parenting Conference and Exhibition 2018. You’ll be too caught up in all that’ll be happening around you!)
- Don’t use social media after 6pm
- Don’t check personal social media accounts at school or at work
- Ban yourself from social media in the bedroom
Let’s do it!
