Naturopath and yoga and meditation teacher Erin O’Hara tells us about the impact she sees social media having on her clients and how we can use mindfulness to break the addiction.
I think one other thing with heavy social media users is they can often be quite isolated in real life. The isolation can then lead to depression and also social anxiety, so that when you are in social situations you’re not confident because you’re used to just looking at other people’s lives online.
One thing I also experience in the [naturopathic] clinic is people trying to mimic another person from social media. And I think that’s where getting off social media or creating boundaries with it is really important. It allows people to connect to their own life and not just be a follower of someone else’s.
Yoga and meditation can really allow people to connect to their own self rather than connecting outwards and comparing themselves to others. Meditation in particular [works], because you’re going in and closing your eyes and having to confront things.
It pulls you away – even if it is only for half an hour – from the phone and gives you a break. And for some people that’s actually really hard. Social media really can become an addiction, and meditation is a practice to rebalance the mind.
Erin’s meditations to help you refocus and take a break from social media
1 Sit in an Easy Pose, with a light Jalandhar bandh (cross-legged with hands on knees, body tilted forward slightly and chin tucked against the chest).
Straighten the spine and make sure the first lower vertebrae are locked forward.
Keep the eyes closed and focus at the Brow Point [the space between your brows].
2 Make fists of both hands and extend the thumbs straight. Place the thumbs on the temples and find the niche where the thumbs just fit.
Lock the back molars together and keep the lips closed.
Keeping the teeth pressed together throughout, alternately squeeze the molars tightly then release the pressure. A muscle will move in rhythm under the thumbs.
Feel it massage the thumbs and apply a firm pressure with the hands. Silently vibrate the primal sounds (SAA-TAA-NAA-MAA) at the brow. Meditate for 5-7 minutes.
For more advice on how yoga and meditation can help you slow down on social media, see the September issue of Good Health Choices.
