If there’s one thing that has massively changed the world in the past decade, it has got to be the rise of social media in an always-connected world.

For a whole lot of people, social media has become an integral part of daily life, and it just seems completely unavoidable.

Sharing pictures on Instagram, keeping up to date on Facebook, tweeting around, or even making videos on YouTube or TikTok: social media is everywhere.

Of course, that can definitely make one wonder. Aren’t we too involved with social media?

According to some studies, that’s definitely the case.

While social media is absolutely brilliant to quickly connect with friends and family, sometimes even across the world, it has some negative effects on your mental health too.

For example, humans have been conditioned to release a small dose of dopamine – the hormone that makes you happy and content – whenever someone likes your Instagram picture, for example.

People seem to need validation from our online community, but that can burden real-life relationships just as much.

Validation in the online world has become important, and sometimes, it just goes too far.

For example, how much time have you spent thinking about the perfect caption, or getting that perfect Insta-worthy picture? Of course, these things can also be fun and enjoyable, but some people take it too far and become obsessed with the perfect online life.

If there’s a lack of online comments or likes, we feel unhappy, and it’s absolutely worth noting just how much of an effect that social media can have. After all, does getting more likes truly make one happier?

Recent studies have also shown that people in healthy relationships often don’t boast about it on social media.

Declaring your love is definitely a beautiful thing and something that will always be amazing and heartwarming.

After all, you just want your partner to know how much they mean to you.

Sometimes, however, people seem to be more preoccupied with what content would get the most likes on social media, putting their actual life in second place.

Some psychologists believe that boasting or advertising your relationship on social media is a way of overcompensating.

It’s a way of avoiding real-life relationship problems by just focusing on creating the perfect online picture.

Of course – this doesn’t apply to everyone.

Sharing a picture or a cute heartwarming story about you and your partner, there’s nothing wrong with that. However, for absolutely over-the-top posts, psychologists often believe that not everything is as perfect as it seems.

“Those who are less satisfied may post Facebook content that shows levels of affection that they aren’t displaying in their actual offline relationship. These individuals then believe that engaging in these types of posts has helped their relationship,” Gwendolyn Seidman, Ph.D., from Psychology Today writes.

Making your partner feel special should be something you do in real life, not online.

Psychologists also argue that most of the happy moments can’t be posted online.

The little things that make you laugh, the moments you share out of nowhere, the deep talks – this quality time is what improves a relationship, but it’s not exactly something that would be popular on Instagram either.

You should be fully caught up in happy moments, not thinking about social media likes.

Studies have also shown that too much screen time isn’t healthy for your relationship, as you’re avoiding quality time with your partner.

Phone addiction can be a dangerous and unhealthy thing in a relationship.

“When someone’s relationship displays on Facebook reflect more affection than they show offline, it is likely that they are in a less satisfying relationship,” the psychologist concluded.

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Source: Psychology Today, Psychology of Popular Media Culture (academic journal)