How is Technology Impacting your Mental Health?

7 min readSep 20, 2020

“The reason you’re sad all the time is because of that phone”
“You’re always so worried because your eyes are glued to that screen”

Do these quotes ring a bell?

The older generations tend to make such comments because they never grew up with the technological advancements we see today, however, I was never quick to shut down the possibility that they may be right, so I googled it.

Dear google,

What’s the connection between mental health and phones/modern day technology?

How Might the Boomers be Wrong About our Cellphones?

Surprisingly I found a study from 2015 -2017 that suggests that increased technology usage does not necessarily worsen mental health symptoms. Over 5,270 study days, 13,017 observations were conducted. The conclusion is that the time spent on technology for adolescents does not result in more radical symptoms, nor did being completely off technology make them any happier. They also found the same results for adolescents that had a higher risk of mental health issues.

Pros of the Internet and our Cell Phones

Social Impacts:

Despite it being through a screen rather than in person, texting and connecting with people releases chemicals in the brain. Especially with COVID restrictions, our cell phones and the internet is something to be grateful for because we can continue to strengthen friendships.

“My phone can sometimes be this device that creates a feeling of relief or just a place where I can settle down and watch funny videos on social media when I’m feeling stressed. It keeps me connected with my friends and family, constantly having conversations, capturing memories and sharing them online. I could survive without my phone but I don’t think my life, and social life would be the same as it is now. I could be addicted to it sometimes but I know when to control myself and I think that’s the most important thing. Overall my phone makes me a much happier person.” — Philip Boulos (Grade 11 student)

Entertainment:

Watching your favorite YouTuber or keeping up with friends on social media to stay entertained, is similar to the seeing live in-person performances. The world is just evolving and society is changing. How might the boomers be right about our cellphones?

“Technology can easily influence someone’s thoughts and beliefs in a negative way” — Johnny Tahan (Grade 11 student)

How might the Boomer be Right About our Cell Phones

We have the world a click of a button away. There is so much to do on our cellphones; the average Canadian teen spends 6 hours a day on them! While people are not regularly moving around due to the world they can experience through the screen, it has a negative impact physically, translating into a mental effect. As we recognize, physical activity has countless benefits on the brain; without these benefits, depression is 25% more common in those living a sedentary lifestyle.

Internet Addiction:

Some research has been done to suggest that internet addiction is becoming more common among young adults, and it has the same effects as any other addiction. Dopamine is the feel-good chemical that gets released anytime you hear a ding from your phone, or get a new notification. It’s responsible for reward-seeking behavior creating the constant addiction and cycle to check your phone. Some symptoms of internet addiction include:

Insomnia
Being reliant on the internet to improve one’s mood
Screen time is a trigger for the user/they feel defensive about their time spent online
Attempts to reduce internet use have failed

For more about internet addiction, click here.

Social Media:

Social media is all about seeing the highlights in someone’s life, and this can cause dissatisfaction within our own lives. It is also common for people to post pictures of themselves that fall under society’s beauty standards leading to a negative body image. All around us we see people with “perfect bodies” and it can change thoughts about oneself possibly causing an eating disorder which is fatal, or obsessing about looks, size, weight, etc. (to the person that’s reading this, you are beautiful).

Internet and Mobile Phone Dependency:

People that spend lots of time on their cell phones, may experience separation anxiety when they don’t have access to the internet. The same separation anxiety your pet may feel when you leave the house, because of the dependency your pet has with you.

Sleep Cycle:

As you have read, internet addiction can cause insomnia and mess with your sleep schedule. It’s so important that our bodies get enough rest, however the blue light from our cell phones causes a disturbance in your sleep!

Depression:

Another study shows that people (especially teens) who are glued to their phones experience lower levels of happiness
It also proves that not being on your phone does not make you any happier
KEY POINT: It’s all about Balance!
Your phone can be used for good to actually improve your mental health with apps such as head space, mindshift, daylio, fabulous, shine, balance etc.

Lack of productivity

I’m sure we all can relate to this one, or maybe it’s just me. There’s something called a “lucid loop” which is when you go on your phone thinking it’s only been 10 minutes, but an hour has gone by! In that time you could have folded some laundry, work on your homework, or made waffles with whipped cream, strawberries, blueberries, and syrup and dropped it off at my front door (hint hint)

Solution: STOP TIME

The solution to a “lucid loop” cycle is to choose a stop time. For example: you pick up your phone because you want to check Instagram, but then you open up twitter, youtube, etc. and then you go back to Instagram.
When you first went on Instagram, look at the top left corner of your screen to check the time, and pick a time that you are going to finish from your phone.
This creates more intuitive phone use and over time with self discipline, you can get out of that cycle (It takes anywhere from 18–264 days to break a bad habit- 264 days may seem long but if you ask yourself and remember why you want to break the habit keep sight of your goals, it will come more naturally)

My thinking:

Society has always negatively connected high screen time with bad mental health however, claiming that this is true can actually be the issue. This is because the subconscious intention/ subconscious belief can influence what the outcome is
Implications: AI can organize data to find out how your mental health is affected by phone by putting in an input (ex. Time spent on phone and when, age, etc.) and give you an output to see if your cell phone/ internet usage is negatively impacting your mental health

Are the Boomers Right or Wrong About our Phones?

“Technology affects your mental health as you choose. Its how you use your phone that will give you either a positive or negative result. Last year, I hit the lowest point of my life and I began to bounce back when I took a break from my phone. I also found that I was able to talk about how I was feeling with amazing supportive people and my phone is what allowed me to create those connections.” — Elissa Agie (Grade 11 student)

With the research available, no, the boomers aren’t right, nor are they wrong. This is because how technology impacts mental health is different for each person based on what they are doing while using their phone. Your output is dependent on your input and this varies from person to person. Here’s what I mean:

Example 1

Input: Sitting for hours watching videos and comparing your life to the people in the videos

Output: You are likely to feel unsatisfied with your life, and you wasted time

Example 2

Input: On social media connecting with people in a positive and supportive community

Using an app to help with your anxiety

Output:

You will probably feel more calm, supported, and happier.

ITS ALL ABOUT YOUR INPUT AND INTENTIONS.

3 reflection questions to ask yourself:

Is your cell phone negatively impacting how you sleep?
Are your real life experiences less enjoyable when more time is spent on your phone?
Do you turn to your phone to boost your mood or when you want a distraction from your feelings?

It’s important to reflect on your cell phone usage because it can either be a beneficial tool for you or not. Setting intentions for your phone usage can ensure your cell phone is used for good. Though I couldn’t tell you if the boomers are right or wrong, we can use the research to understand that different perspectives allows us to make the decision that best suites our lives.