5 weird ways social media is manipulating your brain:
Over 1/3 of the world uses social media.

We are reaching higher levels of connection by the day.

It has obviously affected our societies.

But... what about our brains?

Let’s look deeper:
1. Less rationality

Make no mistake.

You can be addicted to social media.

And it changes the makeup of your brain.

There’s a noted decrease in white matter in the areas of the brain that control decision making, attention and emotional processing.
That means:

- You’re lazier
- You’re sloppier
- You’re more erratic

You will make decisions that make you a worse version of yourself.
2. Decreased memory

Ever heard of Working Memory?

Social media plays havoc with it.

Working Memory is the center of our brain that processes new information.

The worst thing we can do?

Overload it.

Like with a constant source of news, for example...
3. Phantom Vibration Syndrome

Ever felt like your phone buzzed in your pocket, but it didn’t?

One study showed 89% of participants experienced this once every two weeks.

Our minds are craving novelty.
4. Altered nervous system

A combination of the above factors is also affecting our nervous system.

We itch.

We get uncomfortable.

We feel physical discomfort when we don’t get fresh updates.
5. Dopamine overload

You’ve probably heard this term before.

The ‘feel good’ chemical.

But, what if it’s also the selfish chemical?
MRI scans show the reward centers of our brains are much more active when talking about our own views, compared to the views of others.

It turns out 30-40% of our face-to-face conversations involve talking about our own experiences.
Whereas, on social media, up to 80% of interactions are self-involved.

This is even more true if you have an audience.

Yep, that’s right.

We are rewarding ourselves for talking about ourselves online.
Social media has many incredible properties.

The ability to form communities and network is like nothing else.

But, we must be aware of its side effects.

Take time off.

Return fresh.

Pay attention to when you don’t feel like yourself.

Your brain will thank you.
5 ways our brains are changing because of social media:

1. Less rationality
2. Decreased memory
3. Phantom Vibration Syndrome
4. Altered nervous system
5. Dopamine overload ...read more