Digital well-being

Overview

It is important to look after your mental health and well-being. Social media, gaming and messaging services expose you to a wide range of content, some of which can negatively affect your emotions.

Excessive or problematic use of technology can also impact on your mental health and well-being. This could include:

• spending too much time on some activities and too little on others
• using platforms that aren’t age appropriate
• looking for information, advice or friendship in the wrong places

Too much screen time can affect your behaviour, sleep and concentration. It can also lead to less physical activity and social interaction.

Keeping online experiences positive

There are steps you can take to protect your digital well-being and keep your online experiences positive.

Think critically about things you see online

Social media filters and artificial intelligence (AI) tools can distort images. This can lead to unrealistic ideals or unhealthy comparisons. It’s important to think critically about content you see online to ensure it doesn’t affect your self-esteem.

There is a vast amount of misinformation online. Images or videos you see may be created or changed using AI or other tools. The quality is now so realistic, it’s hard to detect misinformation and AI generated imagery, so try to verify what you’ve seen from other sources.

Work towards a screen time balance

It’s not just the amount of time that you spend online, but what you do that can have a negative effect. Many experts and young people themselves believe short-form, trivial content (sometimes called ‘brain rot’) is an issue. 

Setting time limits on social media use, and turning off, muting or limiting notifications on apps using your device settings may help.

Try to get a balance of online and offline activities. Physical, outdoor activities will have a positive effect on your mental health. Try to spend more time doing things you enjoy, and limit time spent on platforms that negatively affect your mood.

Be selective about the content you follow

Regularly review the people, pages or content you follow online. Unfollow those that negatively impact on you and follow more of what you enjoy. It’s also helpful to focus on the accounts you choose to follow, not ones that are suggested or recommended for you (these aren’t always appropriate).

Learn to mute, unfollow and block

There might be times when your mental health and well-being is negatively affected by someone you:

• follow on social media
• game with
• have been messaging

If so, mute, unfollow or block them. If you see or hear something that is harmful, there are ways you can report it and lots of support available to you.

Have open conversations about your online activities

Have open conversations about your online activities with people you trust. This is the best way to get support with your mental health and well-being.

Support for young people

Support for schools

Having strategies to keep children and young people's online experiences positive is crucial. Support children and young people so they know where they can get support with their mental health if needed. Classroom activities are available in the learning and teaching resources. You can also signpost them to free and confidential helplines and services.

Support for families

If your child is struggling with their mental health, professional help is available to support you and them.

Views from the experts

Help and support