Did the Facebook, Instagram outage have you on edge? 6 signs you need to unplug

without really knowing what we’re looking for.

Monday’s outage of Facebook, Facebook Messenger, Instagram and WhatsApp, one of the longest in Facebook’s history, highlighted the reliance we have on social media.

“I haven’t been on Facebook in years and don’t miss it at all but today I learned that Instagram has an iron-clad HOLD on me,” tweeted author Saeed Jones of the outage.

Others found joy in taking a break.

“With Instagram taking the day off, I haven’t known this much happiness (and been so productive) in a long time. IG honestly stay down babes, we don’t miss you!” user @MisterPreda tweeted.

Chrissy Teigen explains her Twitter hiatus

On Jan. 26, Pamela Anderson shared her “last post on Instagram, Twitter (and) Facebook.” On Feb. 2, Elon Musk announced to his 48.3 million followers that he was going “off Twitter for a while.” On Feb. 27, “Bachelorette” star Rachel Lindsay disabled her Instagram account. And on March 4, Alec Baldwin deactivated his Twitter account because it “wasn’t worth” the “harshness.”

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Experts say we could all try taking a page out of their playbook.

While social media has its benefits – such as building networks and maintaining contact with others – too much time on these platforms is linked to depression, anxiety and stress, explains Dr. Shahla Modir, chief medical officer at All Points North Lodge, an addiction treatment center. 

Modir says some people can develop an unhealthy relationship with social media platforms and start to internalize “likes” by creating a connection between online responses and their self-esteem. 

In Anderson’s post, she described the liberating experience of stepping away from her screen.

“I am free,” she wrote. “Lets hope you find the strength and inspiration to follow your purpose and try not to be seduced by wasted time.”

Digital wellness expert Mark Ostach says he encourages people to “think about the micro-levels of digital trauma that exist when you quickly check your social media in between a conversation or right before you go to bed,” including digesting things like politically polarizing headlines or traumatic posts about a friend’s health. “It happens in a moment’s notice, and I believe it’s causing some low levels of trauma to what we think and how we feel.”

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