How to Use Social Media Without Compromising Your Mental Health w/Dr. Arlene Cooke

Since its inception, social media hasn’t just become a huge part of our daily lives. For many people, especially young people, it has infiltrated identity, sense of self, and mental well-being. 

It has exacerbated and even triggered many emotional difficulties people face, from anxiety and depression to addiction and self-harm. 

It’s really hard not to be online, so it’s not as simple as eliminating social media from our lives altogether. There are, however, steps we can take to use it more healthily and mitigate some of its negative effects. 

How does social media affect our thinking, mood, and behavior? What can we do to make social media a more positive and healthier experience? 

In this episode, I’m joined by Consultant Clinical Psychologist, DBT Therapist, and Mindfulness Teacher, Dr. Arlene Cooke. She shares how social media impacts your mental health, and how to shift our use of it.

See social media as a tool and think of how you can use it in a healthier way. -Dr. Arlene Cooke

Things You’ll Learn In This Episode

• Social media’s impact on identity
  How does social media affect an individual’s sense of self, especially in adolescence?
• The downstream effects of social media
  The harm of social media isn’t just in spending too much time on it. How does it uproot us from activities that promote health and mental well-being?
• A measured and moderate approach
  It wouldn’t be realistic to banish social media from our lives forever, so what’s a better way to deal with it?
• It starts with you
  Are children and teens modeling online behaviors they see at home, and how do we influence healthier behaviors?

Guest Bio

Dr. Arlene Cooke is a Consultant Clinical Psychologist, DBT Therapist and Mindfulness Teacher. She has 25+ years of wide-ranging clinical experience in both outpatient and inpatient settings located nationally and internationally. As a psychologist, Dr. Cooke specializes in treating mental health difficulties such as emotional dysregulation, identity issues, depression, anxiety, life transition challenges, and relationship issues. Connect with Dr. Cooke on LinkedIn.