Are you Addicted to Social Media? Take the test!

Fact: People spend an average of 135 minutes per day on social media! That’s nearly 2 and a half hours a day. 17.5 hours a week!

Nearly 113 working days a YEAR! And that’s just the average!

But let me just say – just because that’s the ’average’ doesn’t mean it’s ok! A lot of people who come in to work with me often tell me, “I’d love to do more <yoga/gym/walking/jogging/etc> but I just don’t have the time. Hmmmmm.

So when does ‘staying connected’ become a problem?
The Bergen Social Media Addition Scale is a short survey used in psychological research to measure people’s use and whether they’re addicted. Let’s see how you rate:

Here are six statements to consider. For each, answer 1 (very rarely), 2 (rarely), 3 (sometimes), 4 (often), and 5 (very often).

1) You spend a lot of time thinking about social media or planning how to use it.
2) You feel an urge to use social media more and more.
3) You use social media in order to forget about personal problems.
4) You have tried to cut down on the use of social media without success.
5) You become restless or troubled if you are prohibited from using social media.
6) You use social media so much that it has had a negative impact on your job/studies.

If you scored a 4 or 5 (often or very often) on at least 4 of those statements – you very well may have a problem!

Switch the phone/ipad/computer off and step away from the mouse!