In this new age of social media, it has a strong influence on everything within our daily lives – including relationships. Our individual online presence can have a profound impact on our mental health if we are not engaging with this tool in an effective manner.

Studies have shown that social media can negatively impact our relationships due to the ability that social media has in fostering an environment for comparison. Social comparison can be the downfall of a relationship if we allow it to interfere with our relationships because the human brain has innately been neurologically wired to think negatively. Therefore, if one does not implement some sort of safe guidelines within a relationship when social media begins to impact the relationship, it can cause one, or both individuals, to ruminate on the problem.

If social media is becoming a concern for you, it is important to begin establishing boundaries and outlining some rules for engaging safely in social media. Safety will look different in every single relationship. Safety is referring to healthy boundaries that ensure social media will not negatively impact your relationship. Ensuring that you both feel comfortable with the boundaries that you set together to maintain or re-build the trust that may have been impacted by social media in the past can be a difficult and uncomfortable process. It will entail having a conversation about what each of you feel to be reasonable rules and guidelines and discussed how social media is currently making you feel.

This conversation will look different for everyone, but an example would be, “When you do ______, I feel ______.” Using “I” statements can really help us to get our emotions across without making the other person feel as though we are attacking their character. Navigating the nuances of social media can be difficult but with work, we can ensure that we are clearly expressing our emotions and concerns to our partner to move forward and make positive changes.