On an ordinary day, social media managers rate their mental health at 6.35 out of 10. During a crisis, their mental health declined by nearly two points to 4.52 out of 10. During COVID-19, social media managers ranked their mental health at 4.63. (Dobies and Huffman, 2020)

We all know by now how toxic social media can be and how it can impact one's mental health. Yet we still cannot stay away from it. We try detoxes, deleting a few of the applications we have, limiting our screen-time, turning off our notifications, and many more.

But how about us, the people who spend their working hours in digital media, social media?  How do we keep our sanity? Is it even possible? What can we do to help ourselves?

“Listen to music that makes you joyful or calm (classical music, jazz & electro swing are my picks)”  Ludovica Soleri, Freelance Digital Marketer.

Let's face it. Working as a digital marketing strategist can be downright exhausting. It feels like you have to be everywhere at once and available 24/7 — creating content, responding to and interacting with others, getting new followers, keeping an eye out for recent trends and planning for next week’s posts. The good news is that there are ways to handle the workload and stress to improve our mental health. 

Here are some of our tips for better mental health: 

Manage your time efficiently 

As digital marketing strategists, we deal with a busy schedule. On top of that, we usually need to stay online even after we publish that post. After posting at the optimal time, whatever that time could be, we need to keep an eye out for the post, respond to comments, and interact with people who might find the content interesting.

So, planning and organising your time will make a significant difference in your ability to cope with the set of activities you need to complete. Improving your time management will help you improve your performance and achieve your desired goals with less effort and more effective strategies. (Kashyap, 2020)

That sounds great, doesn’t it?

Know your working style & take breaks

Since the start of the pandemic, we’ve been simultaneously working from multiple devices. You might be able to stop checking your Instagram feed, but did you close your Desktop app as well? No cheating!

“Turn off notifications after a certain time” Sydney Arin Go, Content Marketing Manager. 

When I was working at EPO in 2019, I complained about this one software. This tiny dog kept coming onto our screens to remind us to take a break and move. When we first installed it, I hated it. I found it distracting. But once I realised when I liked to take my breaks or started losing focus, I set it up accordingly. Suddenly, I realised how useful this software could be. Moving after 45-60 minutes kept me awake and human.

I’ve found an app that serves a similar purpose that I love: Flow. It is super simple and looks cool on your screen. I set it up to remind me to take a break every 45 minutes. When I start working, every 45 minutes, I get reminded to stand up, take a walk, fill my water bottle—whatever feels right to take a break from the screen.

“Take some time in the morning before you start working” Hava Mansouri, Freelance Copy Writer.

Of course, depending on my workload or schedule, I sit for either longer or shorter periods. Because I lose focus after 45 minutes, I need to refresh a bit, even for just 1-2 minutes.

“Coloring books, drawing can be helpful to distract yourself from reality” Yagmur Sugunes, Freelance Content Creator.

Taking breaks is essential to recovering from stress, which can, in turn, improve your overall performance. Recovering from work stress can restore energy and mental reserves and reduce the development of fatigue, sleep disorders, and even some diseases. (The Importance of Taking Breaks - The Wellbeing Thesis, 2020)

Screen Time, Limits & Boundaries

Whenever a friend asks me about my screen time, I lie because I know my screen time will be way higher than theirs. This is my work, after all— seeing as I, work online.

“Set at least one day a week with no work at all (e.g. no checking work email or think about work & clients)” Ludovica Soleri, Freelance Digital Marketer.

Do you see the problem? How do I blame my job for my excessive screen time instead of owning it and trying to fix it? Because that would be a healthy step to take here, acknowledge the wrong and try to fix it. So how can we improve?

“Learn how to set boundaries (e.g. This space is for work, and I'll only work when I'm in this space.)” Sydney Arin Go, Content Marketing Manager 

1) Set App Limits -> With the iOS12 and above, we can track and monitor our time spent on our phone and social platforms. You can quickly go to

Settings>Screen Time>App Limits>Add Limits 

2)Bedtime Setting -> I get anxious when I don't reply to my notifications, messages. I am one of those people who hate having that red notification on apps. During the day, I stay away from notifications by using Flow and the Do Not Disturb setting. At night, I turn on my Bedtime Setting. Sleeping becomes much more comfortable when there's no temptation to reply to my DMs or check notifications. I still fail on this and check my phone from time to time, but this is a learning process, right?! 

“Delete work apps from your phone.” Sydney Arin Go, Content Marketing Manager 

Be more conscious with your social media usage 

The more an individual relies on social media to stay informed, the more likely the individual will experience social media fatigue. Nearly 50% of all influencers feel that their work impacts their mental health. (Dodgson, 2019)

So what can we learn from that? Developing conscious social media usage can help you avoid burnout and reach your full potential. 

1. 1. 1. 1. 1. 1. 1. Unfollow accounts that you don't love, the ones that don't make you feel good and pull you down.
                  2. Instead, follow inspiring accounts that help you, the content you want to see daily, the content that boosts you.
                  3. Mute your trigger words. If you know that certain words or post types can trigger you, you can mute and hide those posts from appearing on your feed.

Don’t forget about self-care 

Each week, usually Tuesdays and Fridays I have some me-time. What I mean by me-time is that I wake up a bit earlier than usual, enjoy a more extended shower with hair, face masks. Having that extra bit of an hour focusing on me boosts up my energy. Self-care can be anything and everything. It can be meditation or merely doing something you enjoy. 

“Have a "me time" at least twice a week (e.g. a bath with a book or some stretching)”  Ludovica Soleri, Freelance Digital Marketer.

It's important to make sure we take good care of our mind, body, and soul. Because if we are not ok, and not taking good care of ourselves, we won't function, well let's face it that wouldn't be good. It can be learning how to eat right, exercise more regularly, and take a time-out when you need it. These self-care steps can help us stay healthy, happy, and resilient.

“Cleaning, re-organising my room is the best therapy” Yagmur Sugunes, Freelance Content Creator. 

You're Not Perfect & That's ok

Well, it is obvious, but we need to be reminded of the fact that we are not perfect. It is essential to realise you did what you thought was best at the time, it was your best. That’s the best we can do, perfect doesn’t exist. We can make mistakes, and that’s alright, we grow with our mistakes we learn from them to recognise that they are learning opportunities and be thankful for them. Holding yourself to a realistic standard and knowing you will mess up will put your mental health in a much more healthy state.

“If I haven’t made the mistakes I have done in the past, I wouldn’t be who I am right now.” Ilkim Ertin, Digital Marketing Strategist 

We live in a fast-paced and challenging world, especially if you’re working in digital marketing, so take some time for self-care and look after your mind, soul and body. You are important. 

“Meditate (When you wake up, and before going to bed)” Yagmur Sugunes, Freelance Content Creator. 

Do whatever helps you maintain better mental health; this is not one shoe fits all scenario. I can admit that when it comes to working, I sometimes operate on autopilot. I forget to turn off my notifications or put my “Do Not Disturb” after work, I often check my notifications during the night. But I know that I am more conscious than before, and I know how to work on my mental health while being a social media manager. 

Questions? Is there anything that works for you that you would like to share with the rest of us? Share below in the comments — I’d love to help and hear them! 

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