Facebook is one of the most popular ways to keep in touch with loved ones. But while the platform helps us all stay connected, spending longer online can also increase our exposure to negative news and views.
If you feel that your mental health has suffered as a result of using Facebook, it's time to optimize your account and form a better relationship with the social network. And in this article, we show you how.
Unfollow Your Friends
Unfollowing your friends on Facebook works the same as muting someone on Instagram or Twitter. If you've got a friend or close family member who always shares negative content, this feature is handy.
When you unfollow someone on Facebook, you will stay friends with them. However, their posts will no longer appear in your news feed.
To unfollow someone on Facebook, go to their profile and click on the person icon with a tick. You will see an option to unfollow them on there; click on this and then you’re done.
You can also snooze a person to stop seeing their posts temporarily, which is one of the ways that Facebook can help your mental health. Go to the three dots in the top right-hand side of a user's post, and select Snooze [Name] for 30 days.
When snoozing someone, remember that you can only do this from your news feed.
Turn Off Certain Notifications
Do you find that a lot of the notifications you get are a waste of time? If so, you can choose to stop receiving some of them.
On your screen will be a bell icon. Click on this and go to the three dots in the right-hand corner. When you're here, go to Notification Settings.
You will find options to turn push, email, and SMS notifications on and off for various categories in the settings screen. For some features, such as pages you follow and other (game requests, etc.), you can also decide whether or not you want to receive notifications for these. Turn off as many as you feel you need to.
Only Use Facebook on Your Desktop
Often, we log onto social media either out of habit or because we feel anxious about missing out on something. If you're spending far too much time scrolling through Facebook on your phone, you might want to consider deleting the app.
Deleting the Facebook app will not deactivate your account. You can still talk to people through the Facebook Messenger app and sign into Facebook on your desktop computer.
To delete Facebook from your phone, hold onto the app’s icon and wait for the list of options to show. On here, select Remove App and confirm.
You might find that deleting the Facebook app will make you use your phone's web browser instead. If you think that will happen, or you catch yourself doing this, consider downloading a website-blocking app.
You can also set time limits in the Screen Time app on your iPhone for both the app and website.
Unfollow News Outlets
While it's essential to stay updated on the latest national safety measures and government restrictions, you don't need to see every post from every publication's page. News websites need user clicks to generate money, and negative headlines sell better than positive ones.
To protect your mental wellbeing, unlike news pages and instead, skim the headlines on their website once every week.
If you’d like to unlike a news page on Facebook, you've got two options. The first way is to go to a news outlet's profile. On here, you will find a blue button at the top saying Liked. Click on this, and you will no longer see their updates on your homepage.
Alternatively, you can go to your personal profile and click on More. If you scroll down to Likes, you will find a list of pages that you follow. Hover over their icon and tap the Liked button to unlike them.
Use Facebook to Arrange Calls and Meet-Ups With Friends
Facebook is a great place to catch up with friends and schedule a time to see them in person. You can also build excitement by talking about your plans and later talk about the fun you had too.
If you're on your desktop, go to your screen's bottom right and click on the pencil and notepad icon. After typing in the name of the person you want to contact, write your message and send it.
On your phone, you can use the Messenger app instead. When you open the app, search for the person you want to talk to. You can either send them a text message or call them via phone and video.
If you can't meet up with people because of local restrictions, you can also use Facebook to speak to your friends. In the Messenger app on your phone, you can video call people by clicking on the video icon in your screen's top right.
Alternatively, you can select Create Room on the Chats tab to start a group call or schedule one for later.
If you want to enjoy Facebook videos with your friends, you can host a Facebook Watch Party instead.
Unfriend Everyone You're Not Close To
If you feel like you've got too many friends on your Facebook profile, you might benefit from unfriending everyone you no longer speak to. This will allow you to focus more energy on those who matter.
To unfriend users, head to your profile and go to the Friends tab underneath your bio and profile picture. Click on Friends > Unfriend. You can use this to unfriend people even if they have deactivated their accounts.
Alternatively, you can click on anyone's profile and tap the person with a tick icon. From there, choose Unfriend from the list of options.
People will be able to re-add you once you've unfriended them, and if your security settings allow, they can still send you messages. So, if someone's harassing you, consider blocking them instead.
Use Facebook for the Better
Facebook has been working to help users reduce anxiety online, with an example being the use of AI to stop hateful content. However, you can still take further steps to reduce anxiety yourself.
Unfriending toxic people, tweaking your notifications, and optimizing your news feed will help to make using Facebook a more positive experience.
