How Social Media Is Affecting Your Relationship
The short answer
Social media affects your relationship in three main ways: it opens the door to reconnecting with old flames or starting new relationships, it pulls you into comparing your spouse or your life to someone else’s, and it takes away quality time together. It won’t make or break a marriage, but the habits you create with it can lead to problems, so examine how you spend your time.
Key takeaways
- Social media makes it easy to reconnect with old flames, and a like can turn into comments and then private messages.
- Hiding what you do online from your spouse is a warning sign worth taking seriously.
- Comparing your spouse or your life to what you see online can breed dissatisfaction in your marriage.
- Time on your phone is time away from your spouse, so take an honest look at your habits and make changes.
Here’s How Social Media Is Affecting Your Marriage
Have you seen Social Media affect your marriage? We definitely have. And while it isn’t going to be what “makes or breaks” a marriage, the habits we create with social media can lead to problems.
And in this article, we’ll discuss the top three ways that social media can affect your relationship.
It Opens Up Possibilities To Connect With Others Emotionally
First, it opens up possibilities to reconnect with old flames (or start new relationships). Liking a post turns into commenting on a post, commenting on a post turns into private messaging… and so it goes.
Here’s the bottom line, if you’re hiding what you do from your spouse, or doing things in secret, it is a cause for concern.
It Draws You Toward Comparison
With Social Media, you can start comparing your spouse to someone else OR your life to someone else’s.
Comparison can lead to dissatisfaction. Not only that, but some studies suggest there is a link between an increase in social media usage and a decrease in marital satisfaction. That is, the more time someone spends online, the less happy they are with their marriage.
It Takes Away Quality Time
And the more time you spend on social media means the less time you spend with your spouse.
Whether you’re “out and about” or just sitting at home, if you, your spouse, or both of you are on your phones you can miss out on quality time together. You are in the same physical space, but absent in heart and mind.
So what should you do?
Examine Your Habits
Hear this: Examine your habits. How are you spending your time? Do you look at social media more than you connect with your spouse? And, do you want to make changes? If so, you can absolutely start making changes today!
But what if you don’t like spending time or talking with your spouse… What then? Let us help you get back on track! We believe you can become friends again and create an amazing marriage where you want to spend time together! You can learn how to do this from our Workshops, Coaching, and Online Courses.
Does social media continue to cause problems in your marriage? If you feel like your spouse is hiding something from you, Read our article on snooping (and why it’s a bad idea).
Common questions
Is it a red flag if my spouse is messaging an old flame on social media?
Liking a post can turn into commenting, and commenting can turn into private messaging. The bottom line is that if someone is hiding what they do online or doing things in secret, it is a cause for concern.
Can social media make you unhappy in your marriage?
It can. Comparing your spouse or your life to what you see online can lead to dissatisfaction, and some studies suggest a link between more social media use and lower marital satisfaction.
How do I stop my phone from taking time away from my spouse?
Examine your habits. Ask how you’re spending your time and whether you look at social media more than you connect with your spouse, then start making changes so you’re present in heart and mind, not just in the same room.