CHARLOTTE – Social media can be overwhelming and scary, but it doesn’t have to be.

The secret is to limit it in your life, even if you’re using it for business. The never-ending newsfeed scroll makes us feel like we’re missing stuff, but it’s not the stuff we need anyway.

Algorithms are excellent at pinpointing what type of updates are most important to you and showing them to you first.

Social media is one of those things that is a great servant but a terrible master. Look at your regular schedule and routine and determine how much time you really have for it in your day. Then limit your time spent scrolling to whatever that is. Set a timer if you have to.

Especially during a presidential election year, social media can really affect our mental health negatively, even more so during a global pandemic.

I keep saying it and I will continue to say it, curate your feeds to bring you joy, not stress. There’s no reason to get the news from several different platforms. If you watch the news on TV, skip it on social media. Or pick one social media platform to get your news from, I recommend Twitter for news.

Most importantly, when you’re feeling overwhelmed and like the world is just too much, step away from the screens and remember, you control your social media use, not the other way around.