 Hey Psych2goers, welcome back to our channel! There are some habits we have that we'd be better without. Then there are the habits that can really cause some damage to our mental health over the long run. What types of habits, you may ask? Well, here are six habits that can negatively affect your mental health. Number one, always being on social media. Do you use social media more often than you'd like? During your favorite TV show, at the dinner table, during the late hours of the night? Ah, that good ol' 3am YouTube binge. Well, stop. Too much of any one thing can have negative effects and way too much social media, such as Facebook, can possibly make you feel worse. A 2013 study from the University of Michigan, published in the journal PLOS One, found a correlation between Facebook use and dissatisfaction. For two weeks, researchers text-messaged subjects to see how individuals felt each moment and how satisfied they were with their lives. As the research published states, results indicate that Facebook use predicts negative shifts on both of these variables over time. The more people used Facebook at one time point, the worse they felt the next time we text-messaged them. The more they used Facebook over two weeks, the more their life satisfaction levels declined over time. That habit of checking your social media notifications every half hour? Mmm, time to go. At the very least, please lock your phone away before you go to bed. Yep, time to purchase an actual alarm clock. Number two, over-critical and negative thinking. Are you over-critical of yourself? Does your mind race with negative thoughts and harsh self-judgment? Research continues to show that your thoughts about yourself strongly affect how you feel. The best way to change any negative feelings you may have is to counteract them with a positive one. According to psychologist Patricia Hartnack, when we perceive ourselves and our life negatively, we can end up viewing experiences in a way that confirms that notion. Instead, practice using words that promote feelings of self-worth and personal power. So instead of saying, I was horrible at my math test, use positive words and self-compassion, like, I'll study harder next time, and then I'll do better on the next test. Number three, thinking you can't change for the better. Do you often feel as if you can't change? Are you worried these negative habits are set in stone for you? Accepting who we are can be healthy unless you're ignoring the negative habits that you can change. We aren't always set in stone. We're always changing. Our opinions, beliefs, habits, and actions can change for the better. Researchers suggest that seemingly permanent parts of your personality can indeed be changed. In their 2017 review article, published in the journal Psychological Bulletin, they reviewed 207 studies that had tracked changes in measures of personality traits during interventions, including true experiments and pre-post-change designs. They found therapy could cause a change in an individual's personality in as quick as four to eight weeks. As the review states, emotional stability was the primary trait domain showing changes as a result of therapy, followed by extraversion. So when you think all hope is lost, or if you've been discouraged with some of your behaviors, no other positive change can happen. If you have any of these negative habits, don't give up hope that you can defeat these habits and replace them with positive ones. Number four, never exercising. Exercise is not only important for our physical health, but our mental well-being as well. Pair this with a good diet and you're in for even happier results. Very happy. Regular exercise releases endorphins, which make us happy naturally. According to an article from Myoclinic, exercise can release feel-good endorphins. Natural cannabis-like brain chemicals, endogenous cannabinoids, and other natural brain chemicals that can enhance your sense of well-being. We'll not only feel happy and have better blood flow to our brain with exercise too, but we can gain a boost of proteins that will help grow the neural connections in our brain as well. Start with a walk, roll out the yoga mat, or take a dance class. Whatever gets you moving and feeling great should be a great habit to adopt. Number five, always arguing with your siblings. Are you always arguing with your siblings? It might be best to resolve your issues sooner rather than later, or at least make it a habit to not let things unnecessarily escalate. A 2007 study in the American Journal of Psychiatry found that males are at a higher risk for depression if they have poor relationships with their siblings. So which topics seem to cause the most problems? In 2012, researchers at the University of Missouri found that teenagers may be at a higher risk of going through depressive symptoms. Anxiety and low self-esteem if they're frequent arguments with their siblings fall into two categories. Those categories were violations of personal domain, or conflicts over fairness and equality. MU assistant professor of psychological science, Nicole Camponbar, found that conflicts over issues of equality and fairness are correlated to greater depression one year later, according to her research results. So while you may be arguing with your brother about who gets the last slice of pizza, it's best to hash it out and come to a compromise. Go from one large slice to two mini slices, one for each, still delicious and healthy. Well, this time maybe for your mental health that is. And number six, not sleeping enough. You knew this one was coming. The long hours spent hunched over your computer into the night are catching up to you, or at least they could make you feel pretty bad if you don't get enough sleep. We need a good night's rest to recharge with enough energy for the next day. Not getting your eight hours of sleep every night has been shown to negatively affect your mental health. What makes things worse is 60 to 90% of patients with depression also have insomnia, according to the Sleep Health Foundation. So people whose emotional well-being may already be suffering are possibly causing further health problems by not being able to get their full rest. Not only do you get grumpy and groggy from not getting enough sleep, but it's also not the best for your emotional well-being in the long run. So those late night YouTube binges, best to leave it for the morning. We'll see you then. So, do you have any of these habits? Do you have plans to slowly but surely replace them with healthier ones? How about integrating a walk during the day, or putting your phone across the room at night? Feel free to share with us some great habits to help replace the ones you don't want in the comment section down below. If you enjoyed this video, don't forget to click the like button and share it with a friend. Subscribe to Psych2Go and hit the notification bell icon for more content like this. And as always, thanks for watching.