Blue Light Exposure and Mental Health

We may be aware of the data around how much time we spend on a screen (an average of 4 hours per day for adults and up to 9 hours for teens!), how being on our phones impacts our mental health (worsening mood!), and how screens interfere with sleep (it impacts our hormones!) and yet we continue to be hooked. It is so hard to change our behavior and usage. Of course, screen time increased during the pandemic because WHAT ELSE WERE WE SUPPOSED TO DO?! Perhaps you spit out your coffee when you read that teens are on their devices for 9 hours a day! Over a lifetime, that is equivalent time that would be spent flying to the moon and back 32 times. There are certainly many positives to being able to stay in touch with others and remain in the know with current events, but we would do better to not ignore the big impact of these little blue light devices. 

Paradoxically, the constant “connection” we seek through our devices tends to actually make us feel disconnected and drives anxiety and depressive symptoms. Quite often, we are mindlessly scrolling because it has become habitual and social media apps do not have stopping cues. I like to think about one’s connection with their device(s) in the context of a relationship to provide perspective: 

How strong is the bond and time commitment? How do you feel when you’re separated? Is there a power dynamic or does it replace other relationships? Are you attuned to your needs and have the skills to set boundaries as needed? Is the dynamic healthy?

For so many of us, we may set out with the best intentions – to be more mindful of time spent on the device, to not look at a screen starting an hour before bedtime, to not charge the phone in our bedroom – and yet these goals remain difficult. The reason for this is there is an actual reward signal sent to our brains when we use our screens. Dopamine is a neurotransmitter and a feel-good hormone that is released during certain device activity that makes us feel motivation, happiness, and arousal. Along the way with our screen time usage, we have shown our brains that there is a pattern it can look forward to: random bursts of dopamine. A neural network has been created and we have conditioned our brains to wade through the mundane to seek those recurring dopamine hits. And because this hormone metabolizes quickly, we are simply left wanting more. 

As our exposure to blue wavelengths from our devices extends into nighttime hours, the secretion of melatonin is suppressed, and our circadian rhythm gets dysregulated. When there is an imbalance in certain hormones -- melatonin which controls sleep and dopamine or serotonin, both “feel-good hormones” that are involved in the sleep/wake cycle, our mood and emotions are affected.

We are wired to connect with others. It is a basic human need. In order to continue using our devices for these benefits and for other entertainment, we must be smarter about how we engage with our screens. We can shift the relationship to one where we are in control. Some ways that we can do this include curating what we see and consume online, adhering to screen time limits, getting off our devices two to three hours before bed, wearing blue light glasses when screen usage cannot be avoided, and getting light from sunshine during early daytime hours. That said, during the day, follow me @yepigototherapy for more mental health and wellness information!

Juliet Kuehnle is the owner and a therapist at Sun Counseling and Wellness in Charlotte, NC. Her mission is to destigmatize therapy and to elevate and normalize the dialogue around mental health. Along with doing this on Instagram @yepigototherapy , Kuehnle also hosts a weekly podcast called “Who You Callin’ Crazy?!” that can be found wherever you stream podcasts.