Cream City Digest with tips on returning to social media (if and when!) with Thekla Brumder Ross

Gather Connect Create || (formerly Cream City Dreams)

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This week's episode is chock FULL of tips on how to set boundaries if and when we decide to return to social media after this summer detox. If you've been following along on your own detox, but fear the dip back into the socials like I do, this is the episode you don't want to miss. Thekla and I talk all about protecting ourselves and being mindfully aware of our intentions upon return.

And if you want to dive more into some of the research we talk about in today's episode, here are the links you'll want (h/t Thekla!)

Self-Compassion in the Age of Social Media Resources

Scholarly Articles

1. Castelo, N., Kushlev, K., Ward, A.F., Esterman, M., & Reiner, P.B. (2025). Blocking mobile internet on smartphones improves sustained attention, mental health, and subjective well-being. PNAS Nexus, 4(2): pgaf017. https://doi.org/10.1093/pnasnexus/pgaf017. PMID: 39967678; PMCID: PMC11834938.
2. Kuchar AL, Neff KD, Mosewich AD. Resilience and Enhancement in Sport, Exercise, & Training (RESET): A brief self-compassion intervention with NCAA student-athletes. Psychol Sport Exerc. 2023 Jul;67:102426. doi: 10.1016/j.psychsport.2023.102426. Epub 2023 Mar 28. PMID: 37665879.
3. Wadsley M, Ihssen N. A Systematic Review of Structural and Functional MRI Studies Investigating Social Networking Site Use. Brain Sci. 2023 May 11;13(5):787. doi: 10.3390/brainsci13050787. Erratum in: Brain Sci. 2023 Jul 17;13(7):1079. doi: 10.3390/brainsci13071079. PMID: 37239257; PMCID: PMC10216498.

Websites/Organizations

1. Center for Humane Technology. humanetech.com
2. Digital Wellness Lab at Boston Children's Hospital. digitalwellnesslab.org
3. After Babel by Jonathan Haidt. (Substack)

Scales/Measures

• The Bergen Social Media Addiction Scale (BSMAS)

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