TikTok Addiction: Causes, Signs, & How to Stop

What Is a TikTok Addiction?

TikTok addiction refers to using TikTok excessively and problematically. Over time, this can result in significant mental health distress.TikTok is a video-sharing platform that encourages people to create, share, and follow content about various topics. It shares some similarities with Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube, but its well-known algorithm provides customized content that keeps users scrolling.¹

Many people can moderate their use with TikTok. But just as someone can experience a video game addiction or an internet addiction, it’s also possible to experience a social media addiction to the platform. Some of the main signs of a behavioral addiction include feeling anxious or irritable when you’re without the platform or sacrificing other responsibilities to spend more time online.

Is TikTok Addiction Real?

Social media addiction isn’t recognized in the DSM-5 as a diagnosable condition. That said, most mental health experts recognize the impact of social media on emotional well-being. They also tend to conceptualize problematic TikTok use as a behavioral addiction.

While research on social media is relatively new, the phenomenon of ‘TikTok Brain’ seems to be backed by data. Watching personalized, algorithm-driven videos activates neurotransmitters within the brain’s reward center. Likewise, excessive use may impact learning systems and memory circuits, making people even more susceptible to compulsive use.²

What Makes TikTok Addictive?

While all social media platforms now recommend content for users, this is the primary model of how TikTok works. The algorithm is designed to accurately predict which content you will prefer to engage with, creating a constant feedback loop of endless attractive content. Like gambling addiction, there’s an ongoing dopamine drip when using TikTok. The brain grows to desire this ongoing dopamine, sometimes referred to as a dopamine addiction, causing people to continue turning to the platform.

Signs Of TikTok Addiction

Behavioral addictions can happen quickly or slowly, but the rise of social media has made it easier for people of all ages to struggle with such compulsions. Children, in particular, may be more susceptible to these insidious effects. The Bergen Facebook Addiction Scale consists of six questions that indicate problematic Facebook use.³ These questions can likely be applied to TikTok to identify addiction problems.

Signs of a TikTok addiction include:

• Feeling restless when not using TikTok
• Feeling easily distracted when not using TikTok
• Experiencing heightened FOMO (fear of missing out) when not using TikTok
• Neglecting relationships or important responsibilities due to TikTok
• Wanting to cut down on TikTok use but feeling unable to do so
• Having sleep problems (i.e. consistently going to bed very late) due to using TikTok

TikTok’s Effect on Mental and Emotional Health

There are inherent risks that social media apps have on our mental health, and it’s essential to be mindful of these risks. All technology can be addictive, and we still don’t know the long-term effects of social media on brain development, emotional well-being, and happiness. Likewise, the time spent on apps often takes away from other important responsibilities like cultivating relationships, pursuing hobbies, and even staying engaged at work.

TikTok’s effects on mental and emotional health include:

Decreased Attention Span

TikTok is built on short-form videos, and researchers believe that the increased use of social networking is associated with shorter attention spans.⁴ Overall, it’s no secret that people tend to be less patient, and people are finding it harder to engage in longer activities (like reading a book, watching a whole movie, or participating in a class lecture) without relying on distractions.

This can be especially concerning for teens and young adults, as their brains are still developing. The long-term consequences of a shortened attention span may include difficulty managing tasks, relationship problems, procrastination, and poor physical health.

Cyberbullying

Cyberbullying is a rampant problem on all social media platforms, including TikTok. Research shows that 37% of teenagers have been bullied online, and 15% of teen girls have been the target of at least four types of cyberbullying behavior. A history of cyberbullying is associated with depression, self-harm, and suicidal ideation, and while most teenagers witness online bullying, few of them actually intervene or tell an adult about what’s happening.⁵

Inappropriate Content

While TikTok has safety settings, it’s incredibly easy to access inappropriate content. Most parents are completely unaware of what their young children or teenagers are viewing. TikTok’s unique algorithm may also make users more likely to see influencing content based on someone’s natural curiosity.

Easy Access for Predators

Like all social media, TikTok can be a cesspool for predators. TikTok naturally encourages performance, and young people are often eager to share their videos to the world. But they can never fully know their audience. TikTok’s “duets” feature, which permits people to dance and sing along with another user is one way predators reach out to kids and teenagers.

Toxic or Harmful Advice

TikTok has come under fire for being complicit in showing videos promoting everything from self-harm to eating disorders to drug abuse. And because the videos are largely unregulated, it’s easy for creators to spew dangerous advice to their followers. In addition, while the app requires that people be at least 13 to engage with content, all someone has to do is lie about their birthday.

Decreased Time Spent Cultivating Real-World Connection

Satisfying relationships are one of the most important facets of emotional well-being. Paradoxically, as a society, we seem to be lonelier than ever before. Social media was meant to connect us, but the effects are far more complicated. Social media has a way of making us feel inadequate, insecure, and lonely- all of which can have catastrophic effects on our mental health.

Who Is Most At-Risk of TikTok Addiction?

Young adults are most likely to be impacted by social media addiction, although anyone is at risk. People with mental health problems are also more likely to report spending time on social media, although this may be correlational data.⁶ It’s likely that being depressed and anxious can cause you to isolate more, which can predispose someone to abusing social media.

The concept of an addictive personality is controversial. But certain risk factors may increase the risk of developing an addiction. These risk factors include low self-esteem, a history of trauma, interpersonal difficulties, a family history of addiction, and the presence of other past or current addictions.

How Is TikTok Addiction Connected to Mental Illness?

People with social media addictions are more likely to have other mental health conditions, including depression, anxiety, PTSD, eating disorders, and personality disorder. There is currently no scientific evidence that a TikTok addiction causes a mental health condition, but there does seem to be a correlation between social media use and mental health challenges. For example, people can become anxious trying to get more views on their videos or posts or depressed because they don’t feel they live up to the unrealistic lifestyles shown on TikTok. Social media use can certainly exacerbate problematic symptoms. Likewise, having poor mental health may provoke someone to abuse social media as a coping mechanism.

Can TikTok Addiction Be Prevented?

It’s unrealistic to expect any single treatment or plan to prevent addiction altogether. Addiction is complex, and it isn’t caused by a single trigger. That said, it’s important to consider establishing limits for yourself. Think about how much time you reasonably want to spend using social media and aim to commit to that boundary. If you’re a parent, have open discussions with your child and set ground rules about what will and won’t be tolerated.

8 Tips for How to Limit Time on TikTok

You can check screen time on both iPhone and Android devices. You can also look at how much time you spend on TikTok by using the settings and privacy control panel and clicking on ‘screen time’ to view your daily and weekly TikTok use. This information can help you establish baseline data for how much you’re using the app.

Here are eight tips to reduce or eliminate your time on TikTok:

1. Set a timer: Set timers for how long you want to use TikTok at a time.
2. Create ‘TikTok Free’ places and time: Have locations/times where you don’t engage with TikTok at all. This sets clear boundaries for your use.
3. Focus on alternative hobbies: Spend more time engaging in hobbies that feel meaningful to you.
4. Put your phone in the other room: Try to get in the habit of putting your phone in another location if you find yourself scrolling mindlessly.
5. Have an accountability partner: Find a friend or family member who understands your goals and will support you in spending less time on TikTok.
6. Practice more mindfulness: Acknowledge that you will feel some anxiety when you reduce using TikTok and practice letting the discomfort pass.
7. Know your triggers: Think about when you’re most likely to waste time on TikTok and consider what you can do during that time instead.
8. Take a full detox/reset: Commit to spending at least a week off TikTok. You may feel uncomfortable, but you will also cultivate more insight into how you want to move forward with your TikTok habits.

Treatment for a TikTok Addiction

Treatment for a TikTok addiction will typically entail examining TikTok as a symptom of an underlying problem. Your therapist will help you explore how and why you’re using TikTok to cope with other issues in your life, such as anxiety, depression, loneliness, or low self-esteem. The first step toward getting treatment is starting therapy, preferably with someone who specializes in behavioral addictions. You can find a referral through your doctor, a trusted friend or family member, professional therapist directories, or an online therapy service.

Therapy for Behavioral Addiction

Even though TikTok is new, behavioral addiction isn’t. The treatment process may entail a combination of cognitive-behavioral, mindfulness, and relational-based interventions. You may benefit from either in-person or online therapy, and in either individual or online group therapy formats.

Therapy options for addressing a TikTok addiction include:

• Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT): CBT helps treat addiction by teaching clients how cognitive distortions maintain problematic thoughts. By learning to change certain thoughts, you can improve how you react and feel.
• Dialectical behavior therapy (DBT): DBT focuses on mindfulness, interpersonal skills, emotional regulation, and distress tolerance, all of which can help with addiction.
• Motivational Interviewing (MI): MI can help people who feel ambivalent about working on their addiction, and is beneficial for helping clients evaluate their options for change.
• Group therapy: Group therapy provides peer support and accountability for changing behaviors. Young people, who are often impressionable, may benefit from this type of therapy format.

In My Experience

All social media has the ability to be addictive, and young people appear to be more vulnerable to this impact. The effects can be even more concerning for children and adolescents who only know a world with mainstream social media. For this reason, it’s important for children and their parents to be aware of the potential risks and have ongoing conversations about what is and isn’t safe. TikTok can be an extremely slippery slope, and if you think you’re using it in excess, it’s worth examining your relationship with it.