WARNING - MENTION OF SELF HARM AND SUICIDE
Introduction
The rise of social media has greatly affected all aspects of our lives, including our psychological well-being. The number of people suffering globally from mental health problems has severely increased in recent years. A study carried out by Cambridge College MIT has said College-wide access to Facebook led to an increase in severe depression by 7% and anxiety disorder by 20%. This is not the only research showing direct links between social media and mental health issues.
Impact on our Mental Health
Because of factors such as comparing yourself negatively to other's online personas, cyberbullying, excessive negative media consumption, lack of human connection, exposure to inappropriate content, privacy concerns, and sleep problems. We can end up viewing everything negatively, such as our society, the world, and ourselves.
The excess mental stress this causes has been proven to increase levels of mental health issues such as anxiety, loneliness, depression, self-harm, and in some extreme cases, suicide. Here are some specific social media issues I think cause the most harm to teenager's mental health and how to improve them.
Comparison
Using social media regularly can cause us to see exaggerated or false portrayals of other people's lives and events online. This can increase feelings of FOMO (fear of missing out), inadequacy, and dissatisfaction by causing us to compare our mundane moments to other's highlights, this not only gives us a warped perception of the world around us but can make us belittle our lives as a result.
The other side of this is people feel the need to post edited or fake pictures to get reactions from people online. This can also make people feel inadequate and unsatisfied because they can feel as though they are presenting a fake version of themselves.
One way to resolve this is to try to show our lives authentically. One example of this is an app called “BeReal.”. They are trying to show this by giving each continent/time zone 2 minutes per day to “be real”.
This includes posting a picture of whatever they are doing with both their front and back cameras. The notification is at a different time every day so you cannot predict it. You then see your friends' posts, which show that everyone must do mundane activities.
Excessive consumption of negative media
While social media has allowed us to connect with people all around the world and learn anything we wish, it also gives us a constant stream of information about global problems over which we have little control. This perspective of having to watch and not help can cause people to get overwhelmed with feelings of stress, anxiety, and hopelessness. Since we have hundreds of news outlets with their own apps, channels, and accounts, social media can be a source of constant news.
While it is important to be knowledgeable on current affairs, too much negative information can cause raised levels of anxiety. To lessen the impact. We can try to limit our intake of media, especially on stressful days. We can also help by donating, peacefully protesting, and helping to educate others on important matters. This helps us to focus on what is within our reach and
Loss of human connection
Because of the newfound ability to do nearly everything remotely, we have become more isolated. From having everything delivered to our houses to being able to communicate and work from home, we have found ways to substitute human contact with technology. While these advancements have helped our society in ways, they have also contributed to the rising levels of loneliness, and subsequently other mental health issues.
A study published in SageJournals has said people aged 18 to 39 using more types of social media experienced higher levels of emotional loneliness since the COVID-19 pandemic. By increasing in-person contact, we can make real emotional connections and boost chemicals such as oxytocin and serotonin, which will in turn help improve our psychological well-being.
Cyberbullying
Since the rise of social media in recent years, cyberbullying has increased. Cyberbullying can be achieved more easily because of the anonymity and protection technology gives you. It is also unlike school because you cannot escape it.
You always carry your phone with you. So the horrible comments are always in your back pocket. Since we have a lack of protection and awareness around cyberbullying, it is becoming more common than in-person bullying. All types of bullying can cause people to have lower self-esteem, anxiety, depression, and other mental health issues. To stop this, we can report and block accounts that post negative comments, and make our profiles private so only friends and family can comment.
5 Steps of Mental Wellbeing
An article by the NHS suggests there are 5 steps to mental wellbeing – Connect with people, Be physically active, Learn new skills, Give to others, and pay attention to the current moment. While social media can help us with these in some ways, such as learning a new skill and communicating, it prevents us from others such as being present in the current moment, making true connections with people, and being physically active.
As these are cornerstones to mental well-being, reducing our screen time and increasing our levels of self-care activities can help us to make sure we achieve these 5 steps of mental well-being while also being involved in the world of technology.
Conclusion
In conclusion, social media has altered the way our society operates. Technology has advanced so far that we now have fully electric cars and machines used in life-saving surgeries. Social media allows us to contact people from around the globe and it helps us stay connected through the COVID-19 pandemic.
While there are some incredible benefits, we now also use it to replace essential parts of psychological well-being such as in-person communication and mindfulness. Now technology and social media are so heavily integrated with our world that we cannot avoid it. Cutting social media and technology out of our lives is not only unsustainable but unnecessary. By reducing our screen time and trying to be more mindful of the world around us in the current moment, we not only get to experience our lives to the fullest, but we also get to see the amazing things technology and social media can do. We just need a healthy balance.
