We now live in the digital age, a time where social media has become more important than in-person relationships and communication. The culture of social media is mainly concentrated between the ages of 15-25 but spans across all ages. I am 19 years old which means I have been alive and understanding of most huge technological advances that have taken place over the last few years. But it also means that I experienced DSL and the launch of the Motorola Razr. People my age have been bred to understand the new technology but to also respect it in a way that younger kids do not.
It is now an assumption that every person between the ages of 15 and 25 have a social media presence. From Snapchat to Instagram we all portray a person that might not be who we are in real life. This façade that a lot of us hide behind can damage self-esteem and change how we create and maintain healthy relationships. I only know a few people my age that do not follow their feeds daily on Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat, etc. My boyfriend believes that I may be addicted to my phone but honestly, I use it as a way to cope with stressful situations or decompress after a long day. Since middle school, I have been obsessed with watching YouTube videos. I find watching other people’s lives and adventures helps me to escape my own for five to twenty minutes a day. I use other forms of social media such as, Instagram and Snapchat to keep up with friends to share things that I do in my life.
I can barely remember a time when social media wasn’t a part of my daily routine. I have established and maintained many relationships through the internet. The internet has created a whole new sub-culture all over the world in which everyone has an equal chance of learning new ideas and meeting new people. Unfortunately, this culture doesn’t come without faults. People my age have grown and developed in an era that requires an online persona which is usually quite different than who we are in real life. This need to portray a happy and healthy individual at all times creates a huge amount of pressure.
I always stop to contemplate posting pictures before I do because I understand the lasting effects one post can have on your future success. I watch other people my age posting Snapchat stories of them drinking and doing drugs along with half-naked pictures of them and their friends and recognize that even if they are having fun at that moment those pictures and videos may come back to bite them in the butt. It is easy to feel left out when you can watch every aspect of someone’s night out from start to finish especially if you already feel alone.
Social media has enforced stereotypes and encouraged bullying by giving negativity a platform to thrive on. Young people are easily brainwashed into believing that they must look a certain way or have a large amount of money to be happy. The general populace’s self-esteem has suffered at the hands of social media usage. Ignoring negativity online, whether it has to do with cyberbullying or depictions of violence, sex, and drugs, has become a full-time job for many teenagers and young adults. Many parents don’t realize how dark the web can be and how quickly we as young adults can get wrapped up in bad situations at the click of a button.
As for how my mental illness is affected by social media it all has to do with how I am feeling before I click on something. Most often a post or a comment won’t send me spiraling into depression but if I am already feeling sensitive I have to recognize that it may not be a good idea to watch a ton of videos of owners seeing their dogs for the first time after being deployed because that would make me more upset.
Unfortunately, social media and the internet are not something parents have control over because of how vast it can be. It is our job as young adults to use the resources that we have as a tool for our mental health instead of something we use against each other. Over the past few years, the amount of support for taboo topics such as mental health and body positivity has grown as the knowledge and awareness of mental illness has spread. Social media can be such a wonderful tool if it is utilized in a way that lifts others up instead of putting them down.
By: Hannah Smitley, Anxiety In Teens contributor