Written by: Hamin Park
Artwork by Lindy Um
There are many social media posts regarding mental health issues on platforms such as Instagram, Youtube, and Tiktok. Titled, “day in the life with depression” or “things anxious people relate to”, these media target people struggling with mental problems and aim to receive views by its relatable and casual way of depicting it.
Repetitively viewing these posts can be highly detrimental to one’s mental health. The algorithm aggressively directs users to these kinds of mental health spaces and subsequently feeds them often misguided and toxic lifestyles. Vulnerable young people have been known to develop eating disorders or pick up inadvisable coping mechanisms as a result of interacting in such online spaces. And because they continue to interact with such content, these young people can find it extremely difficult to break out of these toxic bubbles.
One of the most dangerous impacts of these “relatable” mental health contents, is that they normalize the lifestyle of the wrong ways of dealing with mental issues, such as completely ignoring the problem or practicing unhealthy coping mechanisms. Normalization often leads to the glamorization of certain mental illnesses, even a competition. For instance, the practice and development of eating disorders are being portrayed as an “ aesthetic” or “ideal” lifestyle. Some people struggling from anorexia post “what I eat in a day” videos, creating a toxic competition of who has a more restrictive diet.
The overwhelming portrayal of mental health issues on social media has also led to inaccurate self-diagnosis. The mental health community on TikTok has helped in the reduction of stigmas and stereotypes associated with mental health – which has encouraged individuals to seek professional help. While this is positive, there is still concern around the way people view content and subsequently self-diagnosing without proper screening and testing by a licensed healthcare professional.
The negative impact of such content on mental wellbeing can be supported by the learned helplessness theory. Learned helplessness is a psychological phenomenon in which a person learns that he or she cannot avoid bad things happening in the future. This causes him or her to stop trying to prevent them. Learned helplessness is often associated with depression. Constantly viewing posts on social media, explicitly portraying unhealthy lifestyles and the struggles of common mental health issues could lead to informational learned helplessness, preventing viewers from seeking help and changing habits for recovery. Rather than seeking comfort from “relatable” posts regarding mental health issues on social media, surround yourself with positivity and actively seek ways to boost your mental health. As much as there are unhealthy content on social media platforms, there are also helpful ones that you could get inspiration from!
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