08/07/2024
Social media and its rise to popularity directly correlates with the rise in Mental Health Issues over recent years. Social media, scrolling, and constantly checking ‘updates’: all these actions release dopamine and temporarily convince us that this is true happiness. Additionally, social media can be simultaneously absorbed while engaging in activities that also release dopamine – like watching television, enjoying a snack, or listening to music. These ‘simultaneously overlapping dopamine releases’ dull our perception of future dopamine release in comparison. This results in discontent with activities that were previously seen as ‘enjoyable’ and in mental health issues that may otherwise remain dormant.
In social media, we also seek validation for things that we may doubt about ourselves. Often reposts, retweets, likes, comments, and follows. All these fabricated forms of validation serve as a meaningless goal-to-achieve for those who are uncertain about their decisions or their paths in life. Whether they receive this validation or not, the result is equally harmful to mental health. Not receiving this false validation will force those individuals to further doubt themselves; and receiving will pigeonhole those individuals into a deeper reliance on social media to continuously seek that validation.
In these recognitions, we can understand that depression and anxiety disorders are at heighten risk of increase because of social medias relevant present in our modern world. This is one of the many factors that have led to the current Global Mental Health Crisis.
So, what may be our solution? Well, we think the answer is education. Simply knowing how harmful these platforms can be to your own mental health may allow you to restrict yourself to limited use. In moderation, we can find ways to use social media in more societally beneficial ways and avoid further mental health crises.
