The Effects That Social Media Can Have on the Mental Health of Teenagers

Social media has recently become unavoidable as it has become more intertwined in the lives of children, teenagers, and adults. Keeping them in touch with one another and informed about what is going on in the world is great, but with all these benefits, there are also many downsides. One of these disadvantages is the impact social media can have on a teenager's mental health. Not only are teens' developing brains vulnerable to so much time online, but because they often have difficulty self-regulating their screen time, their risks can increase with the more time they spend. Additionally, they are also more susceptible to peer pressure, cyberbullying, and sexting, all activities involving digital communication, which makes navigating the online social world treacherous at times. 3. We can see that social media has negative effects on teenagers' mental health when we observe A. formalised Researchers are just beginning to establish a link between depression and social media. While they have not discovered a cause-and-effect relationship between social media and depression, they have discovered social media use can be associated with an intensification of symptoms of depression, including a decrease in social activity and an increase in loneliness.4 For instance, a study published in Computers in Human Behaviour found the use of multiple social media sites is more strongly associated with depression than the amount of time spent online. According to the study, people who used more than seven social media platforms had more than three times the risk of depression than people who used two or fewer sites. Adolescents are frequently emotionally invested in their social media accounts. Not only do they feel pressured to respond quickly online, but they also feel pressured to have perfect photos and well-written posts, all of which can cause a great deal of anxiety. Some studies have found that the larger a teen's social circle online, the more anxiety they feel about keeping up with everything online. 5. It takes a lot of time and effort to keep up with the unspoken rules and culture of each social media platform. As a result, this puts additional pressure on teens, which can cause feelings of anxiety. Additionally, if teens commit a faux pas online, this can also be an extreme source of anxiety. Many teens, especially girls, are prone to worrying about what others might think of them and how they will respond when they see them next. Then factor in cyberbullying, slut-shaming, and other cruel online behaviors, and you can see why social media can be a toxic source of anxiety for many teens. 5. Sometimes teens spend so many hours on social media that they begin to lose valuable sleep. Consequently, this sleep loss can lead to moodiness, a drop in grades, lack of physical activity, and overeating, as well as exacerbate existing problems like depression, anxiety, and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).4 In fact, research shows a strong link between increased screen time and the development of ADHD-related symptoms such as difficulty with focusing, emotional regulation, poor attention, hyperactivity, and getting enough sleep. 6. Additionally, one British study published in the Journal of Youth Studies surveyed 900 teens between the ages of 12 and 15 about their social media use and its impact on sleep. What they found was one-fifth of teens said they "almost always" wake up during the night and log on to social media. 7. The study also revealed girls were significantly more likely than boys to wake up and check social media on their phones. In addition to reporting feeling tired all the time, they also reported being less happy on average than teens whose sleep was not disturbed by social media. Furthermore, teens require more sleep than adults, requiring at least eight to ten hours per night as opposed to seven or more for adults. So, logging onto social media in the middle of the night can be detrimental to their physical health as well. 8. For instance, aside from feeling tired and irritable, lack of sleep can make accidents more likely, lower the immune system and make it harder for teens to fight infections. 8. Jealousy and envy, while normal emotions, can wreak havoc on teen brains if they dwell on comparing themselves to their peers. They may fixate on something someone else has or experienced that they have not. Due to the way accounts are curated, it can appear to the reader that other people lead more exciting lives than they do, which only feeds feelings of inadequacy. 9. Unfortunately, what teens often do not realize is that people tend to only post their "highlight reel" on social media and often keep mundane or difficult experiences off the Internet. As a result, another person's life may look perfect online, but offline they have struggles just like anyone else. Still, it is easy for a teen to play the comparison game and start thinking everyone is happier or better off than they are. As a result, this can feed into depression, loneliness, anger, and a variety of other issues.9. What is more, envy, if not dealt with, sometimes leads to bullying and mean behavior. Some teens, particularly those that feel bad about themselves, target others because they are jealous of the target's clothes, body, boyfriend, success, or any number of other things. 10. While social media is a wonderful way to stay connected with friends and family, it is different from face-to-face communication. For instance, a teen cannot see a person's facial expressions or hear their tone of voice online. As a result, it is extremely easy for misunderstandings to occur, especially when people try to be funny or sarcastic online.3 Many teens spend so much time online checking their statuses that they may forget to interact with the people right in front of them. For this reason, friendships and dating relationships can suffer when social media takes centre stage in a person's life. As a result, teens risk having relationships that are not deep or authentic.3. Teenagers who place a priority on social media will often focus on pictures they take to show how much fun they are having rather than focusing on having fun. The result is that their relationships and life satisfaction may suffer. From all the research presented here, and from the information available both online and in real life, it is clear that social media is a significant factor affecting teenagers' mental health, causing depression, anxiety, envy, and antisocial behavior; destroying friendships, families, and acquaintances; as well as making it very difficult to distinguish reality from fiction; and that, if not reigned in, social media can ruin not only your life but the lives of everyone and everything you love; and that, to avoid these consequences, you should use social media in moderation. With that said, two questions remain unanswered: what can you do to prevent social media from affecting your mental health, and what can you do to raise awareness about the effects social media can have on teenagers' mental health?