Introduction:
Social media in my understanding, is a platform that people from all works of life meet and interact, therefore impacting either negative or positive way of life to others. It is not a face to face interaction but it's done with the use of electronic gadgets. Social media's impact on adolescents mental health varies, with both the positive and significant negative risk. While social media can encourage and help in connection and also in the creation of mental health awareness, it also exposes adolescents to internet bullying, unreal comparisons, anxiety which is caused by lack of sleep, depression and unhealthy body image comparison.
The negative impact of social media are;
1.Cyber bullying (internet bullying ): social media can be a grooming ground for cyber bullying which is always brutal. In that scenario, people don't filter what they say, each word is meant to hurt the person targeted. I saw a Nigerian movie, where a celebrity was bullied on social media for a a crime he didn't even commit, he was dragged on all social media platforms, causing him to give up on himself and wallowing in depression. It can lead to anxiety and low self esteem and if not helped can even result in the victim having suicidal thoughts.
Unreal comparisons: social media often portray an ideal version of reality which often lead to negative self comparisons, body hate, especially when one is always body shamed and happens to go on social media to see videos of a person with a good or perfect shape, in my opinion, low self esteem starts from there and also feeling of not being good enough. During my secondary school days, I was extremely thin with no curves at all but I believe I was just growing, I was often bullied with words by my friends then, body shamed and mocked because I always had a big smile on my face, I also have a gap tooth which my friends told me that each time I smiled, I resembled a gorilla and that alone made me to stop smiling. Also seeing people of my age looking gorgeous on social media made me believe them.
Social media often make adolescents feel excluded when their peers post their experiences, events and happenings of their life and they themselves haven't gotten to that stage yet. It sometimes makes them feel like they are missing out on the things that life has to offer.
Lack of sleep: the light from the phone screen affects a person's sleep, therefore, causing harm to a person's mental health and overall well being.
Whenever I'm on my phone for a long time without sleeping or maybe sleep late, I'll definitely wake up with a migraine.Addiction: some adolescents are addicted to social media, therefore neglecting other important areas of their lives creating a high chance of failure in that area . A student who is addicted to social media is prone to failure. Addicts of social media depend on it to be emotionally stable.
Exposure to negative graphic content e.g of such is pornographic pictures etc which can affect their mental health. Also risky behaviors which are only for professionals can be practiced by adolescents at home which is harmful and may lead to dire injuries.
Social media can also affect an adolescent mental health positively in ways like,
Connectivity: social media can create a way for adolescents to connect with other people either in their peer group or above their age who inturn impact them positively through interactions, positive tasks, support groups etc. it can help them build good relationship that will aid them in the future. Most especially, it helps loners to find like minded people like themselves. When I got admitted into the university, I didn't know who to talk to and being someone who's shy to relate with strangers, I found it difficult to navigate but was helped by the connection I created on social media with a senior colleague.
Creativity: social media allows adolescents to be creative and express themselves in a way that will boost their morale, business or whatever craft they are into to a wider audience. It helps those with low self esteem to regain their confidence, most especially when their crafts or themselves receive good commendations on social media.
What to do to help:
Adolescents should be encouraged to limit the time they spend on social media but rather focus their energy on offline interactions and activities.
They should also be taught to critically analyze and dissect every content they watch as watching the wrong content can affect their mental health.
Parents should be involved in the social life of their adolescents, thereby, teaching them good comments and respectful communication.
Finally, parents should encourage and guide their adolescents on the importance of face to face interactions and activities, this will help in healthy social development and also help parents know when their child is addicted to social media and what content they see, therefore aiding them seek professional help.