Studies have found strong links between excessive social media use and mental health disorders such as anxiety, depression and loneliness. Is social media the culprit for the deterioration of mental health?


In recent years, our society has become ever more consumed by social media and with websites that allow virtual social interaction. When millions faced boredom in lockdown, businesses fell to their lowest, whereas social networking was thriving. 

 

Social media was viewed as a great way to connect with people in those two years, as many people were still able to maintain their relationships online. It gave people something to do in their state of ennui, but it only fuelled the user count for numerous social media apps, namely TikTok, Instagram, Snapchat and Youtube.

 

Whilst the results initially appeared positive and many thought it would relieve their mental health-related loneliness issues, in lieu it would do the opposite and turn to crumble in the mere blink of an eye. As restrictions were lifted, this new technology remained, and rapidly, it turned into an addiction. When updates were constantly put out to enhance these apps, it only drew in more of the vulnerable users.

 

The app developers had the results they longed for in a matter of months. There was no valid reason for people to stop using social media. Even after the pandemic had come to a halt, real-life social interaction was at an all-time low, and people were attached to their screens more than ever. These apps truly had their audience hooked for a matter of years. The social connections people had were abolished through the forceful introduction of apps that encouraged networking to such a great extent, that people practically lived on their phones. 

 

This lack of social interaction elicits many behavioural changes, including severe negative consequences on both physical and mental health. These effects are said to be” even more profound in young adults and teenagers”, who at that age go through a “sensitive period for social interaction”, according to the National Library of Medicine.

 

Perhaps the two-year hiatus in social lives was arguably due to the prolonged pandemic, which is said to be the main culprit for provoking a prevalent, dominant social media addiction. The ones who were eager to get back out again very quickly discovered social media apps, and just like that, socialising in the real world was swiftly taken for granted.

 

The data also shows the conspicuous evidence, and the correlation between social media use and lockdown restrictions. Recent graphs show that 2020 and 2021 saw the highest rates of user growth since Whatsapp’s launch, with an abrupt jump of over 500 million users when the country was secreted indoors.
It’s becoming a gradual realisation. Studies also present the results that more than 89% of people feel as if social media has negatively impacted their mental health.




The fact is that we got too used to having a diminished social life, and we were forced to “feel at home” in this situation for just under two and a half years. Meet-ups in the park turned into Google Meets, or Whatsapp video calls. Picnics turned into UberEats. And we felt the consequences, our globe’s virtual addiction fuelled self-harm, perfectionism, feeling bad about ourselves due to unrealistic standards, suicide, depression and anxiety. The list goes on. We now just use social media to eradicate our feelings of isolation, which will only persist. It’s truly corrupting our lives and modern society in ways nobody could have ever expected. And it might be too late to think the effects are reversible.