There are many ways social media can be beneficial for mental health, but it has to be

used properly. Some ways social media is beneficial is because many use it to have social skill

improvement, develop character resilience, and use it for work ("Social Media and..." par. 1). By

practicing their skills online, it prepares them for their in person interactions/conversations.

Social media is also a very interactive system and is user friendly. In the article “Social Media

Use and Mental Health Among Young Adults” author Chloe Berryman and others state, "Social

media use is an important interactive tool for youth and young adults and, unlike more traditional

media, users play an active role in creating and shaping the experience” (par. 2). In short, she is

saying that social media has become important for communication and users are important in

creating the experience.

Another benefit of having social media, and possibly the biggest benefit, is the ability to

communicate with whoever onewants, whenever one wants, wherever one is. Social media can

allow people to communicate frequently, unlike traditional communication options such as

letters; this leads to staying in touch with family or friends that people may not see very often.

This constant online communication can also prepare people for real life conversations or

interactions and make them feel more comfortable when they are in those situations. Berryman et

al. explain,"Moreover, social media use is an important element of the developmental process for

youth and young adults as they interact with others and present their forming identities online"

(par. 2). To summarize, she is saying that social media is important for young adults to interact

and show/improve their identities online, which is important for teens to become more

comfortable with talking to others.

Communication is a very big benefit of social media, however, there are downsides to the

communication usage of social media. In Kalpana Srivasta et al.’s essay “Social Media and
Mental Health Changes,” they make it known, "The time spent in face-to-face interaction and

interpersonal relationships has been replaced by computer screens. This may lead to reduction in

family time spent together and a feeling of loneliness" (par. 9). Srivasta and the other authors are

saying that the lack of face-to-face communication that is created by social media and the

Internet causes feelings of loneliness to some individuals; Lonliness can also be caused by not

always having access to social media platforms . People become addicted to their phones and

social media when they do not have access to them; henceforth they become lonely. Berryman et

al. add, "Some studies have indicated that social media use may be tied to negative mental health

outcomes, including suicidality, loneliness and decreased empathy" (par. 1). Loneliness might

not sound like a huge deal, but in reality it can lead to mental health problems, such as anxiety

and depression; depression and anxiety can also stem from overuse of social media and

technology.

Depression is a huge problem in today’s world, especially in teens. Depression can be

caused by loneliness and feeling left out of a certain group or event; however, it can also be

caused by insecurity. This insecurity could stem from people showing off the items that they

own, or even by someone that a person thinks is better than them in some form. According to

Srivasta et al., “Evaluation of FB usage among college-age students revealed that one or more

FB usage variables were associated with major depressive disorder, dysthymia, bipolar-mania,

and narcissism" (par. 8). To explain, there was a survey done that showed that the amount of

likes, comments, and shares that a teen got on their social media account, had a link to

depression and other mental health problems. Social media accounts are someone's “higlight

reel” or somewhere to sort of show off, and this can make others get jealous and feel insecure

about themselves because they start to compare their lives to another person instead of focusing
on themselves. In the video “Impact of Social Media…” Katanu Mbevi states, "The highlight

reel is the cause of most teenagers' insecurities today, and that is because we are always

comparing our struggles.” By comparing someone’s life to another’s, they become jealous and

also insecure about themselves which leads to them constantly worrying about others and this

can cause anxiety.

The second major mental health problem in teens, and maybe the biggest, is anxiety.

Anxiety can be caused by a lot of things, however, one of things that can cause it is social media,

and more specific, not having access to it. In the video “Impact of Social Media…” Mbevi points

out, "When we do not have access to social media or our phones, this turns into a social anxiety."

People worry when they do not have their phone available to them for long periods of time, and

for some people, even short periods of time. They get so addicted to these apps that they have to

constantly be worried about what other people are posting or interacting with. Social media apps

that most people have are designed to hook them and keep them hooked, making them constantly

check their phone. They do this by notifying you when anything happens, whether it is a new

post, new likes, or new comments. This keeps people coming back to the apps constantly and

always stressing about what has happened on their page.

Depression and anxiety caused by these apps can be the reason some people harm

themselves. Since social media’s popularity has been increasing, the amount of self harm in teens

has also been on the increase, and many believe these two things have a connection to each other.

In Savannah Guthrie et al.’s essay “Hidden Dangers: The New Warning and Research about

Smartphones, Social Media and Their Impact on Your Child's Mental Health,” they talk about

the increase in self-harm reports and explain:

[T]eens have really increased their self-harm reporting, have been hospitalized because of
 self-harm and hospitalized because of suicide attempts, and suicide deaths have gone up,

as well. And so they think there is a correlation between those two. They cannot say one

causes the other. But they think there is a connection because again, as these smartphones

have increased in use, so have the reports in hospitalizations. (par. 9)

No one knows exactly if social media and mental health problems coorelate with eachother, but

there are many studies trying to figure this problem out. If teens did not have access to social

media then teens would possibly be happier and depression numbers would go down. Not only

does problematic social media use negatively impact mental health, but studies show that it could

also lead to increase in psycological distress (Lin et al. par. 9). People begin to stress which

leads to their emotional well being to decrease, and as the numbers of usage in these apps have

gone up, so have the self harm numbers.